LOS ANGELES — Electrosonic noted that March 2014 marks the 50th anniversary of the company’s founding. To help mark the milestone, the company is publishing Electrosonic – 50 Years on the Audio-Visual Front Line, written by co-founder Robert Simpson.
More details from Electrosonic (www.electrosonic.com):
In 1964 the company started with two rooms in London’s Greenwich vegetable market. Five decades later, Electrosonic is an international, multi-million dollar business with headquarters in Burbank, California, and offices worldwide.
Electrosonic’s story is complex but in many ways it parallels the history of audio-visual technology, and provides a window into how the industry and its services and products have changed.
Founded by Denis Naisbitt, Michael Ray and Robert Simpson, the company opened with the strapline “Electronic Control and Audio Systems”. From the start, Electrosonic combined the manufacturing and selling of products with the building of complete engineered systems. Key product categories included electronic lighting control, multi-image slide projection and videowalls. The product and systems portions of the business continued together through 2010 when the products side of the business, which by then represented a small portion of overall revenue, was sold.
“The 50 year anniversary marks an important milestone for the company as we look back on our incredible heritage of talent and accomplishments. Electrosonic is continually investing in new generations of talented staff through mentoring and education as we continue to push the limits of what AV technology can do,” says Jim Bowie, President of Electrosonic Group. “A key element of Electrosonic’s success, and one that we are very proud of, is our long and enduring relationship with designers, suppliers and customers.”
Electrosonic carried out many impressive and memorable projects over the last 50 years all around the world, from multi-image spectaculars in 1970s Iran and the world’s biggest videowall in Seville in 1992 to massive projection displays at EXPO 2010 in Shanghai. Electrosonic was often leading the way in applying new technology, whether it was pushing 70mm film to the limit, implementing multi-channel dynamic sound systems, or achieving huge 3D images with the latest electronic projectors.
Electrosonic’s historical project portfolio can be best summarized as embracing world EXPOs, lighting control, theater sound systems, experience shows, museums and visitor centers, theme parks, videowalls, control rooms and corporate AV.
World EXPO, or international exposition, work was a key business driver for Electrosonic from the start. Exposition work, starting with EXPO 67 Montreal, instilled in Electrosonic the desire to work internationally. More importantly, many influential people from around the world saw the shows, which in turn led to demands to emulate the work at home and globally. Electrosonic would go on to carry out installations in 15 different EXPOs.
In its present role as designer and integrator of complex systems, Electrosonic continues to exploit advances in technology. The business today serves three market sectors, each of which is treated on a global basis. The largest is “Entertainment”, followed by “Corporate” and “Control Rooms”. Beyond system engineering, Electrosonic has always offered ancillary services to further assist its clients. Today these include support services, managed services and technical design consulting.
Electrosonic has released a book about its history in late March 2014, with the title “Electrosonic — 50 Years on the Audio-Visual Frontline”. Written by co-founder Robert Simpson, the book presents a short history of the company, and chapters on its products, notable projects completed, its people and on the company’s contributions to the AV industry.
More details on Electrosonic – 50 Years on the Audio-Visual Front Line:
The story of Electrosonic from its founding in 1964 to the present day is a complex one that spans the analog to digital revolution, the move to HD and 4K, and amazing innovations in display technology. The book tells this story in a series of chapters covering key aspects of the company’s first 50 years.
Electrosonic began as a two-room startup in London’s Greenwich vegetable market. The book’s first chapter, “A Short History,” tells how the fledgling firm became a multimillion-dollar international business with headquarters in Burbank, California and offices worldwide. Parallel stories chart changes of ownership, subsidiaries, related companies and acquisitions.
Chapter two, “Products and Technology,” reviews the many industry changes and challenges faced by Electrosonic in its 50 years in business. From the era of slide projectors and overhead projectors to 4K projection and network technology, Electrosonic has maintained a leadership position and developed many unique products. It was among the first to exploit the emerging technologies of electronic lighting control, multi-image slide projection and videowalls. From the start, Electrosonic combined the manufacturing and selling of products with the building of complete engineered systems. The product and systems portions of the business continued together through 2010 when the products side of the business, which by then represented a small portion of overall revenue, was sold.
Chapter three, “Projects,” reviews some of Electrosonic’s most impressive global projects, including multi-image spectaculars in 1970’s Iran, the world’s biggest videowall in Seville, Spain, in 1992, and massive projection displays at EXPO 2010 in Shanghai. These projects and more reveal how the company pushed the envelope in applying new technology, whether it was pushing 70mm film to the limit, implementing multi-channel dynamic sound systems, or achieving huge 3D images with the latest electronic projectors. The importance of long-term relationships with designers, suppliers and customers is also discussed.
Electrosonic has created new business units to support the changing needs of AV users across five decades and chapter four, “Service,” examines these developments from the early days when the principal service was “pulsing” (programming magnetic tapes) and then making “show copies”, to the more recent on-site staff support of major installations.
Electrosonic’s extraordinary success in business is a testament to its “People” who are recognized in chapter five. In 55 profiles of the company’s talented staff members, the book salutes the different personalities and skills, which have contributed to 50 years of growth, innovation and outstanding customer support.
The final chapter, “Contribution to the AV Industry,” details how Electrosonic has supported the development of the AV business by example, sponsorship and participation in trade events. It features a look at the company’s current ownership and governance.
Robert Simpson, one of the co-founders of Electrosonic, authored “Electrosonic – 50 Years on the Audio-Visual Front Line.” A graduate of Trinity College, Oxford and the former Chairman of Electrosonic Ltd., he is a frequent writer and lecturer on AV and lighting control topics and has several other books to his credit. Robert is a member of many professional organizations and the recipient of the 2008 InfoComm Distinguished Achievement Award.
“Electrosonic – 50 Years on the Audio Visual Front Line” is now available; those interested in purchasing a copy can visit www.electrosonic.com/50thbook
