CE Pro July 2024 - 54

MARKETS
Commercial
such as audio manufacturers
Bluesound and Sonance,
which both launched commercial
products in 2019.
Additionally, companies and
control companies in particular
have also positioned
their solutions as applicable
to both markets.
The Future-Proof
Commercial Market
Origin Acoustics is bringing
the same feature-rich
approach from its residential
products to its commercial
market, taking with them the
technology and patents that
have made Origin Acoustics a
big name in the architectural
and outdoor audio space.
For VP Commercial Joe
Whitaker and the Origin
Acoustics team, the launch
of the company's Pro line
of speakers and amplifi ers
- Origin's foray into the
commercial market - simply
helps grow the business.
" The best way for us to
grow is going to be through
the commercial and pro
market, " Whitaker says.
Infl ation, fears of a recession
and hints of a similar
housing market crash have
led to just a bit of hesitation
in the residential market,
although Whitaker says
the residential space really
hasn't slowed down at all.
However, what happened
to the housing
market in 2007 is still fresh
in the minds of manufacturers
that serve high-end
residential installations.
" We've been around long
enough that we experienced
the housing market
crash, " Whitaker says. " For
those of us that had integration
companies or man54
| CE Pro July 2024
ufacturers, the only reason
they stayed alive was that
entrance into commercial. "
While Origin Acoustics is
still bullish on the residential
market, things often
change quickly based on
macroeconomic factors and
headwinds. However, what
remains is the fact that
the commercial market is
a safety net for integrators
and manufacturers in the
technology space.
In addition, any successful
is the opposite of most
screen companies, who
began in commercial then
expanded into home theater.
For Vackar, one key benefi t
of the commercial market is
simply the size of projects.
Most home projects typically
have just one home theater
and one screen.
" When you have 200
screens on one order, you get
less excited about one screen
in a home, " Vackar says.
The approach to comacoustically
transparent,
was featured in Weekends
With Adele, the singer's Las
Vegas residency, which took
place last year.
Now, the company has a
full lineup of ambient light
rejecting screens for nearly
any use case, including home
theaters, education, houses
of worship, sports bars, and
board rooms.
For Vackar and SI, the
biggest diff erence in the
commercial market is the
quantity of products needed.
In fact, one project in the
early stages of development
is calling for 200 170-inch
CarbonBlack screens.
" That's more than a
week's worth of residential
sales, " Vackar says.
ORIGIN ACOUSTICS
The Origin Acoustics PRO product lineup includes new
commercial-grade amplifiers.
company is always looking for
growth, and due to its success
in the residential market,
Origin is setting its sights
on growing its business by
expanding to new markets.
A Different, More
Lucrative Approach
Similar to Origin Acoustics,
Screen Innovations is
another manufacturer to
recently enter the commercial
market.
Blake Vackar, screen
evangelist with the Austin,
Texas-based manufacturer
of projection screens and
shade solutions, says the
company began focusing
on the commercial market
around 2018, but didn't truly
understand it until 2020.
The company's trajectory
into the commercial market
mercial is much diff erent
than the residential space.
In the CEDIA home theater
channel, homeowners are
spending their own money
on a very emotional
purchase for something that
they will spend an intimate
amount of time with.
In the commercial world,
there's a team of executives
making the purchases, typically
looking for the best
value and reliability.
Screen Innovations has
recently made waves with
CarbonBlack, a new series
of screens designed for
large venues that rival the
brightness, depth and clarify
of LED vide walls at a much
lower cost, with sizes up
to 16 feet by 99 feet and a
160-degree viewing cone.
The screen, which is
Commercial Spaces
Looking More Like
High-End Homes
In the residential sector, it's
common for a homeowner
to work with an architect,
who then works with integrators
and manufacturers
to complete the project.
However, commercial
projects haven't historically
come together that way.
Now, interior designers
are getting more involved in
commercial projects, which
is a familiar process for the
integrators and manufacturers
serving those high-end
residential customers.
Imagine a lobby of a
modern hotel, corporate
offi ce, or restaurant. The
design and architecture are
very reminiscent to that of
a high-end home than any
commercial space.
" It's much more lifestyle
now than it used to be, "
Whitaker says. " It's a lot more
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