CIDCO

Name

CIDCO

Legal name

Centre Interdisciplinaire de Développement en Cartographie des Océans

Website

https://cidco.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Marine Geomatics and Hydrographic Research

NAICS

Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services (541360)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTLAHAFAE

Nautical Safety, Navigation Aids & Hydrographic Services

Transportation & Logistics/Ports, Terminals & Maritime Services/Port & Harbor Operations (Harbor Master, Vessel Scheduling, Towage Coordination)

Keywords

• Marine geomatics services
• Hydrographic survey equipment
• Bathymetric data acquisition
• Underwater infrastructure inspection
• Hydrospatial research

Headquarters

HQ city

Rimouski

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Professional Training Programs: CIDCO offers internationally recognized Category B hydrographic training program compliant with IHO S-5 standards. The 40-week program costs $17,680 CAD and includes online theoretical coursework and on-site field training. Additional customized training programs are offered on HydroBall technology and other specialized topics.
2. Consulting Services: CIDCO professionals provide specialized technical support for specific hydrography mandates including knowledge transfer, technological change support, fieldwork support, and data processing assistance. Services include calibration, conformity testing, and hydrographic operations support.
3. Technology Commercialization: Proprietary technologies including HydroBall® and HydroBlock® are commercialized through partner M2Ocean. This generates licensing/royalty revenue through the distribution partner network.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

CIDCO is a non-profit R&D center specializing in marine geomatics and hydrography. It develops proprietary autonomous bathymetric data acquisition platforms (HydroBall®, HydroBlock®, HYDROMAP), underwater vehicles (IVER3), and specialized software (DepthStar, Open Sidescan, LISPAC, DepthGuard) for mapping, inspecting, and monitoring marine environments. It also delivers IHO/FIG/IBSC-recognized Category B hydrographic training and specialized consulting services in calibration, conformity testing, and field data acquisition.

Product overview

CIDCO is a non-profit research and development organization specializing in marine geomatics and hydrospatial technologies. The product portfolio centers on autonomous bathymetric data acquisition solutions (HydroBall buoy, HydroBlock module), marine robotics (HYDROMAP drone, IVER3 AUV), hydrographic vessel (F.-J. Saucier), and specialized software (DepthStar, Open Sidescan, DepthGuard). The HydroBall and HydroBlock systems form the core of CIDCO's pre-qualified survey platforms for traditional and non-traditional environments, complemented by the HYDROMAP drone for above/below water port inspections and the IVER3 AUV for underwater surveillance. Supporting software includes DepthStar for HydroBall data processing and Open Sidescan as open-source sidescan sonar processing. The 2.0 versions of HydroBall and HydroBlock integrate web platforms for automated data acquisition, transfer, and processing. CIDCO also offers Category B hydrographic training recognized by the International Hydrographic Organization.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• HydroBall® Small autonomous bathymetric buoy (40 cm diameter, under 13 kg, 24+ hour battery) that maps non-traditional areas including rivers, canyons, reservoirs, ultra-coastal zones, and remote regions. Integrates GNSS L1/L2 receiver, mini inertial unit, and single-beam echosounder; meets IHO S-44 standards. Distributed by M2Ocean.
• HydroBlock® Compact autonomous bathymetric box that transforms any boat equipped with single-beam sonar into an intelligent collaborative mapping tool. Enables real-time bathymetric data collection, processing, and diffusion. Distributed by M2Ocean.
• HYDROMAP

Quantifiable outcome

• AI technology processes thousands of seabed images in minutes, compared to traditional manual analysis taking days
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

