• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
  • The Magazine
  • Events
  • Partners
  • Products
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • Jobs and Careers
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Subscribe to the Magazine
American Police Beat

American Police Beat Magazine

Law Enforcement Publication

  • Home
  • Editor’s Picks
    • The power of teamwork
      Stay awake and alert on the job
      The worst rank in law enforcement
      Firearms maintenance
      Why fries need salt
  • Topics
    • On the Job
      • Georgia police arrest thieves for stealing thousands of dollars in...
        Boone County Sheriff’s Office solves cold case from nearly 50 years...
        Time to address the status of women in policing today
        Police K-9 comforts Michigan State University students returning to...
        Volkswagen acknowledges policy breach after failing to provide...
    • Labor
      • LAPD union proposes police stop responding to non-emergency calls
        Florida’s recruitment program lures Chicago police officers to the...
        Staffing shortages plague Cleveland police as record number leave the...
        New Orleans interim police chief aims to hire civilians in time for...
        “Anyone can get this job”: Memphis police lowered hiring...
    • Tech
      • One of country’s oldest cold cases solved with DNA from untested...
        Crypto crime investigations
        Austin Police Department launches non-emergency artificial...
        iPhone crash detection feature helps deputies rescue driver from canal
        Nebraska State Patrol uses drone technology to improve traffic flow...
    • Training
      • Working effectively in low light
        Realism and stress inoculation in training
        Avoiding conflict and escalation
        U.S. trails in police training
        Denver police recruit has leg amputated after training drill
    • Policy
      • Oregon law enforcement and retailers seek to combat organized...
        Utah bill aims to regulate how law enforcement uses genetic genealogy...
        Opposing POVs on permit-less carry
        Ohio bill would lower minimum age to become a police officer to 18 to...
        Utah bill would allow people with “invisible conditions” to alert...
    • Health/Wellness
      • Thinking of pulling the pin on retirement?
        Expanding your identity
        Nonprofit offers telehealth therapy to upstate New York first...
        A California police department’s new wellness unit aims to improve...
        Massachusetts police department prioritizes officers’ mental health...
    • Community
      • Colorado Springs police kick off annual soccer ball giveaway to bond...
        “These are beautiful animals”: Community members gift horses to...
        Central Texas nonprofit to open law enforcement museum in honor of...
        “It was an honor to serve with her”: Kansas first responders...
        Chicago police cook with children to build community relationships
    • Offbeat
      • Ohio police rescue man from brutal zebra attack
        Motorist stranded in Oregon wilderness without cell phone reception...
        Cincinnati police work with animal rescuers to capture exotic cat...
        Not UFOs: Police departments across the country receive 9-1-1 calls...
        Texas deputy detains runaway tortoise after “slowest foot...
    • We Remember
      • Law enforcement from across the country join seventh annual Fallen...
        Boone County holds fifth annual Jacob Pickett Remembrance Day to...
        Farewell to a “living legend”: Oldest law enforcement officer in...
        “Officer Becerra will never be forgotten”: Colorado police...
        “I had a calling”: Colorado cadet inspired by fallen hero Eric...
  • On the Job
    • Georgia police arrest thieves for stealing thousands of dollars in...
      Boone County Sheriff’s Office solves cold case from nearly 50 years...
      Time to address the status of women in policing today
      Police K-9 comforts Michigan State University students returning to...
      Volkswagen acknowledges policy breach after failing to provide...
  • Labor
    • LAPD union proposes police stop responding to non-emergency calls
      Florida’s recruitment program lures Chicago police officers to the...
      Staffing shortages plague Cleveland police as record number leave the...
      New Orleans interim police chief aims to hire civilians in time for...
      “Anyone can get this job”: Memphis police lowered hiring...
  • Tech
    • One of country’s oldest cold cases solved with DNA from untested...
      Crypto crime investigations
      Austin Police Department launches non-emergency artificial...
      iPhone crash detection feature helps deputies rescue driver from canal
      Nebraska State Patrol uses drone technology to improve traffic flow...
  • Training
    • Working effectively in low light
      Realism and stress inoculation in training
      Avoiding conflict and escalation
      U.S. trails in police training
      Denver police recruit has leg amputated after training drill
  • Policy
    • Oregon law enforcement and retailers seek to combat organized...
      Utah bill aims to regulate how law enforcement uses genetic genealogy...
      Opposing POVs on permit-less carry
      Ohio bill would lower minimum age to become a police officer to 18 to...
      Utah bill would allow people with “invisible conditions” to alert...
  • Health/Wellness
    • Thinking of pulling the pin on retirement?
      Expanding your identity
      Nonprofit offers telehealth therapy to upstate New York first...
      A California police department’s new wellness unit aims to improve...
      Massachusetts police department prioritizes officers’ mental health...
  • Community
    • Colorado Springs police kick off annual soccer ball giveaway to bond...
      “These are beautiful animals”: Community members gift horses to...
      Central Texas nonprofit to open law enforcement museum in honor of...
      “It was an honor to serve with her”: Kansas first responders...
      Chicago police cook with children to build community relationships
  • Offbeat
    • Ohio police rescue man from brutal zebra attack
      Motorist stranded in Oregon wilderness without cell phone reception...
      Cincinnati police work with animal rescuers to capture exotic cat...
      Not UFOs: Police departments across the country receive 9-1-1 calls...
      Texas deputy detains runaway tortoise after “slowest foot...
  • We Remember
    • Law enforcement from across the country join seventh annual Fallen...
      Boone County holds fifth annual Jacob Pickett Remembrance Day to...
      Farewell to a “living legend”: Oldest law enforcement officer in...
      “Officer Becerra will never be forgotten”: Colorado police...
      “I had a calling”: Colorado cadet inspired by fallen hero Eric...
  • Between the Lines
    • The imprisonment of law enforcement technology
      Persecution of the LEO is classic schadenfreude
      The rule of law is worthless without order
      School policing: a paradox of the defund movement
      Defending the honor of the LE profession – finally!
  • About
  • The Magazine
  • Events
  • Partners
  • Products
  • Advertise
  • Contact
Search

Partners in the News

Buchanan man invents device to help limit drownings

Beau Brockett Jr. Published May 20, 2020 @ 8:08 pm PDT

Now, he has developed a product in hopes of preventing such an event from occurring.

