Red Hawk Fire & Security U.S., a provider of fire, life safety and security services, announced plans for Affiliated Monitoring to manage central station monitoring for Red Hawk customers.

Red Hawk is ranked No. 18 on the SDM 100 and No. 5 on SDM’s Top Systems Integrators Report. The company’s existing CSAA Five Diamond Certified, UL-Listed central monitoring station in Houston will continue to operate, retaining all current employees and becoming an addition to Affiliated Monitoring’s network of interconnected customer monitoring centers in New Jersey and New York.

Red Hawk’s President and CEO Mike McWilliams explained that the time was right to consider a third-party monitoring company. “We were looking for one that would be equally dedicated to top quality monitoring services and state of the art performance for our customers. Affiliated was able to deliver that superior service while helping ensure a smooth transition by including our existing center and people thereby enhancing their geographic diversity as well.”

The partnership, McWilliams said, will help Red Hawk continue growing its business by strengthening its service offerings. “The addition of Affiliated Monitoring helps solidify Red Hawk as our customers’ preferred choice for services and solutions by deepening our monitoring capabilities through their singleness of purpose in this area,” he explained.

In 2016, Red Hawk ranked seventh in the industry for total revenue and second for nonresidential installation revenue in the SDM 100, the index most often used to gauge the size of electronic security integrators. 

Affiliated Monitoring, based in Union, New Jersey, and founded in 1977 is a provider of monitoring management services to the security and fire industry. 

“Affiliated is well-equipped to accommodate the sophisticated requirements of Red Hawk’s clients and the need for innovative monitoring services that can support Red Hawk as it expands its customer base. With our singular focus on monitoring services, technology and training, we can deliver incredible value today and well into the future,” said Daniel Oppenheim, Affiliated Monitoring vice president.

Oppenheim also cited three keys that make Affiliated a good fit for Red Hawk and other such companies: “Integrators and alarm companies that have partnered with Affiliated have shared with us that the motivation behind their decision included Affiliated’s long-term succession plan with a talented team and an experienced leadership group in place; a rock-solid IT and telecom infrastructure with up-time percentages beyond our industry peers; and an aggressive, creative, entrepreneurial staff offering dealers the latest services and tools.”

The partnership is expected to be seamless, according to McWilliams, who said, “We are both growing and sophisticated national companies working together to benefit customers with the latest monitoring innovations and systems in an increasingly technology-driven industry. Sharing the same monitoring platform and working with our existing Houston center staff, equipment and processes will make the transition seamless.”

The transition is expected to take between 60 and 90 days and will begin immediately.