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Fred, invented the inflatable life raft. Patten life rafts are now on virtually
every aircraft flying, all cruise ships, and there are hundreds of them on the
new U.S. battleship USS NEW YORK.
“The Patten Company’s canopy isn’t lightweight so much, but building
a shelter like Life Cube is complicated. There’s a lot of intricate seams that
fold, and junctures where the tubes come together, and they manage to
do it quite well,” Conner says. The Patten Company uses a military-grade
tear-proof and fire-retardant Siemens polyester fabric built to survive in
the harshest conditions. It is designed with four independent chambers,
with crossover beams that allow single inflation. The canopy comes with
three doorways to allow units to be lined-up and zipped together creating
multiple-room live-work-and-entertainment space with independent access.
Conner sees Life Cube as a preventive solution to potential unforeseen
events. “Units can be pre-positioned in disaster-prone areas,” he suggests,
“and with critical first responders with basic live-saving equipment pre-
stocked.”
Conner is speaking to various investors for the next round of capital
to take Life Cube into mass production. He says, “We are looking for
the right fit: someone who really understands our approach and likes
the product.” His intentions include setting up six locations around the
country, “where we’ll be producing and warehousing units so we can
respond reasonably quickly to disasters.” He is working with someone
to create a disposable parachute, “so they’ll be inexpensive,” and with
a “blow-mo” (plastic blow-molding) expert in Long Beach to develop
a Styrofoam pallet to use as its new integrative flooring system; such a
development would both cut costs and reduce the weight of the Life
Cube by 40%.
He is courting FEMA, Red Cross, and the military, which routinely need
portable solutions in short order, but an emerging secondary market is the
corporate event world. Because Life Cube is quick to set up, easy to store
and transport, requires no tie-downs in moderate winds and can support
customized signage, it’s piquing the interest of various corporations for
tradeshows, music festivals and retreats.
Retail price – delivered – for the command post unit (12’x12’x12’) is
“around ten thousand dollars; multiple units can be discounted and a
stripped down version – what the FEMA folk are asking for – we’re hoping
to get down to around seven thousand.”
Someone with energy, passion, money, and the desire to give direction
to a start-up company should contact Michael at: 805-708-6141 or www.
info@lifecubeinc.com, or visit online at www.lifecubeinc.com.
It could be the chance of a lifetime.
Made in Santa Barbara
In the summer of 2010, two prototype Life Cubes were on display during a Red Cross
fundraiser outside Moby Dick Restaurant on Stearns Wharf in Santa Barbara: (left) the
18’x18’x18’ “small hospital triage unit” and the standard 12’x12’x12’ unit (right),
which come in two different-sized tough and durable cubes (center)