Tuesday, July 14, 2026
Primary Alert Systems
A secure-access hard tech company founded by an Owosso-based paramedic is helping to keep schools and safes more secure with help from the Eastern Michigan Small Business Network, an MEDC-supported SmartZone and Small Business Support Hub
As an experienced paramedic for Corunna Area Ambulance Service, Chris Carpenter’s lifelong mission has been to help and protect others in need. Inspired to reduce incidents by making safes more secure, Carpenter developed a sensor that alerts users when access is attempted.
In 2022, Carpenter began developing the initial concept and prototype for what would become his company, Primary Alert Systems, two years later. The secure-access hard tech company innovated the Primary Alert Cover, a patent-pending, sensor-equipped device that alerts safe owners to deliberate access attempts. From firearms and medications to cannabis products, items that require proper storage have an integrated protective layer with Carpenter’s technology.
“This technology applies to any form of secure access; while most secure access is exposed to somebody tampering with them, such as keypads, locks or card scanners, what differentiates our technology is the cover. It’s the absolute earliest marker of deliberate access attempts,” Carpenter said.
To help grow his idea from concept to company, Carpenter accessed resources from the nearby Eastern Michigan Small Business Network, which serves the region as a SmartZone and Small Business Support Hub (SBSH) with support from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC).
In Safe Hands
“This stemmed from my real-world experience as a paramedic and most directly from active shooter incidents and school shootings,” Carpenter said. “After the Parkland school shooting, there was another school shooting in Santa Fe. As paramedics and first responders, we’re always trying to figure out how to mitigate the losses.”
The Primary Alert Systems Cover secures a safe’s access controls to prevent any tampering, sabotage or unauthorized access attempts. The technology has several use cases and environments, from a hardwired version for schools and institutions that integrates into existing alarm infrastructure to a wireless version for personal storage of firearms, cannabis products or medications that sends alerts to a user’s mobile device.
As Carpenter worked to develop his idea into a sellable product, he calls the time from 2022 to 2024 a slow trudge. “It was just me developing this idea; I’m not an inventor, I’m a paramedic. I had no clear view of which direction to go or how to develop this idea.”
Feeling Secure
In 2024, Carpenter reached out to Shiawassee Economic Development Partnership and worked with Emily Marrah, a small business consultant for the region’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC). Marrah put Carpenter in touch with Kanchan Wankhede, director of Entrepreneurial Services at the Eastern Michigan Small Business Network.
“In 2024, I was in their regional cohort, and that accelerated the timeline and the progress,” said Carpenter. “The resources from the SmartZone and The Underground business incubator have been incredible, from the webinars and one-on-one training, the access to grant funding and a network of suppliers and collaborators. They have accelerated this idea at an incredible pace.”
Under the guidance of the Eastern Michigan Small Business Network in collaboration with the region’s SBDC office, Carpenter compiled market research, customer discovery data and financial projections and refined his operations. With funding received from the regional cohort, Carpenter filed a patent and developed marketing materials. By participating with the SmartZone, Primary Alert Systems was also eligible for dollars through the Business Accelerator Fund, which he used to file an additional patent and finalize product engineering. In May 2026, Carpenter won $5,000 through a pitch competition hosted by the Eastern Michigan Small Business Network and the EDA of St. Clair County.
“Chris is truly a role model for startup founders,” said Wankhede. “He has been an incredibly disciplined and hardworking mentee, following all guidelines and taking advantage of every networking opportunity to make connections. He has remained diligent in following up on his milestones, and I am very proud of his achievements and his product. This is a great example of how the ecosystem helped the launch of his business from one milestone to another.”
Safe and Sound
With a line of Primary Alert Safes ready to go, Carpenter says the company’s next steps include a retail launch within the Michigan market, while also scaling the product line and securing licensing partnerships for the core cover technology.
“We have signed retail agreements in principle with some local firearm retailers, and we're targeting cannabis retailers and hardware stores,” he said. “We are also working on ordering more inventory so that we can expand regionally and build into the Amazon marketplace and TikTok. And we are launching our institutional pilot program for schools that want to test it out and demonstrate its capabilities in their active shooter or security threat incident response protocols.”
While Primary Alert Systems remains a solo venture – and Carpenter still works full-time as a paramedic – he hopes to expand the team as the company grows. “As we continue to scale, I plan on expanding my team. It still seems like the sky's the limit, and it's at a very exciting tipping point right now.”
Carpenter also sees adoptive and foster homes as a strong use case for his product, due to the stringent requirements placed on those households.
“This product can help exceed those requirements for families interested in adopting or fostering children. I think one of the biggest moments for me will be when I hear a story of where this prevented something tragic. That will absolutely be a big day.”