SAFE Design Council

What SAFE Design Council does

SAFE Design Council is a Calgary, Canada-based non-profit standards organisation that accredits SAFE Design professionals, registers certified properties, and advances research and training in Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED). Its flagship product, the SAFE Design Standard™, is a comprehensive property-security framework that expands on ISO 22341 by integrating security methods, standards, and best practices from the International Standards Organization, national standards bodies, and other recognised authorities into a single end-to-end methodology.

The company monetises primarily through SAFE Design Certification™, a multi-stage, risk-informed, data-driven process that validates whether property owners meet their legal duty of care, maintain up-to-date security protocols, promote security-awareness culture, and document incidents properly. Supporting the certification process is the SAFE Design Digital Platform, which delivers real-time reporting with zone-based scoring (Perimeter, Property Wide, Envelope), threat metrics, and risk analysis. Technical differentiators include a multiscale Threat, Risk, and Vulnerability (TRV) assessment that identifies reasonably foreseeable security threats across criminogenic, social, geographic, and temporal dimensions.

The go-to-market is enterprise field sales targeting property owners, managers, security professionals, and government entities globally. The SAFE Design Standard™ is a registered trademark and has been endorsed by the Governments of Canada and British Columbia as the industry standard for physical security (2023), with the City of Nanaimo adopting it in the same year; the company also received the 2020 Government of Alberta Community Justice Award for Innovation. Marketing relies on LinkedIn, the corporate website, and these government endorsements as credibility signals, while the SAFE Design Standard™ and SAFE Design Certification™ function as the core branded offerings.

Name

SAFE Design Council

Legal name

SAFE Design

Website

https://safedesigncouncil.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

SAFE Design Council is a Calgary-based non-profit that sets the SAFE Design Standard™ for property security, certifies properties and professionals under that standard, and operates the SAFE Design Digital Platform for ongoing security reporting across global public and private-sector clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Security Certification Services

NAICS

Building Inspection Services (54135), Architectural Services (54131)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAEACAN

Safety Compliance, Audits & Risk Assessments (Security Assessments, CPTED)

Education/Education Facilities & Support Services/Security, Safety & Emergency Preparedness Services (Campus Security, Access Control)

SECONDARYBPAIACAE

Planning, Zoning, Permitting & Code Enforcement

Business & Public Services/Public Sector & Government Administration/Local/Municipal Government Administration

SECONDARYBPAIAOAE

Consumer Protection & Product Safety Regulators

Business & Public Services/Public Sector & Government Administration/Regulatory Agencies & Licensing (Cross-sector)

Keywords

• Crime prevention design
• Physical security certification
• CPTED accreditation
• Property safety standards
• Security certification services

Headquarters

HQ city

Calgary

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. SAFE Design Certification Services: The company generates revenue through property security certification services. The certification process is multi-stage, risk-informed, and data-driven, enabling them to certify projects and properties globally. The certification ensures properties meet legal duty of care requirements and maintain legally defensible security protocols.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

SAFE Design Council provides the SAFE Design Standard™, SAFE Design Certification™, and the SAFE Design Digital Platform. It accredits SAFE Design professionals, registers certified properties, and advances research and training in Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED). The Council serves as an independent standards and certification body for the built environment.

Product overview

SAFE Design Council offers a unified product ecosystem centered on the SAFE Design Standard™ — a comprehensive, end-to-end property security framework. This core framework is complemented by the SAFE Design Certification™ process, which provides a multi-stage, risk-informed validation pathway for property owners and managers. The SAFE Design Digital Platform delivers real-time, data-driven reporting and analytics to support the assessment and certification process. Together, these products form an integrated solution for property security assessment, certification, and ongoing monitoring.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SAFE Design Standard: The global standard for achieving end-to-end property security, expanding upon ISO 22341 and integrating multiple security methods, approaches, standards, and best practices.
• SAFE Design Certification
• SAFE Design Digital Platform

Products and services

• SAFE Design Standard™ Foundational standard that defines the CPTED-based safety design criteria against which properties and professionals are accredited. It is used by property owners, managers, security professionals, and government entities as the reference benchmark for verified safety design.
• SAFE Design Certification™ Accreditation program that certifies individual SAFE Design professionals and registers properties that meet the SAFE Design Standard. It is used by security professionals and CPTED practitioners seeking credentialing, and by property owners and managers seeking third-party validation of their built environment.
• SAFE Design Digital Platform Digital platform that operationalizes the SAFE Design certification and property registration programs, providing online infrastructure for managing professional accreditation and certified property records.

Quantifiable outcome

• Zone-level security scoring (e.g., Perimeter: 40%, Property Wide: 70%, Envelope: 60%) enables specific improvement identification

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• International Association of Professional Security Consultants (IAPSC): Membership association for independent security consultants providing credentials, ethics standards, and practitioner referrals. Comparable to SAFE Design Council as a security professional accreditation body, with overlap on risk-informed property assessments and legal defensibility for clients.
• International CPTED Association (ICPA): Global non-profit organization dedicated to advancing Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) practice, training, and professional certification. Direct comparable to SAFE Design Council as both are CPTED-focused standards and accreditation bodies targeting the same professional and property audiences.

Broad incumbents

• CSA Group: Canadian standards body developing safety and building-related standards, certification, and testing services. Comparable to SAFE Design Council as a Canada-headquartered standards and certification organization whose building and life-safety standards overlap with SAFE Design's property security framework.
• International Code Council (ICC): Leading developer of model building codes and standards used in the design, build, and compliance of U.S. and global structures, with deep relationships in permitting and code enforcement. Comparable to SAFE Design Council for building safety and code-compliance orientation, though ICC's scope spans full building codes rather than the property security niche.
• UL (Underwriters Laboratories): Global safety science organization that develops standards, certification, and testing services across built environment, security, and life safety. Comparable to SAFE Design Council as a third-party standards and certification entity whose physical security and building safety frameworks overlap with SAFE Design's property certification mission.
• ASIS International: Large, established global association for security management professionals offering certifications (CPP, PSP), standards, and training across physical and corporate security. Comparable to SAFE Design Council as a security-credentialing body, but operates at much broader scope with overlapping relevance on property security best practices.
• British Standards Institution (BSI): UK-based national standards body delivering ISO-aligned standards, certification, and training across multiple sectors including built environment and security. Comparable to SAFE Design Council as a standards-issuing organization with adjacent property, security, and risk-management standards relevant to the SAFE Design framework.

Emerging players

• National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS): U.S.-based non-profit that develops building science guidance, including security and resilience-related building practices. Comparable to SAFE Design Council for its non-profit, advisory role shaping property-level safety practices, though NIBS focuses more broadly on the entire building sciences domain.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance3 records

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 SAFE Design Council