About Kinetic Research

The Leader in Carbon Fiber Orthotics & Prosthetics

Kinetic Research products incorporate patented technology and proprietary designs making them lighter,  stronger and more flexible than standard carbon fiber braces. The key is the Dynamic Energy Return Strut (D.E.R.S.) providing flexibility that absorbs and releases kinetic energy.  This patented  strut flexes and absorbs weight loads well past the point where standard  carbon fiber  braces fail  and break.   All products come with a One Year Warranty and are made in the USA with American labor and materials.

Founded in 1994 by Wade Bader, Kinetic Research manufactures carbon fiber orthotic & prosthetic devices in Tampa, Florida.  Wade recognized that advancements in materials science had profound implications for orthotic & prosthetic devices. Fresh out of college with a Bachelor of Science degree in Prosthetics & Orthotics he set out to challenge the status quo. Today, Wade has 5 patents with 3 more pending related to carbon fiber composite applications in orthotics & prosthetics.

1 Year Warranty

All Kinetic Research products come with a 1- year unlimited warranty. If a device fails during the warranty period it will be replaced or re-fabricated.  Kinetic Research will accept the return under these guidelines:

Prefabricated AFOs:

1 Returns with 30 days of delivery date: No restocking fee
2 Returns between 30 days to 6 months: 15% restocking fee
3 Returns between 6 months and 1 year: 50% restocking fee
4 No returns after 1 year of initial delivery date

Prefabricated AFOs that are returned with alterations made to them will be accepted for credit according to the guidelines above minus a $70 fee.

Build to Order AFOs:

All returns are subject to a $70 fee. Fee will be waived if product is broken or defective and is being reordered within the one-year warranty.

Custom Products:

1 Any product that is ill fitting will be replaced under warranty
2 Any defective product still under the one-year warranty
3 An incorrectly filled out order form will have charges assessed for replacement

Examples are:
a Wrong box marked on the order form
b Incorrect orthosis height/footplate length written in or left blank
c Orthoses alignment not written in
d Incorrect order form used

4 Items that will not be credited back include:

a SMOs
b UCBLs
c Foot Orthoses
d Cost for ankle/knee joints
e Soft goods over 60 days old
f Fabric charges on remakes due to line #3 in Custom Products

Returns or replacements are subject to modification fees and material fees.

Wade Bader, CPO, President

B.S. in Prosthetics & Orthotics | Florida International University

Reid Bader, Vice President

B.S. in Physics | State University of New York at New Paltz

Valarie O’Brien, CPO, Production Manager

B.S. in Prosthetics & Orthotics | St. Petersburg College

Health Conditions

Kinetic Research offers a variety of Ready to Fit  and Custom devices each with its own character and effect to meet the individual needs of the user.  Our mobility-solution devices provide stability and support to the lower extremities for a wide range of temporary or  permanent muscular and/or skeletal disorders including but not limited to:

Drop Foot | CMT Charcot Marie Tooth | Brain Injury | Sports Injury | Spinal Cord Injury | CP Cerebral Palsy | MD Muscular Dystrophy | CVA Stroke | Varus Deformities | Spina Bifida | Blount’s Disease | MS Multiple Sclerosis | Plantar Fasciitis  | ALS Lou Gehrig’s Disease |  Club Foot | Foot Amputation | Quadriceps Weakness | Knee Hyper Extension | Guillain-Barre Syndrome | Parkinson’s Disease

Business Model

Kinetic Research has no commissioned sales people and no wholesale distributors. All sales are direct from manufacturer to clinics and practitioners. This direct to business model greatly improves practitioner support and significantly reduces product cost. It also allows customization of Ready to Fit and close consultation on custom orders.

Our Mission

Providing practitioners and patients with the most comfortable, durable and dynamic orthotic devices that include patented next generation carbon fiber technology.

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