hydro & meteo gmbh & co. kg

What hydro & meteo gmbh & co. kg does

hydro & meteo GmbH & Co. KG is a privately held German hydrometeorology specialist founded in 1999 and headquartered in Lübeck. The company processes and corrects precipitation data from weather radars and rain gauges, develops nowcasting and warning systems, and delivers climate analyses, expert opinions, and training for water-management professionals. Its proprietary software SCOUT handles radar error correction (clutter, beam blocking, attenuation, bright band), Z-R relationships, multi-radar compositing, rain-gauge calibration, and short-term precipitation forecasting, complemented by ScoutView for visualization, the SCOUT Niederschlagsportal for protected web access, and the Python-based Regenschreiber-App for ad-hoc gauge queries. The company maintains a unique NRW radar composite spanning from 2001 at 5-minute/1-km resolution, calibrated against more than 1,000 rain gauges, and powers operational portals for several federal-state environmental agencies and the LAWA Starkregenportal.

The company earns revenue through three streams: professional services and consulting (hydrometeorological analysis, expert opinions, training), one-time software licenses and support for SCOUT and ScoutView, and participation in publicly funded research projects (EU Horizon, BMBF, BMDV, mFUND, BMWK, Interreg, and the Austrian Klima- und Energiefonds). Go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven, targeting water associations, municipalities, federal and state agencies, and research institutions in Germany, with international reach into Austria, the Netherlands, Denmark, France, Portugal, Australia, and Thailand through research partnerships. Distribution is direct via phone/email and public procurement; no public pricing is offered and no paid digital marketing is used. In January 2026, founder Dr. Thomas Einfalt handed management to three long-term employees (Alrun Jasper-Tönnies, Markus Jessen, Marianne Wunnenberg), and the firm continues to operate as a 14-person specialist consultancy without external equity investment.

Name

hydro & meteo gmbh & co. kg

Legal name

hydro & meteo GmbH & Co. KG

Website

https://hydrometeo.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Short description

hydro & meteo is a German hydrometeorology specialist founded in 1999 that processes radar and rain-gauge precipitation data, develops early-warning systems and forecasting tools (SCOUT software), and serves water associations, municipalities, and government agencies in Germany and Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hydrometeorological Data Services

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services (541360)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Watershed/Source Water & Raw Water Quality Monitoring (intakes, reservoirs, groundwater) (EUANAJAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Real-Time Leak Alarms & Event Management (Analytics Platforms, Workflows) (EUANAKAK)

Keywords

• Hydrometeorological data analysis
• Radar precipitation correction
• Heavy rain warning systems
• Flood protection consulting
• Precipitation nowcasting

Headquarters

HQ city

Lübeck

HQ country

Germany

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. Professional Services & Consulting: Fee-for-service consulting and professional services for hydrometeorological data analysis, radar data correction and calibration, nowcasting, climate studies, expert opinions (Gutachten), and training/workshops for water industry professionals. Projects are sourced through public tenders, direct client engagements, and funded research programs.
2. Software Licensing & Support: Sale and licensing of proprietary software tools SCOUT, ScoutView, and related applications. Includes bespoke consulting and training tailored to client needs for software deployment and use.
3. Funded Research Projects: Revenue from publicly funded research projects (EU Horizon, BMBF, BMDV, mFUND, Interreg, national ministries, and Austrian Klima- und Energiefonds). Projects include NIQKI (mFUND/BMDV), REINFORM (Horizon Europe), POSEIDON (Interreg), ZwillE (BMBF), heavyRAIN (mFUND), BlueGreenCities (ACRP), ZIM BodenRadar (BMWK), WaterSENSE (Horizon 2020).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

hydro & meteo processes and corrects precipitation measurements from weather radars and rain gauges, delivering calibrated high-resolution radar data products, short-term forecasts (nowcasts), heavy-rain warning systems, and related consulting for water-management and public-sector clients. Their proprietary SCOUT software platform handles radar error correction, gauge calibration, compositing, and nowcasting (1-3 hours); SCOUT Niederschlagsportal exposes these data via a protected web interface. The company also produces expert opinions (Gutachten), climate studies, and runs training/workshops for water-industry professionals.

