CE Pro September 2021 - 81

In terms of lighting
design, integrators advise
working closely with manufacturers
that can often
assist with that skillset.
steps back and the contractor
smiles, and the architect and
the interior designer - and
they kind of give us the floor.
They're happy doing things
the way they've always done
... and in many cases they
bow out and say, 'it's yours.' "
" We've specified probably
100,000 square feet of new
homes that we're putting fixtures
into, so it's really been
an exponential growth curve
for us and very impactful.
And it's been a significant
increase in our revenue as
well, so it's been great so far,
it really has been. "
Millson adds that it's the
LED technology in particular
that has been a driving force
for fixture embracement,
and his company has been
successful outfitting luxury
MDU towers as well as custom
homes.
" When LED came along,
everything changed and of
course there was a lack of
knowledge in the industry
among specifiers, architects,
builders, everybody. Literally
a Wild West for drivers [to
cepro.com
integrate into control systems], "
he recalls, explaining
that of course tech problems
would be blamed on the
integrator. " So when we saw
the opportunity to solve
that pain ... we got exposed
to it [through HTSA and
Tom Doherty] and it was a
no-brainer for us. "
Like his colleagues, Bosley
found that other trades on a
project were looking more to
integrators for that lighting
knowledge, and the CE pros
have capitalized on getting
into job meetings earlier
thanks to fixtures.
He says the economic
climate in the central Pennsylvania
suburbs has been
excellent for selling lighting
fixtures, and that the company
" stumbled into it " really
after selling lighting control
for a long time.
" Slowly as we started offering
fixtures we've found it's
just a natural progression from
the selling of control, and also
regardless of who makes the
products it's on us to solve
problems, " Bosley says.
World Premiere has been
doing lighting fixtures for
about five years, and the
expanding portfolio has expanded
project opportunities.
" We don't lead with it, but
it's made a profound impact
on our business in just about
every way. What's been
interesting to us is a lot of
times we'll go to a meeting
and feel like we're the new
kids on the block and probably
know the least about
lighting, " Bosley says.
" But as we start to talk,
the electrician smiles and
Dealers Lean on
Manufacturers for
Support in Burgeoning
Category
Of course, to make inroads
in a new category cannot be
done without manufacturer
support. Integrators can only
dip their toes into unfamiliar
technology for so long until
they need their vendors (and
distributors, reps, etc.) to
help them swim with all-important
trainings, education
sessions, sales & marketing
programs and more.
The lighting fixtures
roundtable integrators mentioned
some " must-haves " in
a vendor these days to crack
into the category.
" Really it's acknowledgement
of our unique challenges,
which we do have
during this disruptive phase,
and we are definitely in a
phase where we're moving
people's priorities and we're
upsetting the applecart, if
you will, " Harrison says. " And
to navigate that takes a little
bit of a delicate dance, it
takes support. "
Harrison Home Systems
has brought DMF's Libman
into some project discussions
to explain why the integrator
should " have a seat at the
September 2021 CE Pro | 81
GEORGE HORN
http://www.cepro.com
CE Pro September 2021

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