AOP ASSOCIATES LTD

What AOP ASSOCIATES LTD does

AOP Associates Ltd is a privately held surveying and inspection services firm founded in 2018 and headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland. The company operates across four interconnected service pillars: Surveying and Inspections (3D laser scanning, elevation and facade surveys, surface regularity, measured building surveys, topographical surveys, conservation/heritage documentation, and NET/GROSS internal area referencing compliant with RICS measuring code); Modelling and CAD (BIM/Revit modeling in RVT format, utility surveys 3D conversion, 3D CAD modeling, sun studies, and digitising of legacy drawings); Photography (360° photography, virtual tours, and time-lapse videos); and UAV Surveys and Inspections (CAA-certified aerial photography and aerial LiDAR).

The firm's technological foundation combines laser scanners, total stations, and CAA-permitted fixed-wing and multi-rotor UAV platforms (with Permission for Commercial Operations), enabling point cloud data capture tied to Ordnance Survey Grid and deliverables across multiple formats (DWG, DGN, RVT, PTS, E57, RCP). It targets domestic and commercial property owners, real estate developers, architects and engineers, construction contractors, and heritage/conservation organizations, with use cases spanning planning applications, refurbishment documentation, structural inspections of hard-to-reach areas, and heritage preservation.

The business model is project-based professional services with quote-driven pricing; the company sells directly via phone, email, and website contact forms, offers free consultations, and welcomes tender invitations. It operates as a single-office, founder-led firm with no disclosed funding, no institutional investment, no partnerships, and a geographic footprint limited to Scotland within the United Kingdom.

Name

AOP ASSOCIATES LTD

Legal name

AOP Associates Ltd

Website

https://aopassociates.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

AOP Associates Ltd is a privately held Edinburgh-based surveying and inspection firm offering 3D laser scanning, BIM modeling, UAV/aerial LiDAR surveys, and photography services to property owners, architects, construction firms, and heritage bodies across Scotland on a project-based, quote-driven basis.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Edinburgh

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Surveying and Inspection Services: Professional surveying services including topographical surveys, Measured Building Surveys (MBS), 3D laser scanning, elevation and facade surveys, surface regularity assessments, and NET/GROSS internal area referencing. Services are quoted on a project basis.
2. Modelling and CAD Services: 3D modeling services including CAD modeling, BIM, sun studies, and utility surveys with 3D conversion. Deliverables include DWG/DGN files and Revit models in RVT format.
3. Photography and Media Services: Photography services including virtual tours, 360 photography, and time-lapse videos for real estate and construction industry projects.
4. UAV Surveys and Inspections: Drone-based surveying and inspection services using CAA-certified pilots. Includes aerial photography, LiDAR surveys, and data acquisition from inaccessible locations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

AOP Associates is an Edinburgh-based surveying and inspection services firm that delivers 3D laser scanning, topographical surveys, measured building surveys, elevation and facade surveys, BIM/Revit modeling, and UAV/aerial LiDAR surveys. The company provides the complete workflow from field data capture using laser scanners, total stations, and CAA-certified drones through processing to final deliverables in CAD, BIM, and point cloud formats. Services are offered to clients across real estate, construction, heritage preservation, and infrastructure sectors in the United Kingdom.