Product overview

hydro & meteo is a hydrometeorological services company based in Lübeck, Germany, founded in 1999, offering specialized precipitation data processing and analysis services. Its core software product is SCOUT, which processes and corrects precipitation data from rain radars and rain gauges. SCOUT is complemented by ScoutView for data visualization, and the SCOUT Niederschlagsportal (web portal) for real-time data access and sharing. The Regenschreiber-App (Rain Gauge App) enables on-demand retrieval of rain gauge data. The company also provides analytical services including heavy rainfall event analyses, expert opinions, climate studies, and flood protection consulting, as well as developing warning systems. All products are sold and delivered as a service offering alongside client-specific data processing projects for municipalities, water associations, and research institutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SCOUT: Software for processing precipitation measurements from rain radars and rain gauges, including correction, combination, and forecasting capabilities.
• ScoutView
• SCOUT Niederschlagsportal
• Regenschreiber-App

Products and services

• SCOUT SCOUT is proprietary software that processes and corrects precipitation data from rain radars and rain gauges. It supports multiple formats (DWD, ODIM-HDF5, Rainbow, Universal Format, GRIB2), applies radar error corrections (clutter, beam blocking, attenuation, bright band), composites multiple radars onto a common grid, calibrates radar data with rain gauges, generates 1-3 hour nowcasts, and issues threshold-based warnings via email. Target users are water associations, municipalities, and environmental agencies.
• ScoutView ScoutView is a visualization tool for precipitation data from one or more radars, supporting DWD formats (YW, RW, RZ, DX, RADOLAN, ICON-D2), ODIM-HDF5, Universal Format, and GRIB2. It offers OpenStreetMap, Microsoft BING/Satellite, and custom shapefile backgrounds, time-series display, animation, elevation views, and dual-pol moment visualization. Used by hydrologists and meteorologists working with SCOUT-processed data.
• SCOUT Niederschlagsportal (SCOUT Precipitation Portal) A web portal that combines SCOUT software with a protected web interface for real-time access to corrected radar data and nowcasts. It supports visualization, time-series display, download of historical event data, and is deployed for clients including LFU Schleswig-Holstein, the Bremen Senate, TBZ Flensburg, and the LAWA Starkregenportal.
• Regenschreiber-App (Rain Gauge App) A Python-based application that retrieves data from rain gauges using configurable spatial and temporal parameters via a GeoJSON file containing gauge coordinates. It aggregates queries and returns time-series files organized in folders, serving hydrologists and water-association analysts who need flexible gauge-data access.
• Hydrometeorological Consulting & Data Analysis Services Fee-for-service consulting including radar data correction and calibration, hydrological modeling input data preparation, heavy-rain event analyses (e.g. using KOSTRA-DWD 2020), extreme value statistics, climate studies, and expert opinions (Gutachten) for legal and insurance proceedings. Delivered to water associations, municipalities, and government agencies.
• Heavy Rain & Flood Warning Systems Design, implementation, and operational hosting of threshold-based heavy-rain and flood warning systems, often built around SCOUT-processed radar data, nowcasts, and integration with numerical weather forecasts (e.g. ICON-D2). Includes email/SMS alerting on threshold exceedances and operational early-warning systems for municipal drainage and canal networks.
• Training & Workshops Training and workshops on radar data processing, precipitation analysis, heavy-rain statistics, and use of SCOUT/ScoutView/Niederschlagsportal tools for water-management professionals. Tailored to client needs and delivered on-site or as custom curricula.
• LAWA-Starkregenportal (LAWA Heavy Rain Portal) A nationwide heavy-rain documentation platform developed jointly with Okeanos Smart Data Solutions and deployed for LAWA (Bund/Länder-Arbeitsgemeinschaft Wasser). It aggregates heavy-rain information, enables event documentation with damage reporting, and provides access to current and historical precipitation data for federal/state authorities and water-management bodies.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 26,000 heavy rain events documented in the LAWA Starkregenportal
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability5 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

