Regulars at InfoComm will see some new faces there this year, ones that are already very familiar to those in the pro audio and MI sides of the business. Germany-based Behringer, maker of audio mixers, signal processors, amplifiers (both power and guitar types), various musical instruments, PA systems and lighting systems, will be there to launch themselves into the systems installation space.
The move comes on the heels of Behringer's acquisition, completed in January, of the Midas and Klark Teknik brands from Bosch. They were integrated into Behringer's Music Group of products by Uli Behringer, the disarmingly charming but relentlessly focused business/technology wunderkind who founded the company 20 years ago, who says to expect new installation products to pull from all aspects of the company's existing repertoire.
"Microphones to speakers and everything in between" is how Behringer described the domain of the Behringer Install Group, ambitiously referred to as BIG.
Uli Behringer told FOH in an interview that the company had been considering entering the installed systems space for about three years, noting the sector's growth and that he considered install as a "natural application" for the company moving forward. But Behringer held off until he felt he had all of his ducks in a row. "We did not enter until we were completely ready to succeed – that means we had to have all our resources in line, sufficient capacity in R&D, manufacturing and the right people in place," he said. That took two full years, with new product development ranging over 18 of those months. Now that it's launched, BIG will start with several powered mixers and the Behringer 2000 and 4000 series of power amplifiers, followed by speakers and other products. The initial focus will be on distributed sound system components.
Behringer had been rumored to be in the market to acquire a speaker manufacturer to expand its PA business. When asked about that as a function of the BIG announcement, Uli Behringer laughed. "If the right opportunity came along…" he teased.
Heading up BIG is Costa Lakoumentas, a veteran of the installation sector. He once owned his own systems installation company and also helped guide installation product development at Mackie. In the five years he's been with Behringer, Lakoumentas has spent significant time at Behringer City, the company's manufacturing plant in Shenzhen, China.
The Midas/K-T acquisition will figure in the new installation division. "There are synergies at many levels," Lakoumentas said, adding that they flow in both directions. Uli Behringer noted that networking technology developed by Klark-Teknik will be applied to installation products at some point, as will a digital wireless technology developed in-house at the Shenzhen R&D center. "All that will allow us to roll out some unique and powerful products," he said.
The Price Equation
Behringer products are known for value pricing, and Uli Behringer said that BIG's installation products wouldn't disappoint in that regard. "We have pricing that will definitely raise the bar in terms of the whole customer experience in the supply chain," he said. The products, he promised, "are going to offer tremendous value for money." But Lakoumentas was quick to add, "You won't be seeing any NAMM specials on installed sound products."
Many recall that pro audio company Mackie helped change the contracting landscape over a decade ago with its introduction of highly affordable audio mixers for installation applications, and few would argue Behringer's own penchant for bringing about new pricing propositions. But some quality issues have dogged the company over the years, and some would caution that the installation space is perhaps less forgiving than pro audio and MI in that department. "In some ways, it's very similar-they all need amplifiers, loudspeakers, cables," says Jack Kelly, president of Group One, which distributes audio and lighting products across all of those market sectors. "But you also have to understand that contracting has very specific customer requirements. Reliability and value are the two highest-mentioned buying influences in trade magazine surveys. In contracting, you can't have one without the other."
Uli Behringer expects the installation landscape to evolve rapidly as the recession draws to a close, and he feels strongly that the installer experience is going to drive the business going forward. In addition to value pricing, he said, "I believe it very much depends on the user interface, to make it easier for customers. make it intuitive."
Perhaps more than why, the question for Behringer is, why now? The systems installation space has been impacted by the downturn in commercial real estate and the pullback in corporate spending during the recession. Behringer and Lakoumentas, however, see that as the reason to make their move now. "We're in a period of great opportunity right now," Lakoumentas said, adding that the economic downturn has created a "flight to value"-the perfect environment for a value-driven company like Behringer. "After 20 years… I can tell you it's the most exciting time right now," Uli Behringer stated emphatically. "This is really bringing all we've learned to the table and turning an industry upside down. I guarantee it's going to happen."
