On the occasion of the company’s 30-year milestone, LPS Laser Systems’ Martina and Siggi Ruff reflected on the early beginnings, the highs and lows of expansion to trading globally in the late 1990s in the live entertainment market.
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In 1993, LPS was founded by Siggi Ruff. From the very beginning, the company has been producing in Germany. “In doing so, we also incorporate customer wishes that our customers appreciate and often lead us to further ideas and developments,” said Siggi Ruff. “Most of our suppliers are located in our region, which enables good communication and shorter delivery routes.”
“When Martina joined in 1995, she brought a lot of ideas on how to make LPS better known,” Siggi Ruff continued. “She boosted the international market in sales, which was followed by first export transactions to France, Czech Republic, Austria, Greece and Switzerland.”
Martina Ruff recalled, “I still have to smile about our secret recipe for success. If one of us has an idea, the other is skeptical at first, and vice versa. Ultimately, however, we complement each other so well that it usually leads to success.”
With the first sale to Asia in 1998, LPS took the first steps toward global trade. In the following year, further sales followed in South America. “This is certainly one of the most important watershed moments, as our market share has increased within a very short time and we were no longer dependent solely on the German market,” said Martina.
But in 2005, technical progress almost put LPS out of business. “The demand for air-cooled DPSS lasers soared, and we initially hesitated to develop this. We still relied on gas lasers with 5-20 W white light. But overnight, all customers wanted this new laser technology,” said Siggi. ”Since we could not offer them at that time, there was a huge decline in orders and we were only a blink away from shutting down the business. It was only because of the huge energy of our team, we all worked at full speed on a new development that finally lead us to a completely new laser system – the LPS-BaX,” Siggi Ruff added.
“That was like a push button and our show lasers were used for fantastic laser productions by our customers, for example in combination with water fountains, as highlights at stage and television productions, festivals, concerts, galas, New Year’s Eves and performances by various stars, in addition to sophisticated product presentations by well-known companies and multimedia concepts for government projects,” Siggi continued.
Martin Ruff cited some installation highlights: “Seaworld in Texas; Kangwon Land in South Korea; Typhoon Theater in Singapore; GGE in Dubai; Black Sea Arena in Georgia; Baluan Sholak Sport and Culture Palace in Kazakhstan; EPM in Colombia; Daegu Susung Lake in South Korea; International Conference Center in China; Rustavi Theater in Georgia; Zhulian in Thailand and Malaysia; Porto Cairo Mall in Egypt and the Gorakhnath Temple in Gorakhpur in India. A wide variety of venues all with LPS lasers utilized to enhance the space and excite attendees.”
Today, Martina and Siggi Ruff can proudly look back on the past 30 years, because LPS is represented all over the world. “Well, if you don’t buy an existing company or inherit it, you probably start like me,” said Siggi, “with an idea and as a classic one-man-show.”
Martina Ruff added, “The fact that we have been able to position ourselves so stably and broadly on a global level over the last few decades is certainly also due to the good fortune of being able to work with open-minded and professional people – and by that we mean our employees as well as our customers.”
Recently, LPS adapted their product range to market requirements, with the LPS-BaX series being a perennial favorite among customers as it offers a compact laser show system in different power and color spectrums. “Also with our LPS-BaX Beam Bar Pro and LPS-BaX SixSCAN series, we are very successful. Professional lighting designers use them for their creative staging, that’s very impressive, too,” said Siggi.
For a number of years LPS have exhibited at international trade shows, including events in France, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Russia, China, India, Singapore, Dubai, South Africa, Mexico, U.S.A., Greece, Italy, Ireland, and Lebanon.
“Previously, exhibiting at trade shows was positive, and we always looked forward to all the different people that you can meet in one place. But over the years, we have clearly felt that existing and new customers enjoy coming to us and visit our showroom. We quickly recognized this advantage,” Siggi said. “Today, we still visit trade shows to meet some people face-to-face, but no longer as an exhibitor. Our 250 sqm showroom at our headquarter in Ofterdingen is the centerpiece for personalized demonstration. Here we can program many things in advance or simulate a laser show, and for many customers, a visit to our showroom is a real experience, because they are not only offered different laser shows, they can also take a look inside the show lasers, which has also the U.S. Variance. This personal contact, which is possible without restriction and distraction, has a positive effect on the satisfaction of our customers and thus on our turnover.”
Flexibility has been a cornerstone of the LPS business plan for many years, as Martina explains: “We have very versatile products, and we are active in a wide variety of fields. From the classic laser show and multimedia events to special customer requests – everything is available. And that is what reminds us that we work within a medium that inspires us every day.”
“Even after 30 years, we still have big plans for LPS laser systems,” concludes Siggi. “We are still passionate about lasers.”
For more information, visit LPS at www.lps-laser.com
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