Electrosonic - 50 Years on the Audio-Visual Front Line Published to Mark Company's 50th Anniversary

Electrosonic celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, and to mark the milestone the company is publishing Electrosonic - 50 Years on the Audio-Visual Front Line, which celebrates five decades of achievements in the AV community.

The story of Electrosonic from its founding in 1964 to the present day is a complex one that spans the analog to digital revolution, the move to HD and 4K, and amazing innovations in display technology, the company says. The book tells this story in a series of chapters covering key aspects of the company's first 50 years.

Electrosonic began as a two-room startup in London's Greenwich vegetable market. The book's first chapter, "A Short History," tells how the fledgling firm became a multimillion-dollar international business with headquarters in Burbank, California and offices worldwide. Parallel stories chart changes of ownership, subsidiaries, related companies, and acquisitions.

Chapter two, "Products and Technology," reviews the many industry changes and challenges faced by Electrosonic in its 50 years in business. From the era of slide projectors and overhead projectors to 4K projection and network technology, Electrosonic has maintained a leadership position and developed many unique products. It was among the first to exploit the emerging technologies of electronic lighting control, multi-image slide projection and videowalls. From the start, Electrosonic combined the manufacturing and selling of products with the building of complete engineered systems. The product and systems portions of the business continued together through 2010 when the products side of the business, which by then represented a small portion of overall revenue, was sold.

Chapter three, "Projects," reviews some of Electrosonic's most impressive global projects, including multi-image spectaculars in 1970s Iran, the world's biggest videowall in Seville, Spain, in 1992, and massive projection displays at EXPO 2010 in Shanghai. These projects and more reveal how the company pushed the envelope in applying new technology, whether it was pushing 70mm film to the limit, implementing multi-channel dynamic sound systems, or achieving huge 3-D images with the latest electronic projectors. The importance of long-term relationships with designers, suppliers, and customers is also discussed.

Electrosonic has created new business units to support the changing needs of AV users across five decades and chapter four, "Service," examines these developments from the early days when the principal service was pulsing (programming magnetic tapes) and then making show copies, to the more recent on-site staff support of major installations.

Electrosonic's extraordinary success in business is a testament to its people, who are recognized in chapter five. In 55 profiles of the company's talented staff members, the book salutes the different personalities and skills, which have contributed to 50 years of growth, innovation, and outstanding customer support.

The final chapter, "Contribution to the AV Industry," details how Electrosonic has supported the development of the AV business by example, sponsorship, and participation in trade events. It features a look at the company's current ownership and governance.

Robert Simpson, one of the cofounders of Electrosonic, authored Electrosonic - 50 Years on the Audio-Visual Front Line. A graduate of Trinity College, Oxford, and the former Chairman of Electrosonic Ltd., he is a frequent writer and lecturer on AV and lighting control topics and has several other books to his credit. He is a member of many professional organizations and the recipient of the 2008 InfoComm Distinguished Achievement Award.