Home Technologies Corp. develops builder, consumer relationships

September 2, 2004 WEST CHESTER, Ohio - Home Technologies Corp. has been named the preferred vendor for Sentinel Estates, a custom home development in Kentucky. The provider of home automation and security services was selected to provide services to the 10 high-end homes built by Ashley Development. Each homeowner will have a technology allowance with the Ohio-based company and will be able to choose which services will be installed. For the company, the deal equals additional exposure. “These partnerships add increased awareness,” said Tim Gleim, director of marketing at the company. “These builder relationships are valuable.” The company, which currently has 10 employees and serves the Cincinnati, Dayton, Ohio, and northern Kentucky areas, will design a model home first - allowing consumers to test the equipment before a selection is made. Gleim said the company’s installations are spread out through the different areas - security, video surveillance, audio and video, intercom, wireless and home theater. “It’s pretty equally distributed,” Gleim said. “There has been an increased interest in security and video surveillance.” Gleim said the interest has stemmed from broader offerings in technology and the widely publicized cases of child abductions that have been captured by surveillance cameras. But all around, Gleim said business has grown steadily since the company’s inception three and one-half years ago. “It started slower than we expected,” he said. “Consumers didn’t have a full knowledge of what home automation was.” But now he said the market is growing since homeowners have begun to understand the technology. “There is a greater market knowledge,” Gleim said, “and people realize that it is not just for the people with deep pockets.” For more on this story see the October issue of Security Systems News.