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Soter Technologies announces strategic alliance with SwabTek® to create vape and illegal drug detection and deterrence bundle for schools

RONKONKOMA, N.Y. — Soter Technologies, a leading safety and technology company based in Ronkonkoma, NY, has announced its strategic alliance with San Diego, California-based SwabTek®, an innovative provider of rapid field test kits for security personnel. The new alliance will see the companies pair their respective technologies to offer educational institutions the School Safety Bundle, a comprehensive vaping and narcotic deterrence system for use on school campuses nationwide.

The School Safety Bundle includes one of Soter’s cutting-edge FlySense® vape detection system devices as well as fifteen of SwabTek’s Cannabis Detection Tests and two Fentanyl+ Detection Tests.

The FlySense® vape detector provides a means for educators to detect the use of vape devices by monitoring air quality and providing real-time alerts for incidents of suspected vaping. SwabTek’s narcotics identification tests are a perfect complement to the FlySense® system, allowing educators to perform on-site screening for drugs in vape devices, including cannabis, nicotine, and other narcotics, like fentanyl. Together, the bundled solution offers schools a complete, affordable way to detect and deter student vape and drug use on campus.

“Our top priority in joining together is to help reduce youth vape and narcotic consumption, and to better educate students about the significant harms of these illegal substances. In many cases, however, prevention and education cannot occur without the ability to intervene in active vape and drug use. The School Safety Bundle gives educators the tools they need to effectively detect and follow up on incidents of vaping on campus. It serves as an effective deterrent to reduce the use of these vaping devices and drugs by children,” said Derek Peterson, CEO of Soter Technologies.

As students return to in-person learning in school buildings following the lifting of restrictions issued during the pandemic, the on-campus vaping epidemic is rapidly re-emerging. Increasingly, administrators feel they are undermanned, and ill-equipped to deal with this problem in their schools.

“Students are now using easily concealable vape pens to experiment with nicotine, cannabis, and even harder drugs. Vape detectors by themselves only notify school officials that vaping is occurring in a specific area, but not what substances may be in the vape liquid inside the devices,” said Bobby Betros, CEO of SwabTek. “SwabTek’s tests provide a simple, reliable, and safe way to know what a student is consuming, on the spot. Combining these tests with the FlySense® device strengthens schools’ ability to detect and deter incidents of vape and drug use.”

SwabTek offers a full line of law enforcement-grade narcotics identification tests, including tests for cannabis, fentanyl, and other narcotics. The Cannabis Detection Test is a complete solution for cannabis and marijuana identification, allowing the user to screen vape pens, edibles, plant material, and other substances for cannabis compounds like THC. The easy-to-use swab technology employed by SwabTek tests produces results in seconds, and can be safely used by school administrators without the need for police involvement.

The School Safety Bundle also includes two Fentanyl+ Detection Tests, for use on vape pens, pills, and powders. According to multiple reports across the country, fentanyl is increasingly being found in student vape pens. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) lists fentanyl as the leading cause of death in adults, ages 18-45. Fentanyl is also one of the leading causes of death in high school children and is often laced in marijuana.

Schools utilizing FlySense® will receive alerts of detection if someone is vaping in on-campus bathrooms. Administrators can then investigate and test subjects as well as any devices found on their persons for chemical residue which indicate use of banned or illegal substances.

Both companies have received significant media coverage about their products, including stories on national programs, including The Today Show.

For more information about Soter Technologies, visit https://www.sotertechnologies.com/. For more information about SwabTek, visit https://swabtek.com/.

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