since 1997

Safe•t mate® didn’t begin in a boardroom. It started in the Connecticut garage of two childhood friends—Jim and Jim—who shared a passion for solving real problems in long-term care. In the mid-1990s, after years of working in long-term care facilities and retirement homes, they noticed a dangerous pattern: residents with Alzheimer’s or cognitive impairment trying to stand before setting their wheelchair brakes. The resulting rollback falls were serious—and completely preventable. Yet no solution existed.

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So the two Jims set out to create one.

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Dozens of sketches, welds, tests, and weekends spent around the kitchen table later, they created a device that automatically stopped a wheelchair from rolling back when a user began to stand. In 1997, the first Safetmate Anti-Rollback Devices shipped from that garage—and the response was immediate. Therapists and nursing leaders called with the same message: “We’ve been waiting for someone to invent this.”

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That original, patented breakthrough became the foundation of the family-owned and operated company now in its second generation of leadership. With three U.S. patents and continuous in-house engineering,  Safetmate has evolved alongside the needs of the long-term care community and an aging population. 

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With over 1.2 million orders (and counting) later, every Safetmate product is still designed, manufactured, and assembled in Connecticut. We’re proud to support local jobs, source the highest quality materials, invest in the people who build our products, and honor the caregivers and residents who rely on them.

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Through it all, one principle has never changed: We care deeply about the people whose safety depends on our work.

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From a garage workshop to preventing falls worldwide, Safetmate continues to innovate with purpose—creating simple, durable, practical products that make everyday living and caretaking safer.