OLIVER AUSTON, Chief Innovation Officer, PSG
U.K.-based fall protection company Checkmate, a Pure Safety Group (PSG) company, is marking its 40th year in the height safety and lifting business by expanding into North America, where previously its products had very limited availability. This year’s aggressive PSG launch schedule now brings the Checkmate high-performance products into the U.S. and Canada, for workers at height in such industries as oil and gas, telecommunications and renewable energy. Checkmate offers a full line of innovative height safety products including full body harnesses, SRL’s, connectors, anchorages, descent and rescue equipment and both horizontal and vertical systems.
Checkmate was founded in 1979 by Paul Auston in the British port of Sheerness in Kent, to serve the port industry. Through the years, the company grew by acquisitions and expanded into the fall protection area. Paul’s son Oliver joined the family business in 2001. Over the years the company has been recognized twice with the Queen’s Award for Innovation, awarded contracts to provide fall protection for some of the world’s most significant construction projects, such as One World Trade Center, and, in 2018, was acquired by U.S.-based PSG, the world’s largest company dedicated to height safety.
The Checkmate brand has established itself as the high-performance premium brand within the PSG portfolio, which also includes Guardian Fall Protection and Stronghold by PSG, a dropped object prevention product line. PSG’s renewed strategy for aligning its brands to customer and industry needs allows the company to strategically scale its innovation, product portfolio and global reach for the future. The PSG Guardian brand is for products selected by customers to meet compliance requirements while realizing great quality and value.
“In order to serve our customers’ every height safety need, we must proactively manage and grow an increasingly evolving business,” said Oliver Auston, now PSG Chief Innovation Officer. “Our new brand strategy provides a broader, organized framework in which we will continue to be the innovation leader in this industry. 2019 is one of the most dynamic, and exciting years in Checkmate’s 40-year history and the team is thrilled to be celebrating it as part of PSG.”