23 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• TH Köln (Technische Hochschule Köln)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 March 2025Collaborates with hydro & meteo on the NIQKI project (2025-2028), which focuses on developing AI-based automated precipitation data quality control. TH Köln hosts the project's internal kick-off meeting. The project is funded by mFUND/BMDV with a total volume of €2.5 million.
• Hochschule Hof, University of Applied SciencescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 March 2025Partner in the NIQKI project (2025-2028) alongside TH Köln, LANUK NRW, and HST GmbH. Contributes to the development of AI-based automated precipitation data quality control.
• LANUK NRW (Landesamt für Natur, Umwelt und Klima Nordrhein-Westfalen)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 March 2025LANUK NRW is both a client and a research partner. They are the client for the radar cooperation data products and a key partner in the NIQKI and heavyRAIN projects. They provided precipitation data training for 11 employees in October 2025.
• HST GmbH & Co. KGcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 March 2025Partner in the NIQKI project (2025-2028) and in the ZIM BodenRadar project. HST developed NIRAweb, which integrates with hydro & meteo's radar composite for nationwide precipitation data and forecasts.
• Water Technology Pty LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 December 2024Project lead for the REINFORM project (Horizon Europe, 2024-2026), which focuses on scalable methods for measuring water productivity in irrigated agriculture in Australia. hydro & meteo provides high-quality precipitation data for the project.
• eLEAF (Netherlands)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 December 2024Technical lead for REINFORM project. Partner in WaterSENSE (Horizon 2020). Specializes in satellite-based earth observation for water management. Collaborates with hydro & meteo on precipitation data analysis.
• HydroLogic (Netherlands)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 December 2024Partner in the REINFORM project. Netherlands-based company specializing in hydrological modeling and water management solutions.
• HIDROMOD LDA (Portugal)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 December 2024Partner in the REINFORM project and previously in WaterSENSE. Portuguese company specializing in hydrological modeling and simulation software.
• ARC Training Centre in Data Analytics for Resources & Environments (DARE)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 December 2024Australian research partner in the REINFORM project. Based at universities in Australia, focusing on data analytics for environmental and resource management applications.
• University of SydneycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 December 2024Academic partner in the REINFORM project and previously in WaterSENSE. Contributes expertise in water resources and environmental management research.
• Okeanos Smart Data Solutions GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2022Key partner in the LAWA-Starkregenportal development, RESTNI3 project, and heavyRAIN project. German startup specializing in smart data solutions for environmental applications. Also involved in the WaX conference organization.
• Universität InnsbruckcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2022Lead academic partner in the BlueGreenCities project (ACRP, 2022-2025). Focus areas include urban planning and ecology. Previous collaboration on various research projects in partnership with the Austrian Klima- und Energiefonds.
• Bochumer Institut für Technologie GmbH (BO-I-T)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2022Partner in the heavyRAIN project (2022-2025), focusing on AI-based heavy rain detection using IoT sensors, radar, and satellite data.
• Atos Information Technology GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Consortium coordinator for the ZwillE project (BMBF, 2022-2025, €2.453M). Development of a digital twin for AI-supported management of water extreme events in urban areas.
• Institut für Automation und Kommunikation (ifak)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Partner in the ZwillE project, contributing expertise in automation and communication systems for the digital twin development.
• ifs – Institut für Siedlungswasserbau und WasserwirtschaftcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Partner in the ZwillE project. Hannover-based institute contributing to the digital twin development for urban water infrastructure.
• Stadtentwässerung HannovercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Partner in the ZwillE project providing the real-world use case. Hannover's urban drainage infrastructure is the basis for the digital twin prototype.
• IAB – Institut für Angewandte Bauforschung Weimar gGmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Partner in the ZwillE project contributing research expertise to the digital twin for urban water management.
• GERICS – Climate Service Center GermanycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022German knowledge partner in the POSEIDON Interreg project alongside hydro & meteo. Provides climate service expertise for cross-border climate adaptation in the German-Danish border region.
• TH Lübeck (Technische Hochschule Lübeck)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing academic partner and host institution for the NIQKI project kick-off meeting in March 2025. Also involved in the heavyRAIN project and other collaborative research initiatives.
• Büro für ImmissionsprognosenminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner in the RESTNI3 project for the UBA, alongside Okeanos. Developed software for calculating the continuation of the RESTNI precipitation dataset.
• ITI Consulting & Acquisition GmbHminorOthersSupported hydro & meteo in applying for the research subsidy (Forschungszulage) for their novel software development project (2023-2025).
• DWD (Deutscher Wetterdienst)coreTechnology or IntegrationSource of raw radar data (Radarstandorte Essen, Flechtdorf, Hannover, Neuheilenbach) used for the NRW radar composite. Collaborated on RESTNI3 project. DWD provides meteorological consultation for the project.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• KISTERS AG: KISTERS is a German software company specializing in water resources, hydrology, and meteorology software, including rain radar processing, hydrological modeling, and water quality tools. It directly competes with hydro & meteo's SCOUT in the radar-rainfall integration and hydrology data space, particularly with German utilities and agencies.
• HydroLogic: HydroLogic is a Netherlands-based specialist in hydrological modeling, water information systems, and flood forecasting for water utilities and governments. Although listed as a REINFORM partner, it is also a direct competitor in hydrological modeling and water management software across the DACH and Benelux markets.
• eLEAF: eLEAF is a Netherlands-based provider of satellite-based water productivity and irrigation management services. It collaborates with hydro & meteo on REINFORM/WaterSENSE but also competes in precipitation-driven water management analytics for agriculture and utilities in Europe.
• HIDROMOD: HIDROMOD is a Portugal-based specialist in hydrological modeling and water resources simulation software. A REINFORM and WaterSENSE partner, it also directly competes with hydro & meteo on precipitation-driven hydrology projects across European markets.
• disy Informationssysteme GmbH: disy is a German software firm specializing in environmental data management, GIS, and reporting platforms (cadenza) used by German state environmental agencies (LANUK, LfU, UBA). It competes with hydro & meteo's SCOUT Niederschlagsportal in the environmental data infrastructure space.