Hinz, owner of Hinz Landscaping/Snow Busters in Buchanan and South Bend, created the Cleat-Mate and accompanying accessories. The ratchet system is meant to allow someone of any strength to reel in a person in distress or heavy objects in minutes. Its accompanying products are meant to make the Cleat-Mate adaptable for a plethora of environments and uses.

The device is named after and works like a cleat, a handlebar-shaped metal object extending from boats. Flotation devices are tied to it with ropes. They can be thrown out and reeled in with while the cleat keeps the ropes secure.

The Cleat-Mate acts as a cleat but can be attached to a variety of surfaces with the help of rings, straps and pins. Rather than pulling the attached rope, a person can lift and press a handle that activates its ratcheting system, which pulls its flotation device in.

The invention is meant to take the strength, balance and leverage needed to pull in something attached to a cleat unnecessary.

Strength and leverage was something Hinz lacked when he watched a man slip into Lake Michigan unconscious last year, said Shelley Churchill. Hinz’s right-hand woman told his story while he was out on an assignment, walking through an open space filled with dozens of flotation devices at Hinz Landscaping/Snow Busters in South Bend.

Hinz was unable to pull up the unconscious man on his own, and even with two men helping him, they could not lift the man up the marina stairs, Churchill said. If the man had not regained consciousness, he could have died.

“It really bothered Jerry that somebody could have drowned right in front of his face,” Churchill said. “He went home, laid down and went to sleep, and he explains it just like this: God came down and told me, ‘You’ve got to do something.’”

Early next morning, Hinz drove to Rural King and purchased the parts that would later become the Cleat-Mate prototype. He passed along the prototype to a mechanic friend in Elkhart, and the Cleat-Mate was created.

In the three months since the drowning incident, the Cleat-Mate has become patent pending, its flotation devices have become Coast Guard-approved and a variety of other accessories have been developed to make the Cleat-Mate versatile.

Now, there are attachments that allow the Cleat-Mate to connect to the ends of pick-up trucks and swimming pool walls; be wrapped around objects such as trees; and attached to objects that can be driven into ice for winter rescues.

Its flotation devices come in two sizes: adult and child/pet. Adjustable rings allow for a secure fit, Churchill said.

Other accessories allow the Cleat-Mate to be used for recreational purposes. One keeps flags in place on boats, while another can pull tables to the end of a boat for extra eating space.

Its primary purpose, however, is to save people.

“We believe there should be one on every rescue vehicle out there,” Churchill said. “Every police officer should have one. It can be used for so many things, it just might be handy to have in their car whether they’re trying to rescue someone from the water or not.”

Marketing is the next step for the business. Its website, cleatmate.com, has launched. Churchill is making calls to hotels, schools, first responder departments and pet stores to let them know of the product.

The Cleat-Mate is available for individuals as well, Churchill said.

To learn more about the product, she said to visit the website, email cleatmate@yahoo.com or call (877) 253-2862.

 

Categories: Partners in the News

Primary Sidebar

Recent Articles

  • Ohio police rescue man from brutal zebra attack
  • Georgia police arrest thieves for stealing thousands of dollars in powdered baby formula
  • Thinking of pulling the pin on retirement?
  • Motorist stranded in Oregon wilderness without cell phone reception finds ingenious way to call for help by using a drone
  • Law enforcement from across the country join seventh annual Fallen Heroes Honor Run to pay tribute to officers killed in the line of duty
  • Working effectively in low light
  • Colorado Springs police kick off annual soccer ball giveaway to bond with kids
  • Cincinnati police work with animal rescuers to capture exotic cat stuck in tree with cocaine found in its system
  • Realism and stress inoculation in training
  • Boone County Sheriff’s Office solves cold case from nearly 50 years ago using genealogy research

Footer

Our Mission
To serve as a trusted voice of the nation’s law enforcement community, providing informative, entertaining and inspiring content on interesting and engaging topics affecting peace officers today.

Contact us: info@apbweb.com | (800) 234-0056.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram

Categories

  • Editor’s Picks
  • On the Job
  • Labor
  • Tech
  • Training
  • Policy
  • Health/Wellness
  • Community
  • Offbeat
  • We Remember
  • Jobs and Careers
  • Events

Editor’s Picks

The power of teamwork

The power of teamwork

July 23, 2021

Stay awake and alert on the job

Stay awake and alert on the job

July 20, 2021

The worst rank in law enforcement

The worst rank in law enforcement

July 19, 2021

Firearms maintenance

Firearms maintenance

July 04, 2021

Privacy Policy | Copyright © 2023 APB Media, LLC | Website design, development and maintenance by 911MEDIA

Open

Subscribe

Close

Receive the latest news and updates from American Police Beat directly to your inbox!

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.