AI capability7 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• M2Ocean (Solutions M2Océan Inc.)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorExclusive distribution partner for HydroBall® and HydroBlock® products. Handles all sales, customer inquiries, and product fulfillment for these CIDCO-developed technologies. Contact: [email protected], +1.506.449.3109.
• Ocean RiotcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpin-off startup from CIDCO commercializing DepthGuard platform for sediment monitoring. Founded to bring CIDCO-developed technologies to market. Contact: [email protected], +1.418.509-2611.
• Université LavalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner for LISPAC project on LiDAR calibration. Collaboration on geodesy and geoinformatics research. CIDCO team includes members with Laval degrees.
• Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHome institution for CIDCO, providing academic framework and collaboration through Institut des sciences de la mer de Rimouski (ISMER).
• Service hydrographique du Canada (Canadian Hydrographic Service)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational hydrographic office, key partner for standards alignment and data integration. CHA scholarships supported by this partnership.
• Hydro-QuébeccoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInitial requestor for HydroBall development in 2008. Ongoing collaboration on dam inspection projects (Romaine-2), LISPAC calibration research, and technology validation trials.
• Pêches et Océans Canada (DFO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFunding partner for AI project ($1.8M, 3-year initiative) and crowd-sourced bathymetry in northern Canada through COMREN network.
• Université de New Hampshire (USA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational academic partner in LISPAC project, contributing to naval platform LiDAR calibration research.
• Université Memorial (Newfoundland, Canada)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner in LISPAC project for LiDAR system calibration research.
• HEIG-VD (Switzerland)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational academic partner in LISPAC project, contributing expertise to LiDAR calibration methodologies.
• CARIS (Teledyne CARIS)coreTechnology or IntegrationSoftware integration partner. Caris HIPS/SIPS used for hydrographic data processing training. Collaboration on BaseEditor module development for vertical surface analysis.
• R2SoniccoreTechnology or IntegrationProvider of multibeam sonar technology (R2Sonic 2020) used in HYDROMAP system for port infrastructure inspection.
• Polytechnique MontréalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner providing AI and image processing expertise for the $1.8M marine stock assessment project.
• Association canadienne d'hydrographie (Canadian Hydrographic Association)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProfessional association providing scholarships ($2,000 each) to hydrographic students and supporting professional development.
• COMREN NetworkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoastal and Ocean Mapping Research Network for northern Canada, supporting crowd-sourced bathymetry pilot project.
• Corporation de gestion de la Voie Maritime du Saint-LaurentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSt. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation, partner for MASS project and sediment monitoring surveys.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• HYPACK: HYPACK (Xylem brand) provides hydrographic survey software for data acquisition, processing, and chart production across single-beam, multibeam, and LiDAR workflows. HydroBall and HydroBlock are explicitly compatible with HYPACK, positioning it as a direct comparable in survey data acquisition software.
• Exail (formerly iXblue): Exail is a French company producing high-performance inertial navigation systems (Hydrins, Phins) and autonomous marine vehicles. CIDCO uses Exail/iXblue inertial systems in the F.-J. Saucier vessel and LISPAC project, making it a directly comparable provider of marine navigation and autonomy technology.
• Teledyne CARIS: Teledyne CARIS is a leading developer of hydrographic and marine geospatial software (HIPS/SIPS, Bathy Database) used for processing bathymetric data. CIDCO has collaborated with CARIS on BaseEditor module development and integrates CARIS in its training program, making it a directly comparable hydrographic software peer and technology partner.
• QPS (Quality Positioning Services): QPS provides hydrographic and oceanographic software (QINSy, Qimera, Fledermaus) for survey acquisition, processing, and visualization. It directly competes with CIDCO's DepthStar and Open Sidescan tools in the hydrographic data processing segment, serving similar port, dredging, and charting customers.
• R2Sonic: R2Sonic manufactures high-resolution multibeam sonar systems (Sonic 2020 series) used in hydrographic surveys. CIDCO's HYDROMAP drone integrates the R2Sonic 2020 multibeam, making it a directly comparable technology provider in the marine acoustic sensing space CIDCO serves.
• EIVA: EIVA is a Danish software company specializing in hydrographic surveying, oceanographic, and geophysical data acquisition and processing software (NaviSuite). Like CIDCO, it targets hydrographic survey professionals and ports with integrated software-hardware solutions for bathymetric data workflows.
• Seafloor Systems: Seafloor Systems manufactures autonomous surface vehicles (EchoBoat) used in hydrographic surveys. CIDCO's HYDROMAP drone is built on the Seafloor EchoBoat ASV, making it a directly comparable ASV platform provider serving the same survey and port inspection customers.

Emerging players

• Valeport: Valeport is a UK-based manufacturer of oceanographic and hydrographic instruments, including sound velocity probes, current meters, and bathymetric sensors. As a niche specialist it overlaps with CIDCO's marine measurement technology focus but serves primarily instrumentation rather than integrated survey systems.

Broad incumbents

• Kongsberg Maritime: Kongsberg Maritime is a large, established provider of multibeam sonars (EM series), AUVs (HUGIN), and integrated hydrographic solutions. As a broad incumbent, it competes with CIDCO across multibeam sonars (vs. R2Sonic integration), AUVs (vs. IVER3), and hydrographic software ecosystems, while offering much wider portfolio depth.
• Fugro: Fugro is a global leader in hydrographic survey, geotechnical, and geo-data services for offshore energy, infrastructure, and government clients. As a broad incumbent, it competes with CIDCO's consulting and survey services at scale, with the advantage of multi-region operating capacity that CIDCO's 11-person team cannot match.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• GitHubgithub.com/CIDCO-dev/OpenSidescan
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC40j77b4vDuazjBoQ-0GokQ
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cidco-ca

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 CIDCO