Cobham Acquires SafeLife Systems

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Jan. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Cobham Life Support today announced the acquisition of SafeLife Systems, a subscription-based satellite self test detection service from PROCON, Inc., based in Knoxville, Tennessee. The newly acquired service gives thousands of owners of 406 MHz Personal Locator Beacons (PLBs), Emergency Locator Transmitters (ELTs) and Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons (EPIRBs) the ability to send non-distress messages via text/e-mail to family and friends, letting them know that all is OK.

Joseph Mentz, General Manager for Cobham Life Support's ACR Products line (formerly ACR Electronics Inc.), a Fort Lauderdale-based global safety and survival technologies company said: "Cobham manufactures the most reliable and robust satellite detectible emergency devices in the world and has products that can contact search and rescue forces in a matter of minutes and through onboard GPS can accurately pinpoint location up to 100 meters. We can now provide a non-emergency, unique web-based solution that gives friends and family the peace of mind that comes with knowing the sender is OK."  

Mentz said SafeLife's beacon management and testing program will continue in its present form as a subscription service for non-ACR product users (406 MHz distress beacons manufactured by competitors), and a new service brand with additional and unique ACR features has been launched as a subscriber service for ACR product owners called 406Link.com.

Subscribers to the 406Link.com service, for example, will have access to ACR's unique thru-the-system self-test application for PLBs, ELTs and EPIRBs, which ensures the beacon is performing properly via transmission and satellite confirmation, ultimately sending a text and e-mail message to the beacon's owner. Mentz said that new ACR PLBs will also allow users to perform a GPS acquisition test and simultaneously send the "I'm OK" message to family and friends along with a GPS position and location mapping.  

A 406Link.com Beacon Management program, applicable to all ACR PLBs and EPIRBs, includes battery replacement reminders, self test and activation history, providing trip plans to family and friends and managing the account.

The SafeLife/406Link.com coverage includes North and South American land masses and most of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans including Hawaii, allowing both beacon owners on land as well as those at sea to use the service. Unlike cell phones and two-way radios, the system utilizes two geosynchronous GEOSAR satellites to provide dependable coverage.

With over 53 years of ACR ingenuity and engineering built-in as standard features, all ACR PLBs and EPIRBs use the same reliable signaling technology that has saved nearly 27,000 lives worldwide since 1982.

For more information on the services, contact Scott Morgan at [email protected] or go to www.406Link.com (ACR product owners) www.safelifesystems.com (Non-ACR product owners). ACR Electronics information is available at www.acrelectronics.com.

About Cobham Life Support-ACR Products

Cobham Life Support -ACR Products designs and manufactures a complete line of safety and survival products including EPIRBs, PLBs, AIS, SARTs, Strobe Lights, Life Jacket Lights, Search Lights and safety accessories. The quality systems of this facility have been registered by UL to the ISO 9001:2008 Series Standards. Recognized as the world leader in safety and survival technologies, ACR has provided safety equipment to the aviation and marine industries as well as to the military since 1956. The company is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and employs 200 at its manufacturing facility.

About PROCON, Inc.

PROCON, headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, is one of the world's leading providers of MRM products and services.  By providing a globally-managed, wireless data network, PROCON reduces the costs, complexities and risks associated with deploying and supporting mobile applications and connected services.

SOURCE Cobham Life Support -ACR Products