What Guard Automation AB does

Guard Automation is a Nordic industrial automation and IoT system integrator founded in 1982 and headquartered in Vara, Sweden, with primary operating entity Guard Automation AS in Norway and a regional entity Guard Automation AB in Sweden. The group employs more than 100 engineers (per company disclosure; firmographics lists 30 at the Swedish entity only) and operates in Norway, Sweden, and—following the November 2025 acquisition of X Automation—Denmark. Guard's core technology stack combines a central IoT data platform (Guard Cloud) with SCADA/PLC control systems (Guard Control) and operational technology cyber security products (Guard Cyber Security), delivered alongside engineering, installation, and 24/7 support services. The platform architecture unifies OT and IT data silos and is extended by specialized domain modules including Guard Treat Smart (machine-learning-based wastewater treatment optimization), Guard Street Smart (sensorless snowmelt predictive control), and Guard Field Smart (cloud-based optimization of artificial turf heating).

The business serves two primary verticals: Water & Environment (municipal water utilities, wastewater treatment, pump stations, aquaculture, biogas) and Energy & Manufacturing (machine builders, district heating/cooling, food and pharma processing). According to the company, 37% of Norwegian municipalities have selected Guard as their preferred automation supplier over the past three years, and a Ringsaker Municipality case study documents the consolidation of 140 operator panels onto a centralized control platform. Revenue mechanics combine professional services (custom automation engineering, IT/electrical engineering, control panel assembly, installation) with recurring streams (IoT and data analytics subscriptions, product licensing for proprietary modules, 24/7 service contracts). Pricing is quote-based with multi-year contracts; no public pricing or revenue figures are disclosed. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales with direct engagement and case-study-led demand generation; the company is AVEVA-certified and ISO 9001 certified, with pre-qualifications in Achilles, KraftCERT, SWAN, and Sinfra supporting public-sector and infrastructure tenders. The business is privately held with no disclosed external investors or funding rounds and has pursued growth primarily through acquisitions (X Automation in Denmark, November 2025; Holtec in Norway, January 2026).

Name

Guard Automation AB

Legal name

Guard Automation AS

Website

https://guardab.se

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Guard Automation is a Nordic industrial automation and IoT system integrator, founded in 1982, serving municipalities and industrial clients across water/wastewater, energy, and manufacturing sectors in Norway, Sweden, and Denmark with SCADA/PLC control systems, an IoT data platform, and ML-based optimization modules.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Automation

NAICS

Automatic Environmental Control Manufacturing for Residential, Commercial, and Appliance Use (334512)

SIC

Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373), Electrical Industrial Apparatus (3620), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Instrumentation, Controls & Automation (DCS/PLC/SCADA, SIS, Metering) (EUAEAFAC)

Keywords

• Industrial automation
• SCADA systems
• IoT platform
• Process control
• Industrial cybersecurity

Headquarters

HQ city

Not specified

HQ country

Norway

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Automation Engineering Services: Custom industrial automation engineering including design, integration, and deployment of control systems for water, energy, and manufacturing clients.
2. IoT & Data Analytics Solutions: IoT platform and analytics services enabling digital transformation of industrial operations.
3. Cyber Security Services: Industrial IT security consulting and implementation services.
4. Electrical Engineering & Installation: Control panel assembly and electrical installation services.
5. Product Licensing: Deployment of proprietary solutions including Guard Treat Smart, Guard Street Smart, and Guard Field Smart as standalone or integrated products.
6. Service & Support: 24/7 technical support services for deployed systems, available for additional charges depending on service level.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Guard Automation AB is a Nordic industrial automation and system integration supplier that designs, delivers, and supports custom control systems, IoT platforms, and OT cybersecurity solutions for municipal water utilities, energy providers, and industrial manufacturers. Its offering combines proprietary software products (Guard Cloud, Guard Control, Guard Cyber Security, and specialized smart modules) with engineering services spanning automation design, electrical installation, control panel assembly, consulting, and 24/7 support.

Product overview

Guard Automation AB offers a unified platform-plus-modules architecture centered on Guard Cloud, which serves as the central IoT platform collecting, analyzing, and visualizing data from IoT, OT, and IT systems. The core product suite includes Guard Control (SCADA and PLC systems) and Guard Cyber Security (OT security). Specialized smart modules — Guard Treat Smart (wastewater ML optimization), Guard Street Smart (sensorless snowmelt control), and Guard Field Smart (artificial turf heating optimization) — extend the platform for specific industrial applications. Services including Automation Engineering, IoT & Data Analytics, Industrial Cyber Security, Consulting, Electrical Engineering, Control Panel Assembly, Electrical Installation, and 24/7 Service & Support complement the product portfolio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Guard Cloud: IoT platform for collecting, analyzing and visualizing data from virtually any source, combining Industrial IoT, Operational Technology and Information Technology.
• Guard Control
• Guard Cyber Security
• Guard Treat Smart
• Guard Street Smart
• Guard Field Smart

