What SEMA Software does

SEMA Software (legal entity: SEMA GmbH Computer Software und Hardware-Vertrieb) is a German CAD/CAM software vendor founded in 1984 and headquartered in Wildpoldsried, Bavaria. The company develops a 2D/3D design, planning, and calculation platform purpose-built for the timber construction, stair design, and sheet metal processing industries. Its modular product suite is organized around four subscription packages — SEMA Carpentry, SEMA Timber Construction, SEMA Prefab, and SEMA Roofing and Sheet Metal — with add-on modules covering stair design, load planning, and CNC export. The platform is differentiated by deep domain specialization, including point cloud scanner integration, BVX/BTL/BTLx machine export for automated CNC timber manufacturing, IFC/Open-BIM interoperability with Archicad, Revit, AutoCAD, and Tekla, and an augmented reality interface (Timberplan/HoloLens) for prefabrication workflows.

SEMA operates a pure subscription licensing model with annual billing and quote-based pricing, complemented by a 14-day in-app Test Center trial for existing licensees. Go-to-market is channel-led: the company maintains direct regional offices in Germany, Austria, France, Italy, Canada, the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, and Romania, supplemented by local distribution partners (e.g., SEHA EDV in Switzerland, S.C Lukács Manufacture in Romania) and a wholly owned Italian subsidiary (SEMA Italia Srl) across 17+ countries. Demand generation runs through seminars, trade fair participation (e.g., Ligna), a 9-language website, and SEMA College, an e-learning platform available to subscription customers. Customer support is delivered via a hotline, TeamViewer remote sessions, and a peer community (SEMA Forum).

The customer base spans enterprise and mid-market timber construction companies, prefabrication manufacturers, roofing and sheet metal contractors, and carpentry businesses. The company is privately held with no external funding disclosed in the source data and is led by three Managing Directors (Thomas Gartner, Thomas Surwald, Jennifer Bodenseh). Recent product activity includes a Version 26.1 release in 2025 and the introduction of "SEMA aura," an AI-powered offering listed on the German product page.

Name

SEMA Software

Legal name

SEMA GmbH Computer Software und Hardware-Vertrieb

Website

https://sema-soft.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

SEMA Software is a German vendor of 2D/3D CAD/CAM software purpose-built for timber construction, stair design, and sheet metal processing, sold via subscription through regional offices and partners across 17+ European countries and Canada.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Construction Design Software

SIC

Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373), Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)

akta.pro primary industry

Building Information Modeling (BIM) & Digital Design Services (BPAHAKAK)

Keywords

• CAD/CAM software
• Timber construction
• Stair design
• Prefabrication software
• Sheet metal processing

Headquarters

HQ city

Wildpoldsried

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices24 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Subscription Licenses: SEMA operates primarily on a subscription licensing model. Subscription packages include SEMA Carpentry, SEMA Timber Construction, SEMA Prefab, and SEMA Roofing and Sheet Metal. Customers can also purchase add-ons to extend functionality. The software is available with a 14-day free trial through the in-app Test Center for existing customers with valid online licenses.
2. Add-on Modules: Additional specialized modules available as add-ons to the core subscription packages, expanding capabilities in areas such as staircase design, prefabrication, and sheet metal processing.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

SEMA Software develops and sells a 2D/3D CAD/CAM software platform purpose-built for timber construction, stair design, and sheet metal processing. The platform combines 3D CAD design with planning and calculation tools to execute entire projects in a single seamless process, sold as subscription packages (Carpentry, Timber Construction, Prefab, Roofing and Sheet Metal) plus add-ons and an AI-powered extension (SEMA aura).

