klioncomedy.blogg.se - The avowed rep

Lot’s of product was shown with many new product introductions.

While many people were in booths, it made one wonder about manufacturers getting an ROI on their booth expenses (booth space, impressive large booths, significant manpower and travel / entertainment).Large manufacturer booths attracted the most traffic.Much more than the generic “indoor, outdoor, high bay, warehouse” which historically has been typical Noticed a number of manufacturers seeming to segment / niche their product offerings and highlighting that selected fixtures were for specific verticals (horticultural lighting, anti-microbial lighting, food industry, waste water, healthcare (and circadium lighting), nursing homes, schools / gyms, etc.Ceilings can be smooth (drywall) with a small hole drilled to deploy power. Illumination can be corralled into small form factors and linear formats so that “troffers” and recessed cans may not be needed in commercial, hospitality and residential ceilings. Some “white goods” lines and then specialty / design build as “this is where they can make some money and the sale is ‘more than price.’”

Many of the reps I saw mentioned that they are focusing on the design / build market and seeking lines to represent that fill this niche with some supply reps seeking an offering of 6-12 lines.

Design / build opportunities abound as there were many “neat” / “cool” fixture formats.

To the point that it would be difficult to remember what you saw.

If you went to see product, you received the information via multiple fire houses.

Progressive distributors will need these specialists, otherwise they will be transactional lighting providers. There was talk of distributors that have lighting control specialists are starting to have an impact and influence decisions for lighting jobs.

And controls that integrate / collect data also generate questions like “security”, “what happens with the data”, “does everyone want everything controlled from their phone”, “user training as well as contractor training” and more need to be answered.

Controls need to be interoperable to be effective for customers. Maybe not this year as, due to the options, winners are difficult to determine, but expect key industry players to prevail and maybe a few niche ones. The takeaway here is that there is much for a rep and distributor to understand, more for the contractor to understand but controls are coming.

And unfortunately, not all are compatible with all fixtures or are interoperable. LightFair still appears to be the pre-eminent show for distributors and reps / lighting agents to attend … and I met with many in the aisles. When asked “why” the feedback is that there are now more LED shows that manufacturers are attending ( LEDucation, LightShow West) as well as vertical specific shows (healthcare, waste water, industrial, hospitality, etc) as the audience is fragmenting to attend other shows (and for getting CEU credits).

It appeared to have a strong turnout although some commented that they thought it was a little done and there were comments that some are planning on taking smaller booths next year to be “fiscally responsible”. In talking with a number of people, this year’s show could have been called “ControlFair.” Booths and booths of LED lighting and it seemed like 300 booths that had some sort of lighting control system. Last week’s LightFair show in Philadelphia was a lighting and lighting control aficionado’s dream.