Kurtis Arbuckle grew up in Zionsville, then moved to West Lafayette when he was 14. Following high school graduation, he attended Indiana University, then relocated to downtown Indianapolis for five years. Now he and his wife of eight years have two children and a couple of dogs. The family has been living in Westfield for the past decade.
Arbuckle had originally planned to go to medical school, but that all changed when he was given the opportunity to start a business with his father, Kim.
“That took my life in a different direction,” says Arbuckle. And he couldn’t be happier about it. “It was great because at the time, I wasn’t feeling any fulfillment in life. I wasn’t helping anybody. I was lacking a bigger purpose.”
Ultimately he found his passion in two ways – by getting involved in Young Life, a Christian nonprofit organization that focuses on leading middle school and high school students to Christ, and also developing CK2, a frictionless weapons detection company.
Prior to CK2, Arbuckle launched other companies with his father, starting with KD Global, which designs, procures and installs national and global audio and video accounts for businesses. They have 4,000 contract employees across the country, which translates to being everywhere instantly. Plus, the technician who installs a store will then service and maintain it going forward.
“That’s a huge project management machine that’s capable of global and high-quantity quick rollouts, whether it’s doing audio installations for national restaurant and retail companies in 300 locations across the country in 15 days, or doing 1,000 audio installations in less than 60 days,” Arbuckle says.
In addition, Arbuckle and his dad have an autonomous robotics company called Arbuckle Pringle Robotics.
“Because of our national scalability, we’re an attractive partner for a technology trying to grow,” Arbuckle says.
This is why a partnership between CK2 and Xtract One Technology was so symbiotic. Xtract One had created a cool product that worked, but they needed help with installations, maintenance, service calls and selling.
CK2 was launched four years ago by Arbuckle, his father, and Curt Fritsch (hence the name CK2 for Curt, Kim and Kurtis).
Frictionless screening means that patrons can walk through a detection system without having to remove items from their pockets. These systems are unique for multiple reasons, starting with the fact that they are not just detecting metal, but detecting weapons. These systems can also blend in so people don’t know they’re walking through weapons detection. Finally, frictionless screening can move large crowds through much faster than other means of detection. While a metal detector can expedite about 500 people per hour, the CK2 technology can pump through 3,000 people in an hour, making the experience not only faster, but safer.
“It’s safer when you don’t have thousands of frustrated people backed up in line,” Arbuckle says.
When someone hears “frictionless screening technology,” they may question the feasibility. When they see, however, that CK2, in partnership with Xtract One, has provided weapons detection for venues such as Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, the Beacon Theatre, the Chicago Theatre, and Sphere in Las Vegas, their skepticism fades.
“If the Sphere, the most technologically advanced building in the world, trusts you with their technology, that establishes credibility with customers,” Arbuckle says.
In addition, they are working with Veterans Affairs hospitals and other local hospitals around Indianapolis. They have already implemented their first round of installs with four community hospitals in Indianapolis. Hospitals benefit greatly from these technologies as they often do not have the staff to stop people with weapons from entering their facilities.
“That’s a pretty big challenge when you’re talking about main entrances, let alone emergency rooms,” Arbuckle says. “We’re honored to have been chosen as the partner to do that for them.”
Approved by the Sheriff’s Association, they are the only technology that is TSA and Homeland Security rated.
Arbuckle regularly attends conventions regarding school safety. Although there are a lot of products available, much technology regarding school shootings is reactive, rather than proactive and preventative.
“What we are doing is proactive by keeping a gun from getting into the building,” Arbuckle says. “Whether it’s a school, movie theater, hospital or stadium, we can now stop weapons from getting in that won’t change the environment or change the experience in a negative way.”
“This is genuinely a passion project for me,” he adds. “How we sell across the country is one thing, but how we sell in Indiana is different. We want to be the homegrown team that changes our community by creating a better and safer experience.”
CK2 Technologies is located at 9247 North Meridian Street, Suite 125 in Indianapolis. For more information, visit ck2tech.com.