Product overview

SEMA Software offers a modular 3D CAD/CAM software ecosystem for timber construction, stair design, and sheet metal processing. The core product SEMA Software combines 3D CAD design with planning and calculation tools, enabling complete project execution in one seamless process. The portfolio is organized into four main solution packages: SEMA Carpentry (for carpentry professionals), SEMA Timber Construction (for timber structural design and prefabrication), SEMA Prefab (for industrial prefabricated building), and SEMA Roofing and Sheet Metal (for roofing and facade systems). Add-on modules include SEMA College (online learning platform), Test Center (14-day trial feature), Tools (manuals and support utilities), and comprehensive Documentation. The German site also mentions SEMA aura, an AI-powered offering. The software supports extensive file exchange formats including BTL, BTLx, BVX, and IFC for Open-BIM integration, and is available in multiple European languages.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SEMA Software (3D CAD/CAM) The flagship 3D CAD/CAM software solution combining design software with planning and calculation tools for timber construction, stair design, and sheet metal work. Enables execution of entire projects in one seamless process with integrated CNC machine export, Open-BIM/IFC interoperability, point cloud integration, and AR via HoloLens.
• SEMA Carpentry Package Carpentry package providing specialized software for carpentry operations, including integrated workflows for roof design, rafter and purlin construction, roof layer management, covering and facade design, and joinery planning.
• SEMA Timber Construction Package Timber construction package for timber structural design and prefabricated timber building components, featuring dedicated timber frame construction software with 3D modeling, structural analysis, and CNC output capabilities for prefabricated timber buildings.
• SEMA Prefab Package Prefabrication package for industrial prefabricated building construction, providing automated element creation, wall and floor panel production, factory-based manufacturing workflows, and a loading manager for precise placement of prefabricated elements into predefined loading volumes.
• SEMA Roofing and Sheet Metal Package Roof covering and facade package for metal roofing, sheet metal, and facade design, including CAD design, bending profile creation, and semi-automatic covering calculation that enables components to be positioned directly at the desired point of use in the project.
• SEMA College Online learning platform with various courses, learning paths, tips and tricks for SEMA software users. Available to SEMA subscription customers to support professional development and software adoption.
• SEMA aura AI-powered offering in the SEMA product lineup that extends the CAD/CAM platform with artificial intelligence capabilities for timber construction workflows.

Quantifiable outcome

• Semi-automatic covering calculation significantly accelerates the planning process for sheet metal contractors
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature14 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• BIMcollabcoreTechnology or IntegrationBIMcollab is a cloud-based platform for central management of user notes and issues across multiple software solutions including Archicad, Revit, AutoCAD, Tekla, and SEMA. SEMA has integrated BIMcollab for cross-discipline issue tracking and collaboration in BIM workflows.
• SEHA EDV-Maschinen-Anlagen-Vertriebs AGminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSEHA EDV-Maschinen-Anlagen-Vertriebs AG serves as SEMA's authorized sales partner in Switzerland, operating from Solothurn and representing SEMA software to the Swiss market.
• S.C Lukács Manufacture S.R.LminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorS.C Lukács Manufacture S.R.L, led by Lehel Lukács, serves as the commercial representative of SEMA in Romania, operating from Gheorgheni.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Autodesk Revit: Industry-standard general BIM platform widely used alongside SEMA for architectural and structural modeling. While not vertical-specialized, Revit's scale, R&D budget, and ongoing timber detailing improvements make it the most important broad incumbent competing for the same customers' software budgets.
• Graphisoft Archicad: Architectural BIM platform from Graphisoft (part of Nemetschek Group) — directly interoperable with SEMA via IFC, and a broader incumbent serving architects and timber construction firms across Europe with a comparable geographic footprint.
• Nemetschek Group: European construction software group owning Allplan, Graphisoft Archicad, Solibri, and other BIM/CAD brands. Nemetschek represents the most likely strategic acquirer profile for SEMA and a key broader incumbent shaping the European construction software market.
• Trimble (Tekla Structures): Structural BIM software from Trimble serving steel and timber detailing, CNC output, and prefab — a broader incumbent that overlaps SEMA's Timber Construction and Prefab packages in larger structural engineering and prefab manufacturing accounts.

Direct peers

• Dietrich's: Long-standing German timber construction CAD/CAM software serving carpentry and prefab workshops with design-to-CNC workflows — comparable to SEMA in market segment, target customer profile (carpenters and timber constructors), and geographic stronghold.
• HSBcad: Timber construction CAD/CAM solution (origin from Hundegger Software Busch, Denmark/Germany) covering framing, panel production, and CNC output — directly comparable to SEMA's Timber Construction and Prefab packages and another leading niche vertical peer.
• Cadwork: Switzerland-based CAD/CAM software focused on timber construction, stair design, and prefabricated wood elements — the closest direct competitor to SEMA Software in the German- and French-speaking European timber CAD market, offering nearly identical domain verticals.
• Weto AG: German timber construction software providing 3D CAD and CNC programs for carpentry and timber frame builders — closely comparable niche peer to SEMA Carpentry and SEMA Timber Construction for German-speaking small and mid-sized workshops.

Emerging players

• 3D-S (cadwork's stair/elevator module group): Austrian and German specialist software vendors focusing on stair construction and timber/steel detail CAD — narrower-than-SEMA competitors serving overlapping customers in the German-speaking market and partially overlapping with SEMA Stair Designer.
• Hottgenroth Software: German construction software suite for cost estimation, planning, and timber/civil works — an adjacent smaller German competitor to SEMA focused on builder/contractor workflows with partial overlap in prefab and timber estimating use cases.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/semasoft.en

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SEMA Software