Installers can increase profits and benefit the community when they become involved with the emerging social alarms market, says David Rimmer, European Marketing Manager at Cooper Security Ltd.
Nowadays, the policy of the government and social services, is to support elderly people living independently in their own homes for as long as possible.

The alternative of residential care is expensive for either the individual or the authorities and is usually not the preferred option of the elderly person involved.

As a direct result of this policy, 'social alarms', which provide a link between the old person and a monitoring centre, are growing rapidly in popularity and offer a cost-effective alternative to sheltered accommodation and retirement properties.

This emerging new market has natural connections with the selling and installation of intruder alarm systems and offers a good opportunity for forward thinking installers.

Monitoring is the key
Key to the speed of acceptance of social alarm systems, will clearly be the capability of the monitoring service.

Local authorities have, historically, offered a basic service but, unlike the security market, these monitoring facilities can take a variety of forms. They could include call centres, nursing homes, sheltered housing units or any suitable 24 hour business. For example, almost any call centre could add a Scantronic MRX two-way speech receiver to work in conjunction with the Homelink Extra social alarm and then provide monitoring facilities by answering the alarm, calling a list of agreed contacts to find someone to help or, if necessary, calling the emergency services.

Perhaps it is nursing homes, which offer the greatest immediate potential, with some installers already working in that environment very successfully, installing low cost central units and MRX Receivers, which the nursing home monitors. Follow-up and maintenance services are obviously essential to this potentially life-saving service, so ongoing revenue for installation companies is assured.

Nursing homes can now offer an additional service of 'caring' for people still living in the community. This gives the nursing home a simple method of increasing revenues and defraying costs for a relatively small additional investment in what is currently a very low margin business. They can also make better use of their existing trained staff, and at the same time provide themselves with a loyal stream of clients ready to take any spaces that do become available in the nursing home.

Who is the buyer?
Commercially, the most effective route to market share and success almost certainly lies in the creation of partnerships between installers and the monitoring centres. So, the initial sale by the installer has to be to the organisation which will act as the receiving station.

Even now, many nursing homes are not aware how simply and cheaply they could offer what is quite a sophisticated service. Installers of the Scantronic social alarm products have reported that to nursing homes and small to medium call centres, run by enterprising management, the sale is not hard. It may depend upon the installer being able to sell the Homelink Extra to suitable clients in the area. However, nursing homes in particular, may have easy access to potential clients and be happy to suggest the system to them, resulting in an easy sale.

Selling to the end user
In terms of selling the Homelink Extra devices and linking the receiving centre to end users, installers will have to look at ways of building awareness of the system's availability locally – and finding sales leads.

One relatively easy route forward is to inform existing customers of the availability of the system through a straightforward letter. In many instances the sale is made to the relatives of an elderly person who want to find cost effective ways to ensure their care and safety in their own home, so all your customers – no matter what their age – are potential buyers. Indeed, the technology is also suited to the needs of other vulnerable groups such as the disabled and post-operative patients.

Other marketing possibilities include local press articles, advertising in appropriate magazines, direct mail and even informing social services of the services' availability.

Quick installation
Products have been designed to be easy to use and install. The equipment is simply plugged into a standard telephone socket and a 13amp mains supply. The unit is programmed using an ordinary tone phone. Backup safety, in the event of a mains power failure, is provided with emergency batteries ensuring continuity of the call service for up to 36 hours.

Homelink operates in the same way as an intruder alarm communicator but incorporates two-way speech communication between the user and the central station. The technology is familiar to all alarm installers and provides a natural and profitable method of business expansion.

Emergency transmission
In the event of an emergency, the user activates the Homelink alarm via a neck worn pendent or wristband radio transmitter. The unit will then automatically dial the MRX receiver at the monitoring station. It will display the unit ID number together with the alarm details, i.e. emergency, fire, intruder etc. The operator can answer the call and speak with the caller to establish the nature of the problem.

The HomeLink's integral microphone is very sensitive and can pick up sounds quite distant from the device. If it is not possible to establish a two-way conversation, the operator will instigate emergency procedures with the nearest available carer or key holder.

Don't complicate things!
Accessories are available such as smoke detectors, door contacts and passive infra-red detectors, and with the devices able to open up two way speech channels, intruders can be both heard and reported.

Although there are many obvious similarities between protecting property and protecting people, installers should remember during the sale that the elderly can often be put off by the apparent complexity of the technology used in today's protection and security systems.

Scantronic, by housing all this functionality in a straightforward, single, built-in security alarm, have addressed the issue for all concerned, making the system easier to sell by presenting it in a way far less complex and daunting to people unused to today's technology.

Looking to the future
As this new generation of care alarms begins to penetrate the market the next generation is already under development. The potential of internet and telemedicine only underlines the fundamental change that will run through the industry in the coming years. And with the major healthcare providers such as Norwich Union and BUPA looking to increase profitability by widening their product offerings, social care systems are certainly here to stay.

The market is huge. A central monitoring station could easily buy an MRX as a low cost entry to the speech monitoring market, quickly adding a substantial number of connections by actively building this side of their business.

By the year 2020 the predicted population of people over 55 in the UK, will be more than one third of the population, and a similar pattern is emerging across the rest of Europe. Neither the public nor the private nursing sectors will be able to cope without a radical new approach.

Care alarms have the potential to make the difference, they will be a crucial ingredient in the healthcare mix of the 21st century, and a major business opportunity for those installation companies who can provide them.

Homelink Extra social care alarm

The Homelink emergency calling unit(s) can be connected to any telephone line and provides programmable options for personal alarm monitoring, fire detection monitoring, inactivity monitoring, temperature monitoring and intruder alarm monitoring. The Homelink Extra has VHF radio receivers built in and can be activated by most of the 4600 range of Tx units. It is supplied with a 4601 pendant transmitter. Units are designed to be connected to a monitoring centre which has a Homelink digital two way speech receiver or similar compatible social alarms receiver installed.
  • Compatible with all 4600 radio transmitters
  • Uses standard telephone socket and mains connection plug
  • Supplied with a 4601-50 pendant
  • TX radio operation 173.225MhzCan be operated without a phone, using the answer facility and the built in microphone/loudspeaker
  • Multi protocol signalling capability, compatible with major manufacturers equipment
  • Extension loudspeaker/microphone connections for 2080 unit
  • Can be programmed to operate as a simple intruder alarm system with remote signalling facility
  • Optional speech message recording facility
  • BABT approved
POWER SUPPLY:
  • 12V AC via plug top power adaptor
PHYSICAL DIMENSIONS (w*h*d):
  • 50*210*270mm
WEIGHT:
  • 1.3kg