You could say Heartsine Technologies Inc. has a heart for safety. The Newtown, Pa.-based company specializes in producing lifesaving automated external defibrillators (AEDs) and making sure these devices are accessible to the average lay rescuer.

Lightweight, easy to use, yet durable, Heartsine’s primary product is the Samaritan PAD® (public access defibrillator), designed specifically for public access. The PAD AED administers treatment for sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) and can be used at any place of business, industrial workplace, sports arena, civic center or school.

“Any place there’s a large gathering of people, that’s our market,” says Tom Kuelbs, marketing director. “The awareness for sudden cardiac arrest is significantly up from where it was even a year ago. We’re getting a lot of inquiries from businesses for that reason,” says Kuelbs, who adds that Heartsine’s sales are up about 80 percent over a year ago.

“The Samaritan PAD device is very easy to use, and easy to sell. The market growth is significant,” he says.

For lay rescuers
Heartsine’s AED device is primarily designed for lay rescuers — someone at any type of business or organization who would be on a first response team. “They would typically be the first one called, and trained in CPR and in how to use the defibrillator,” says Kuelbs.

Lay rescuers appreciate the Samaritan PAD AED, says Kuelbs, because the device is extremely compact and lightweight (2.4 lbs./1.1 kg with battery) yet has a high durability rating of IP56, which is important in an industrial workplace because of potentially harsh conditions. The easy-to-use unit is intuitive thanks to voice prompts and icons that light up, guiding the user through a rescue.

In addition to the company’s main product, the Samaritan PAD, they offer a full line of accessories to go with it, including batteries, packs, wall cabinets/cases, training electrodes, and more. The AEDs also have been translated into 28 languages, with roughly 5-6 local languages on a language chip.

Technology-driven
A technology-driven company, Heartsine was founded in 1997 by John Anderson, who was a partner in the development of the first portable defibrillators in the mid-1960s, according to Kuelbs. Professor Anderson has been involved in many new AED developments over the years, and continues to do so now as chief technology officer of Heartsine. Thus, the company, while ten years old, in essence has four decades of experience working with mobile defibrillator technology.

Heartsine partners with and sells through distributors serving the many markets for public access defibrillators. “We work exclusively through distributors. There are a large number of markets for PADs that need to be served,” says Kuelbs.

The company, which Kuelbs says, does business in 40 countries and is planning to continue to expand internationally, looks to build relationships with distributors and offers them a variety of training opportunities. “For the industrial workplace, we have a strong dealer network and we only sell through them — we don’t sell direct,” says Kuelbs. “They appreciate that. We’ve been able to generate dealer loyalty because of that. Many dealers tend to focus only on our product in the public access market. In exchange for that, they have our loyalty, too.”

“We’re a good company to work with. With the right distributor we’ll make a good partner for them.”

Heartsine Technologies Inc.,www.heartsine.com, (866) 478-7463