Products and services

• Guard Cloud Central IoT platform that collects, analyzes, and visualizes data from virtually any source, unifying Internet of Things (IoT), Operational Technology (OT), and Information Technology (IT) into an open, scalable, and secure platform for industrial customers.
• Guard Control Robust and flexible SCADA and PLC concept for system integration and centralized, user-friendly, and agile control systems serving industrial automation customers.
• Guard Cyber Security Collection of products and services that protect network and information security for Operational Technology (OT), the technology that controls physical and critical industrial processes.
• Guard Treat Smart Machine learning model for wastewater treatment plants providing continuous monitoring of infiltration and inflow as well as optimized dosage of precipitant chemicals.
• Guard Street Smart Completely sensorless and predictive control system for snowmelt applications with market-leading energy efficiency and minimal cost of installation and maintenance.
• Guard Field Smart Energy-saving cloud-based service that continuously calculates the optimal power output for the underground heating of artificial turf while ensuring ideal pitch conditions in cold periods.
• Automation Engineering Services Custom industrial automation engineering service including design, integration, and deployment of control systems for water, energy, and manufacturing clients.
• IoT & Data Analytics Services IoT platform and analytics services enabling digital transformation of industrial operations through Guard Cloud and related data integration capabilities.
• Industrial IT & Cyber Security Services Consulting and project delivery of IT and electrical installations for industrial applications, including cyber security, communication infrastructure, data centers, back-up power, and CCTV.
• Consulting Services Consulting services supporting industrial automation and system integration projects for municipal and industrial clients.
• Electrical Engineering Services Electrical engineering services supporting industrial automation deployments, including design and implementation of electrical infrastructure for industrial clients.
• Control Panel Assembly Services Control panel assembly services for industrial automation control systems, serving Guard's municipal and industrial customers.
• Electrical Installation Services Electrical installation services for industrial automation projects, complementing engineering and control panel assembly offerings.
• Service & Support (24/7) 24/7 technical support services for deployed industrial automation systems, available for additional charges depending on service level.

Quantifiable outcome

• 37% of Norwegian municipalities have chosen Guard as preferred automation supplier over the past three years
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• AVEVAcoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2024AVEVA System Integrator Certified Partner for 2024, enabling Guard to deliver solutions based on AVEVA's industrial software platform for SCADA, HMI, and operations management.
• World's Largest Platform Suppliers (IT/OT)coreTechnology or IntegrationGuard partners with some of the world's largest platform suppliers within information and operational technology to secure reliability and safety of supplies while maintaining full flexibility and portability in control systems and data for clients.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• ABB: Global industrial automation and electrification company with strong presence in water, wastewater, and district heating. Competes with Guard for control systems and digitalization work in the same Nordic vertical segments as a broad incumbent.
• Siemens: Major industrial automation platform vendor (SIMATIC PLC, WinCC SCADA) with a large installed base in water/wastewater and energy. Competes with Guard as a platform-solution provider and offers adjacent portfolios that make it a broad incumbent in the same end markets.
• Schneider Electric: Industrial automation platform vendor (EcoStruxure) with strong water/wastewater and energy management offerings. Competes head-to-head with Guard-independent integrations where customers choose Schneider's bundled stack.
• AVEVA: Industrial software platform vendor (SCADA, HMI, operations management) and Guard's certified 2024 System Integrator Partner. As AVEVA expands its own systems-integration and cloud offerings, it is both a value-chain partner and a strategic competitor to Guard's integration business.
• Emerson: Industrial automation and process control vendor with a broad portfolio of SCADA, PLC, and control technologies. Competes with Guard at the platform layer across water, energy, and manufacturing end markets.

Direct peers

• Ramboll: Danish-headquartered engineering consultancy with deep Nordic water and wastewater expertise and a growing industrial digitalization offering. Competes with Guard for automation and digital transformation projects in the same Nordic municipal and industrial segments.
• Prevas: Swedish industrial automation and embedded systems company delivering control systems, IoT, and digitalization services to Nordic industrial and municipal clients. Closely comparable in product scope (SCADA/PLC/IoT) and geographic focus.
• AFRY: Swedish-headquartered engineering and design consultancy with a strong industrial automation and digitalization practice serving Nordic water, energy, and process industries. Like Guard, AFRY combines engineering services with proprietary digital solutions, making it a direct Nordic competitor for automation and IoT engagements.
• Sweco: Nordic engineering consultancy with active water, environment, and industrial automation practices that overlap with Guard's municipal and industrial customer base. Competes for similar automation, SCADA, and digitalization scopes across Norway, Sweden, and Denmark.
• ICONICS (Mitsubishi Electric): SCADA and HMI software vendor (now part of Mitsubishi Electric) whose products are deployed alongside Guard's integration work in water/wastewater and smart-city applications. Comparable as a specialist software vendor in the same stack.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@guardautomation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/guard-automation-ab

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

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 Guard Automation AB