Welcome to the Venture 13
Policetech Accelerator
Driving innovation and entrepreneurship to improve community safety
Delivered by:
With our Community Innovation Partners:
About
The Policetech Accelerator™ at Venture 13 (V13 Policetech Accelerator) is a joint initiative of the Cobourg Police Service (CPS) and Northumberland CFDC that will develop a pipeline (from idea to implementation) of innovative policing technologies and best practices for community safety in Ontario and around the world. The V13 Policetech Accelerator will expound on the existing reputation of the CPS as a leading police service innovator, while creating an ecosystem for startups and a soft landing zone for innovative law enforcement companies into the Northumberland region.
The accelerator offers competitively selected researchers, entrepreneurs and innovators the opportunity to work with our accelerator team and the frontline CPS Innovation Platoon (a select group of innovative frontline personnel) to develop and validate new approaches for 21st century policing in a controlled and defined small-town, pilot-scale environment.
Innovations will have clear use cases, will be evidence-based and sensitive to community acceptance/complex social factors, future-proof, and will drive efficiency, cost-savings and value creation that strengthens financial sustainability as well as the overall operational excellence of the Cobourg Police Service.
The V13 Policetech Accelerator project will encourage innovation along a continuum from ideation to early-stage R&D to validation stage with collaborations and demonstration projects through two principal streams:
Start-Up
Scale-Up
Accelerating the innovation of established SMEs by investing in and supporting the first deployment of cutting edge police technologies.
Pilot Projects
Accelerating and validating market ready technologies for the policing and community safety fields.
Current Pilot Project Partners
Right of First Deployment™
As a result of the dedicated support provided by our Founding Partner, the Cobourg Police Service, project participants understand and agree that the CPS will be granted a time-limited option to be the first police force in Canada to deploy any technologies developed through either of the V13 Policetech Accelerator Start-Up and Scale-Up streams.
First Right of Deployment demonstration projects allow participating companies to generate data and utilize the results of real-world application of their technology as evidence of product-market validation. This is expected to contribute to the potential for follow-on sales and business growth while also reinforcing the position of the Cobourg Police Service as a leader at the forefront of policetech innovation.
Other Terms and Conditions
Applicants are normally shortlisted based on a competitive intake process (e.g. “Pitch to the Chief”, Strategy Sprints, TechXpo Hackathon, etc.).
Selected applicants will be invited to participate in the full accelerator program via a Letter of Offer or Letter of Support and may be subject to additional agreements, terms and conditions.
The V13 Policetech Accelerator makes no promise or guarantee to provide any contribution in any amount (cash or in-kind) to applicants or participants in accelerator programming.
All decisions are final and made in the absolute, sole and unfettered discretion of the Founding Partners: The Cobourg Police Service and Northumberland CFDC.
Start-Up and Scale-Up Accelerator participants retain ownership to their own background IP.
The V13 Policetech Accelerator reserves the right to publically identify individuals or organizations receiving support via this initiative, normally including but not limited to: first name, last name, organization or business name and a short one sentence description of organization or business or the innovative application or solution.
“Pitch to the Chief”, “Right of First Deployment” and “Policetech Accelerator” are Trademarks of Northumberland CFDC – all rights reserved.
All applications are subject to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy of Northumberland CFDC.
About the Chief
Paul VandeGraaf, Chief of Police
Cobourg Police Service
Paul VandeGraaf was appointed as the thirteenth Chief of Police of the Cobourg Police Service on August 15, 2019 by the Cobourg Police Services Board. Paul began his policing career in 1991 as a member of the Belleville Police Service, working as a front-line Constable. Over the course of his career, Paul has held a number of progressively responsible positions including; Community Policing Officer, Bike Patrol, Traffic Services, Criminal Investigations focusing on sexual assault and child abuse investigations, Uniform Staff Sergeant, Inspector and finally was appointed as the Deputy Chief of Police for the Belleville Police in 2010. On November 10, 2014, Paul was appointed as the Deputy Chief for the Cobourg Police Service.
Chief VandeGraaf is a member of the Canadian and Ontario Associations of Chiefs of Police. He currently serves as the Vice Chair of the National Joint Committee of Senior Criminal Justice Officials and a Board Member for the Ontario Police Technology Information Cooperative (OPTIC).
Paul has always been and continues to be a strong believer of community volunteerism and has been an active Rotarian with both the Rotary Club of Belleville and now Cobourg. Paul served as Club President in Belleville in 2013-2014 being recognized with a Presidential Citation with Distinction and being awarded a Paul Harris Fellowship. Currently Paul is honoured to be a member of the YMCA Northumberland Board of Directors and Cornerstone Family Violence Prevention Centre.
In September 2016, Paul was invested as a Member of the Order of Merit of the Police Forces by his Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, then Governor-General of Canada. Chief VandeGraaf is committed to enhancing the effectiveness of operational policing services through effective deployment of resources in what has become known as “tiered policing”. This shared vision with the Cobourg Police Services Board will ensure that there are long-term strategies to build a strong, innovative and fiscally responsible Service for the Town of Cobourg.
Latest News
October 19, 2020
Read our latest release from ThermaScans about our Cell block pilot project release/podcast.
September 3, 2020
Policetech Accelerator-backed thermal imaging startup ThermaScans commercializes new COVID-19 technology at Venture13, raises $200K in follow-on investment. Click here to read the official press release.
February 18, 2020
The V13 Policetech Accelerator received $100,000 in funding from the Rural Innovation Initiative – Eastern Ontario (RIIEO) with the support of FedDev Ontario. Click here to read the official press release from the Government of Canada.
Joe Miller
Business Development Officer
905.372.8315 x244
joe.miller@northumberlandcfdc.ca
Contact Joe Miller
Cobourg, Ontario K9A 0H6
phone: 905-372-8315
toll free: 1-866-670-1191
fax: 905-372-2238
email: info@northumberlandcfdc.ca
Office Hours
Open Monday to Friday 8:30am to 4:30pm
Joe Miller (B.Sc., Notre Dame) is an entrepreneur, innovator and intellectual property specialist with extensive experience in technology transfer. Throughout his career he has led strategic ventures at the University Health Network (UHN), the Innovation Cluster, and Ontario Tech, where he was responsible for the University’s IP identification, evaluation, administration and commercialization.
Areas of expertise include IP value creation, technology evaluation, tech transfer, commercialization grant writing, collaborative strategies and start-up assistance.