N.Y. security co. breaks PERS mold

MOUNT VERNON, N.Y.--Sonitec Corp. in late January announced it had become a SafetyCare Authorized Partner and would soon begin the rollout of SafetyLink, the company's new personal emergency response system. However, Leslie Lief, president of Sonitec Corp., believes his company will use the SafetyCare partnership in a way many haven't seen before.

Sonitec's approach breaks the PERS mold, he said. “What sets us apart from a lot of others is we're linking SafetyLink to a younger generation. We don't just offer this to the elderly,” Lief said. “We're all going to be old someday, but we're candidates for problems ourselves now ... Why shouldn't I have something that can save my life?”

SafetyCare general manager Mike Bodnar agrees Sonitec's wider approach will shake up the industry. “One of my goals at the start was to make this a longer-term product for folks who either have a medical need, or may just want to ensure that they're going to be around for a long time … our product should be available for them,” Bodnar said. “We share [Sonitec's] philosophy of expanding this product outside of the [senior] market.”

SafetyLink customers in metropolitan New York will have access to a 24-hour-a-day safety and security system at the push of a button. Unlike some other PERS systems, the owner of a SafetyLink system gains instant two-way voice contact with a certified EMT at the National SafetyCare Response Center, based in Reading, Pa.

Sonitec is the most recent addition to a stable of security companies taking advantage of the growing PERS industry through dealer programs like those offered by SafetyCare and American Two-Way.