Surrey man’s device promises to dramatically reduce injuries from falls
Michael Kane
Sun
Martin Dennis (top in photo) and Steve Kummer show how the Basemate Ladder Leveller works. Photograph by : Glenn Baglo, Vancouver Sun
A Surrey man’s award-winning invention promises to dramatically reduce the carnage caused by wobbly ladders.
The Basemate Ladder Leveller, developed by Martin Dennis, is an ingenious arc of hardened steel that cuts the risk of falls by allowing ladders to remain stable on uneven ground.
Opposing locks on each side of the arc replace the feet of a standard ladder. As the locks are released, the arc slides over until its rubber treads are firmly on the ground while the ladder stays plumb.
Necessity was the mother of this invention, said Dennis, the 49-year-old proprietor of Surrey’s Precision Gutters.
Not only were some of his workers among the hundreds of Canadians sent to emergency rooms each year as a result of falls, they were losing time digging out ground and placing blocks in uncertain attempts to stabilize ladders.
“The whole premise of the design is that it is very, very quick to set up,” Dennis said in an interview Monday. “You just lean your ladder up, make sure it is plumb, release one lock by tapping it with your toes, and the arc slides over.”
While quickly adjusting to uneven terrain, the Basemate also provides a wider, more stable platform for the ladder.
Dennis previously manufactured ultra-light aircraft kits at Spectrum Aircraft and shipped them around the world for home assembly. He sold the company in the mid-’80s.
After getting into the gutter business, he spent several years developing the Basemate, with the help of his brother, Adam, an aircraft engineer in Victoria who supplied expert knowledge of materials and testing procedures.
The Basemate was named the most innovative product at the Canadian Hardware and Building Materials Show in Toronto in 2001.
But marketing proved a challenge for Dennis — “it’s a very difficult thing to do and it’s not my expertise” — until he sold the rights to Vancouver’s Steve Kummer, a specialist in new market opportunities. Dennis will collect royalties if the Basemate proves as successful as Kummer believes it will.
“The minute I saw it I just knew it was something amazing,” Kummer said Monday.
The item is being manufactured in Shanghai and distributed in Canada by Vancouver’s Holland Imports Inc., at a recommended price of $79.99.
Retailers of the first shipment, which arrived earlier this month, include some Tim-BR Mart building stores and True Value hardware stores. It will be more widely available next month as more shipments arrive, said Bill Lawrie, the buyer at Holland Imports.
Kummer believes the Basemate is a B.C. success story that will catch on around the world. He has signed up another distributor in the U.K. and is in negotiations for half a dozen other European countries, as well as Australia and Japan.
Similar requirements and testing standards made the U.K. an obvious next market, Kummer said. His strategy is to turn to the U.S. when the product has been proven elsewhere and will be more readily accepted.
© The Vancouver Sun 2007