BUT I NEED IT NOW!
The supply chain crisis has changed the way that consultants spec projects. Martin Audio Director of Marketing James King explains how availability has become a key metric.
The days when consultants would consistently spec the same product time and again is increasingly under threat. As our industry (alongside countless others) was plunged into a supply chain crisis, a different metric came to the fore – availability. Never in the last decade has there been a period where projects could so easily be switched out to another brand, with the need to hit a given timeline for the installation becoming an overriding priority for the project.
The supply chain crisis came about from two key factors. Firstly, during the pandemic many factories around the world significantly reduced their production very rapidly. While it was relatively straightforward to scale things back, when the global situation improved, turning the supply taps back on overnight was not a reality. This was especially true with the interconnected supply chain that we find in the professional AV industry.
The second factor was the pent up demand from customers. There were plenty of projects that had been sat waiting patiently for two years or so. When things started to open up again, they wanted to be first out of the blocks with new experiences for their customers to enjoy. This combination delivered the perfect storm of high demand and lack of supply for some key components, most notably with electronic components.
Many consultants and their clients were understanding early on, but their patience increasingly waned. This has meant that everyone is looking at a variety of possible solutions from different brands with the availability equation sometimes being the determining factor.
Finding the right balance
To a greater or lesser extent, this situation has been of benefit to Martin Audio, and while we clearly had and continue to have our own supply challenges, we have benefited from some strategic choices that we made during the pandemic. The first was to continue to support our supply chain with a level of demand and future ordering that was rarely seen during the course of the pandemic. This strengthened the relationships with our supply base and also pushed us further to the front of the queue when demand subsequently jumped. Equally, it ensured that we could build up stock levels in areas where it had previously been lacking meaning that our partners could keep suggesting alternative Martin Audio solutions from the equipment that was available.
The second element was continuing to invest in our R&D programme. Rather than sit back and wait for the storm to pass, the Martin Audio team used the time to develop a whole fleet of new solutions. This has recently resulted in one of our biggest ever years for new releases with eleven products being launched in the first half of 2023 alone, and ultimately means we now have our strongest ever portfolio line up in our history.
The final part of the equation came in the form of the purchase of Linea Research by our parent company Focusrite plc. While this is a slightly less obvious element than some of the others, this decision has been vital as it allowed us to bring our electronic manufacturing more within our own control.
This combination of relatively better supply timelines, compared to general marketplace, alongside our strongest ever portfolio of products has seen an unprecedented level of demand for the Martin Audio brand from both existing and new customer bases. Of the various AV consultants and integrators that are new to Martin Audio, it has been of great benefit for us to showcase and prove our technology and solutions which we believe will also deliver long lasting benefits to our business.
Alongside popular products lines such as our Wavefront Precision optimised line array solutions, or our TORUS constant curvature loudspeakers or indeed our continuing success of CDD installation point source speakers, there have been uplifts in other areas of the portfolio.
The availability of solutions like our O-Line micro-line array, that has always been popular with speech reproduction applications, meant that it was now also being deployed for more musical projects. O-Line was not really playing in that market before the supply chain crisis, but its capabilities combined with the availability of stock made it a valid option for an increasing number of integrators. It also benefited from a flexible electronics package either from us, or indeed in combination with other vendors ensuring that it could slot into any system design.
It has been a similar scenario for our ADORN family of commercial audio speakers. While the on-wall cabinets have always been popular for the sound quality they deliver at their price point, we saw increasing demand for the rest of the family. This was specifically true for the ceiling and pendant options. While this was again due largely to their availability, the agnostic electronic packages were also an important factor for the systems integrators who have now come to rely on them. Couple this with our availability of single and double, 10”, 12” and now 15” SX subs, complete install systems are readily available to system integrators.
Lessons learnt
It is always hard for manufacturers to strike the right balance of holding stock and production time. We believe that the supply chain crisis has shifted that argument for many more companies in favour of increasing the amount of stock available at any one stage. Martin Audio has benefited from such an approach as more and more consultants and integrators have started to explore different brands that can deliver what their projects require.
A further important factor has been increasing the number of opportunities that people have to hear Martin Audio. We have made a real effort to ensure that we have demo rooms at trade shows such as ISE and InfoComm to encourage people to listen to our equipment while they visit the show. Added to this, our ever-popular UK Open Days where we can showcase the product portfolio in a more relaxed and controlled environment have also been joined by dedicated international open day events in North America and Asia. This has meant that more people than ever before are getting the opportunity to listen to Martin Audio loudspeakers and experience the power and control possible with our electronics and software. Each of these factors has independently combined to mean we are once again being seen as a force to be reckoned with.
We know that the supply chain situation will level up across brands. Equally, we understand that in time people may return to the comfort of some of their original favoured solutions as availability becomes a less important metric. But our opportunity in the interim to showcase our technology benefits and sound performance to an extended audience has been highly beneficial to Martin Audio. We hope that the connections and understanding that we have built up thanks to the availability of our stock will translate into long lasting relationships with countless more projects to come in the future.