This Aussie drone start-up was invited to participate at Interpol World 2019

Exciting Australian-based startup, The Institute for Drone Technology, was invited to the ‘exclusive’ Interpol World 2019, 2nd – 4th July 2019, and has been participating in the Co-Creation Lab and features as Speaker and Moderator.

“The institute will contribute, drive and shape this piece of work – being the global reference standard for all law enforcement with respect to drones,” said a representative from the Interpol World Organising Committee.

A key topic is How to stop drone intrusions in three easy steps? – Drone activity has increased exponentially as drones became more easily accessible and affordable.

Events in Gatwick, and in Australia, have highlighted the potentially disruptive nature of drones, jeopardising public safety and aviation security.

With more drones operating every day, there have been some creative and sometimes dangerous attempts to disable drones. The co-creation lab will look at the options of prevention and disruption of drone intrusions to ensure that the public’s safety and security are maintained.

What is the purpose of this convention?

INTERPOL World is a global co-creation opportunity which engages the public and private sectors in dialogue, and fosters collaboration to counter future security and policing challenges.

Police, public, security professionals and commercial buyers from around the world will convene in Singapore to forge mutually beneficial alliances leading to faster, more accurate responses to global security and public safety threats.

The Institute’s Founder and Executive Director, Paul New explains, “As we started helping larger clients with drone technology integration programs we realised there was no simple drone flight management system available that was very simple and easy to use, but covered all compliance requirements.

“So, with input from clients, we created Dronesafe®. Dronesafe® provides
structured and consistent step-by-step pre- and post-flight checklists that improve operational effectiveness, efficiency and safety, while also providing a complete audit trail of all flights.”

What kind of support does the startup have?

Geoff Gourley, leading Australian-based Impact Investor, recently took up a seed investment in the organization and is supporting the ventures current $2M Series A capital raise.

“I was so impressed with the venture, the way the founders identified their unique value proposition and how they support enterprise and government clients to use drones in their business, safely, compliantly and effectively, I could see this is was a scalable and impactful business,” Mr. Gourley stated.

In 2018 The Institute for Drone Technology was awarded a $1M grant to deliver enhanced workforce capability through industrial application of drone technology.

The Victorian Government’s Workforce Training & Innovation Fund provided funding for partnerships between training providers and industry. Projects funded through the Workforce Training Innovation Fund (WITF) must deliver innovative strategies that:

• improve training outcomes
• increase the relevance of training to their industry.

This project seeks to design, develop, implement and evaluate an innovative and industry- relevant training program to meet the demand for key industry sectors to upskill their workforce in the use of drone technology.

It is also designing a long-term sustainable model that can be adapted, contextualised and modified for utilisation across industries in Victoria. It is creating industry-specific skill sets and capabilities targeting conservation and land management, food and fibre/agriculture, civil construction, facilities and asset management and infrastructure.

What else does the startup do?

The Institute also provides Remote Pilot License training in schools, as well as AVI30316 Certificate III in Aviation (Remote Pilot – Visual Line of Sight).

Dronesafe® allows its clients to follow industry best practice (modelled on ISO standards) in the safe management of all their drone activities. Mobile and browser-based access provide the ultimate flexibility.

DroneInduct is used as base level training for anyone intending to use a drone within clients’ organisations, whether that be a client employee or a contractor coming onto a client’s site.

Induction courses are tailored to the client’s operating environment and include content from four online modules from the Civil Aviation Safety Authority Accredited Remote Pilot License course.

While specific content will vary according to the client’s needs, Drone Induct generally takes about one day online and one day for practical training and assessment.