Product overview

AOP Associates is a surveying and inspection services company based in Edinburgh offering four interconnected service pillars: Surveying & Inspections (3D Laser Scanning, Elevation/Facade Surveys, Surface Regularity, Measured Building Surveys, Conservation & Heritage, NET/GROSS Area Referencing, Topographical Surveys); Modelling & CAD (BIM & Revit Modelling, Utility Surveys 3D Conversion, 3D CAD Modelling, Sun Studies, Digitising); Photography (360° Photography, Virtual Tours, Time Lapse Videos); and UAV Surveys & Inspections (Aerial Photography, Aerial LiDAR, UAV Surveys). These services are delivered as professional consultancy offerings using specialized equipment including laser scanners, UAVs, and CAD/BIM software, serving sectors including real estate, construction, heritage preservation, and infrastructure.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• 3D Laser Scanning Collects accurate point cloud data using laser scanners to produce 3D scans of building elevations, floor plans, tunnel profiling, and road/rail bridges, reducing data collection errors and site revisit needs.
• Elevation and Facade Surveys Accurately measures building elevations to register all visible architectural and structural elements such as doors, windows, parapets, roofs, and columns, converting data into 2D or 3D CAD drawings.
• Surface Regularity Measures surface waviness and flatness quality using high-definition 3D laser scanning, presenting results as height grids, contour maps, or heat-maps relative to a fixed datum.
• Measured Building Surveys Produces drawings presenting structure and architectural features of buildings, including floor plans and cross sections in 2D DWG format for domestic extensions, planning applications, refurbishment, and space allocation.
• Conservation and Heritage Provides 3D scanning and documentation services for historic preservation and cultural heritage, supporting examination, research, and preventive conservation with output in IMP, PTS, E57, and RCP formats.
• NET/GROSS Internal Area Referencing Provides property measurement services following RICS measuring code including Net Internal Area (NIA), Gross Internal Area (GIA), Gross External Area (GEA), portfolio measurement, and retail zoning surveys for commercial property valuation.
• Topographical Surveys Creates accurate 2D or 3D maps showing all man-made and natural features with ground level grids and heights for domestic, commercial, industrial properties, and land developments.
• BIM & Revit Modeling Provides Building Information Modelling services creating and managing digital information about built assets, improving communication and design coordination, with deliverables in RVT format.
• Utility Surveys 3D Conversion Identifies and locates subsurface utility infrastructure including pipes, cables, ducts, sewers, and drainage, converting traditional 2D utility survey data into CAD 3D models.
• 3D CAD Modelling Creates digital twins of surfaces or objects using 2D CAD drawings, hard copies, or laser scan data, delivering final models as 3D DWG/DGN files for engineering, architecture, and visualization applications.
• Sun Studies Visualizes natural light and shadow effects on building exteriors and interiors, presenting sun movement phases during specific days at given locations, delivered as rendered images or short animations.
• Digitising Converts paper drawings or maps into digital CAD format using tracing techniques for updating historic map data, archaeological research, and digitising old title deeds and estate plans.
• 360° Photography Captures entire surrounding scenes using dedicated equipment for real estate, retail, hospitality, tourism, and service sectors, providing equirectangular images for virtual tour creation.
• Virtual Tours Creates photographic simulations of locations composed of multiple 360° images viewable online via PC, tablet, or phone, used for marketing, research, historic preservation, and asset management.
• Time Lapse Videos Documents site development progress by capturing photos at regular intervals (hourly, daily, or weekly) from fixed positions and compressing extended time periods into short videos for project records and marketing.
• UAV Surveys and Inspection Provides drone-based data acquisition from hard-to-reach and dangerous locations using CAA-certified pilots, reducing costs by eliminating need for abseiling teams, cranes, and scaffolding while enabling frequent inspections.
• UAV Aerial Photography Captures elevated property images from drone platforms providing birds-eye views showing property size, garden extent, and setting for real estate marketing on platforms like Rightmove, Prime Location, and Zoopla.
• Aerial LiDAR Offers aerial LiDAR surveys using the latest drone technology with CAA Permission for Commercial Operations (PfCO), delivering 3D point cloud data tied to Ordnance Survey Grid.

Quantifiable outcome

• Significantly reduces costs by eliminating need for abseiling teams, cranes, scaffolding, and road closure permits for inspections
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Topcon Positioning Group: Global manufacturer of surveying instruments (total stations, GNSS, laser scanners, UAV) used by firms like AOP — represents the upstream equipment ecosystem and an incumbent alternative for in-house capability.
• Trimble: Global positioning, modeling and surveying technology provider spanning GNSS, total stations, scanning, BIM and UAV — broad incumbent across the same value chain AOP operates in.
• Leica Geosystems (Hexagon): Global provider of laser scanning, GNSS, total stations and UAV systems — incumbent supplier of the core hardware AOP relies on, and a broad surveying solutions player.
• Cyient: Global engineering and geospatial services firm offering surveying, mapping, LiDAR and inspection across infrastructure, utilities and rail — broad incumbent with overlap to AOP's laser scanning and UAV service lines.

Direct peers

• MGISS: UK geospatial and inspection services firm combining surveying, UAV data capture and spatial data management for infrastructure and environment clients — comparable to AOP in the UAV-led survey niche.
• Survey Solutions: UK-wide surveying firm providing topographical, measured building, utility and UAV surveys to construction and property sectors — comparable offering to AOP across the same service pillars with a larger geographic footprint.
• Plowman Craven: UK-headquartered surveying and measurement consultancy offering laser scanning, BIM, UAV inspections and measured building surveys to construction, infrastructure and property clients — directly comparable service stack to AOP but at national scale.
• LandScope: Surveying and inspection firm offering 3D laser scanning, topographical, utility and UAV surveys with multi-region UK coverage — comparable in capability stack to AOP.
• Severn Partnership: UK surveying consultancy offering 3D laser scanning, topographical surveys, BIM, utility detection and heritage documentation — directly overlapping AOP's core service pillars including heritage/conservation work.
• Malcolm Hughes Land Surveyors: UK-wide land and measured building surveying firm delivering topographical, elevation, 3D laser scanning and BIM outputs to construction, property and infrastructure clients — overlapping service mix to AOP.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/aop-associates

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 AOP ASSOCIATES LTD