Broad incumbents

• DHI A/S: DHI is a Denmark-based global leader in water and environment software (MIKE platform) and consulting, covering hydrology, flood modeling, and water quality. It serves a much broader portfolio of water clients and represents a larger incumbent against which hydro & meteo competes for advanced hydrology work.
• Meteomatics AG: Meteomatics is a Switzerland-based commercial weather data and nowcasting API provider serving enterprise customers across energy, insurance, and utilities. As a broader incumbent in meteorological data services, it overlaps with hydro & meteo's precipitation analytics and nowcasting offerings at higher enterprise scale.
• JBA Consulting: JBA is a UK-based flood risk management and hydrology consultancy with continental European operations. It competes for advanced flood modeling, climate adaptation, and water utility consulting work that overlaps with hydro & meteo's expert opinion and hydrological modeling services.

Emerging players

• 52°North Spatial Information Research GmbH: 52°North is a German open-source initiative and SME focused on geospatial sensor web and environmental observation infrastructure software (e.g., SOS, Helgoland). It overlaps with hydro & meteo on precipitation/water data infrastructure used by German state agencies, typically as a lower-cost alternative.

Others

• FLOODAX: FLOODAX is a German provider of flood early-warning and urban drainage software solutions, supplying warning systems to German municipalities — an adjacent offering to hydro & meteo's heavy rain warning systems but focused more on hardware/sensor integration than hydrometeorological data analytics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hydro-und-meteo-gmbh

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 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 hydro & meteo gmbh & co. kg