Situational Awareness
Safety
Team Coordination
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COTAK USERS
Users include law enforcement, firefighters, search and rescue, and other public safety agencies.
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ACTIVE AGENCIES
COTAK serves public safety agencies of varying sizes based in Colorado.
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COTAK CHANNELS
Channels are used to customize the information needs of agencies displayed on the COTAK application.
Real-Time Location Information at Your Fingertips
The Colorado Team Awareness Kit (COTAK) is a real-time location service available to all Colorado public safety agencies. By using COTAK, emergency responders can significantly enhance their situational awareness, safety, and team coordination.
Using dots on a map, COTAK users can locate themselves, their team members, and other enrolled agency personnel in real-time. In addition, COTAK provides advanced features that can be customized to meet the specific needs of fire, law enforcement, search and rescue, and other public safety agencies.
COTAK is available free of charge to all Colorado public safety agencies. Join us in deploying the future of public safety, and sign up for COTAK now.
LEARN MORETRUSTED BY COLORADO RESPONDERS
COTAK News
COTAK Attends 5x5 FirstNet Conference in Seattle
Last week, CoE staff members Adrien Hoff and Brad Schmidt attended the 5x5 FirstNet conference in Seattle.
Throughout the week, staff had the opportunity to learn about cutting-edge public safety technologies and network with experts from around the world. We presented on COTAK and demonstrated it to attendees, including the virtual reality TAK client, VR TAK.
Center of Excellence Delivers Donuts to Rifle PD with Robotic Dog and Drone to Celebrate National Donut Day
RIFLE, COLO. — (June 6, 2025) — The Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting (CoE) collaborated with the Rifle Police Department (RPD) to celebrate National Donut Day in a unique manner. To commemorate this sweet occasion, the CoE employed a robotic dog named Lucky to deliver donuts to the RPD using a drone.
This creative demonstration highlights the importance of advanced technologies in the public safety sector while providing a delightful treat. Lucky was equipped with a specially designed 3D-printed harness that allowed him to carry the donuts. With more than a dozen glazed donuts secured on his back, Lucky successfully delivered the treats to the officers on duty at the Rifle Police Department.
"Our passion is to leverage technology to discover new and improved methods for enhancing all aspects of the public safety industry. As technology continuously evolves, we are excited to show how it can positively impact public safety efforts in a sweet and engaging way," said Dana Way, Marketing and Communications Manager at the Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting. "Today, we have combined advanced technology with National Donut Day to highlight how innovation is shaping the future of public safety and to collaborate on a project that improves all of our skills."
Rifle Police Department is taking the lead in utilizing advanced technologies, such as drones, for public safety operations. Drones, robotic technologies, and other cutting-edge systems are becoming increasingly vital for providing real-time situational awareness, enhancing public safety efforts, and assisting emergency responders in complex situations.
"The use of drones has become an essential part of our operations with the recent formation of our drone team. This collaboration playfully illustrates how technology can be used in innovative ways to support our officers and the community," said Lieutenant Mike Kuper at the Rifle Police Department. "We’ve already put the drone to work locating missing people, documenting and mapping crime scenes, and enhancing safety and situational awareness during parade routes. We’re proud to be at the forefront of this technology and to utilize it in ways that improve both safety and efficiency in our officers."
This joint initiative marks just the beginning of what is possible when public safety agencies embrace advanced technology. The Center of Excellence continues to support and develop cutting-edge systems that can enhance public safety operations across Colorado and beyond. To watch Lucky deliver donuts to the Rifle Police Department, follow the Center of Excellence on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
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About the Center of Excellence
Formed in 2014, the Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting is a research and development organization within the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control, part of the Colorado Department of Public Safety. The Center of Excellence is dedicated to driving technological advancements to improve emergency response practices and influence innovation across public safety for the communities they serve. For more information, visit cofiretech.org or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube, and LinkedIn.
About the Rifle Police Department
The Rifle Police Department is committed to protecting and serving the citizens of Rifle, Colorado, with professionalism, integrity, and compassion. Through proactive community engagement, innovative policing strategies, and a dedication to public safety, RPD builds strong partnerships and enhances the quality of life for all who live, work, and visit our city. For more information, visit rifleco.org or follow us on Facebook.
Media Contacts:
Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting
Dana Way
Marketing and Communications Manager
C: (303) 217-0062
Rifle Police Department
Angela Mills
Public Information Officer
D: (970) 665-6500
C: (970) 852-1226
Interagency Channels
A new tool is now available in COTAK allowing multiple agencies to share their user’s locations and interoperate! This tool, called interagency channels, allows you as an agency administrator to invite other agencies to join your users on a common channel for interoperability. This option is in addition to traditional mutual aid channels that are permanently created by the COTAK program team for use by agencies within a county or region.
Interagency channels in COTAK works similarly to the patching of voice radio channels, but differs in that COTAK creates a new interagency channel for the patch using the membership of multiple ‘normal’ channels. To learn more about this exciting new feature watch our training video here. If you would like assistance setting up interagency channels contact our support team at cotak.gov/support.
