Having been part of the A/V industry for the last 21 years, focusing on bridging the gap between the HoW and the tech sectors, Judson Bartels (founder of Quincy Owen Solutions) has devised a ‘toolbox’ of solutions that includes LEA Professional’s industry-first technology.
‘There are so many advantages to the LEA Professional technology, not just because of the cloud and IoT capabilities, but also the Smart Power Bridge feature, which allows a single channel of the amplifier to emulate the results of bridging two amplifier channels,’ Bartels says. ‘All of the features are innovative, revolutionary and allow me to serve my clients in new ways.’
LEA Professional specialises in the manufacture of high-quality, pro-audio amplifiers with cloud and IoT-based technologies. For Bartels, when a new client has an issue that requires an on-site inspection, he will almost always bring an LEA Professional amplifier with him because it’s likely to be the solution or form part of the solution to the overall issue.
‘I remember having a conversation with new clients that we hadn’t previously worked with in Seattle, and they said their equipment had failed and they didn’t know what the problem was,’ he recalls. ‘Sure enough, their amplifier was fried and within a couple of minutes we had the LEA in place and had solved the problem. Not only did we fix the issue for the client but we gave them a new technology that allows us to monitor the system remotely through the LEA cloud platform so we wouldn’t need to have another on-site visit.’
All LEA Professional amplifiers use a built-in Amazon Web Services (AWS) IoT Core, using the cloud platform to control and monitor critical operational data points that are integral to maintaining system health securely and remotely. The capability delivers greater visibility and response time that enhances preventative maintenance, simplifies troubleshooting and cuts down or even eliminates on-site maintenance requirements. All of this opens up new recurring revenue streams for integrators to add to service contracts.
LEA Professional’s technology helps integrators such as Bartels navigating the Covid-19 crisis. At a time when churches and similar spaces have been shut and access is limited, or there are strict social distancing practices in place, Bartels is still able to monitor the amplifiers through the LEA Professional Cloud Platform.
‘On another project, a client asked us to change some parameters on the amplifiers but it was late at night and I couldn’t drive down there,’ Bartels says. ‘Instead, they walked around the venue and talked us through what they needed over the phone while I made the adjustments from home. It’s an extremely innovative solution that is valuable to any integrator who can save time and money from eliminating the need for an on-site visit every time there is a maintenance need.’
As spaces begin to slowly reopen and people begin to learn to live in the pandemic, integrators are in high demand with clients reaching out for support. ‘Our phone has been ringing more than ever because people are looking for support right now,’ Bartels reports. ‘As an integrator, I need that support too and LEA excels in this area, I can reach out to somebody day or night on so many different platforms and I get a reply right away – which is really unusual among manufacturers.
‘When working with a manufacturer, I look to see if they are competitive on price, performance, and service, ‘ he adds. ‘LEA Professional ticks all three requirements, and when I find a product like this, I put them everywhere.’
