Bogen Communications, a well-known audio and paging solutions provider, boasting over 90 years in business, has earned the trust of key integrators in our industry. After all, the breadth of Bogen products spans multiple markets — they range from education and retail to healthcare and transportation — and the company is known for emphasizing audio innovation while, at the same time, maintaining quality, dependability and ease of installation across applications.
It’s little wonder, then, that Electrical Corporation of America (ECA) puts its trust in Bogen Communications as a key vendor partner. ECA, based in Kansas City, Mo., and founded in 1970, has been an integral part of the audio electronics contracting sphere for the last 25 years, earning an outstanding reputation along the way. According to ECA project manager Greg Freeman, ECA is particular about whom they choose to work with as a contractor. And Bogen, he says, sets the gold standard. Freeman explains that ECA approached Bogen and decided to become a certified dealer when it was searching for a quality intercommunication system for school districts. Although ECA does not consider itself fully an integrator, the company chose to become a dealer for Bogen due to the company’s pristine reputation and highly reliable products — especially the E7000, an IP-based paging system for education facilities.
Bogen and its Reputation in the Education Market
Bogen’s partner-centricity, as well as its reputation for timeliness, professionalism and skill, makes it a hot commodity for integrators. According to Jason Fares, director of sales at Bogen, integrators often seek out the company for its paging and intercom solutions, particularly when serving the K-12 market. The aforementioned E7000, an IP-based paging and intercom solution, fits that market’s needs perfectly.
Fares is the direct liaison between Bogen and its integrator and dealer partners. “It is important for our dealers to be partners,” he emphasizes. “I want to be an integrator’s go-to person when anything comes up.” Fares oversees the 11 regional managers nationwide, and he impresses on them to approach their relationships as partnerships for current and future projects. Moreover, he explains that Bogen wants to see its dealers do well, regardless of whether all their projects happen to feature Bogen solutions. After all, the enduring, trust-based relationship is far more important than any single project.
It’s no surprise, then, that Freeman at ECA loves to work with Bogen. He echoes the sentiment that theirs is a long-term partnership — and when ECA can choose a company, it tends to choose Bogen. It’s a case in point of what happens when both parties feel supported and know they are valued.
What Sets Bogen Apart
For ECA, what sets Bogen apart is the bulletproof reliability of the products. the company has been an industry stalwart for nearly a century now, adhering faithfully to a mantra best summed up as “better sound, smarter systems, safer spaces, exceptional service.” Over 90 years, Bogen has carried this commitment across markets and applications.
ECA recruited Freeman to build an integrator division, and Bogen seems to be a cornerstone of his strategy. “The product is always available,” he enthuses. “It’s easy to partner with companies who do what they promise.”
Freeman explains that ECA’s experience with audio electronics is primarily in the education market. As he describes it, Bogen’s Nyquist E7000 IP-based paging system is “…easy to operate for the end user (the school) and the integrator.” Coupled with strong customer service by Bogen, this makes for an ideal solution for the education spaces that ECA specializes in serving.
Freeman underscores that, for school campuses, intercom systems are essential for both safety and convenience. “Intercom systems are the first line of communication,” Freeman observes. Indeed, a properly functioning intercom system can alert all students and staff within seconds, rather than the minutes that other methods would take.
Bogen Solutions Can Be Scaled for Education and More
According to Bogen’s website, its solutions are scalable to a project’s precise parameters, an important factor because education environments offer unique acoustic challenges. Of course, cafeterias, auditoriums, hallways, classrooms, courtyards, gymnasiums, sporting venues and stadiums often have high ambient-noise levels, even as there is a lot of space to cover.
Freeman can attest to these challenges, as well as how Bogen solutions help to overcome them. Alluding to some of his favorite projects, Freeman recalls an instance when a school district came to ECA with an outdated audio system. It was clear that the client needed a new system entirely. “We gathered all the information and sent it to Bogen with measurements, and they put a design together in two weeks,” he recalls. “From start to finish, we had a purchase order on the project within two months and equipment within one week of the PO.” ECA prides itself on working nationwide amid busy schedules, so this efficiency and effectiveness stood out.
Freeman has nothing but positive remarks about how Bogen supports ECA as a dealer. The company provides strong support to its dealers — everything from rapid responses to readily available products that are easy to operate. According to Freeman, the average turnaround is typically less than two weeks, which allows faster integration and installation. This underlines the partnership’s mutual benefit for the integrator, the client and Bogen.
Freeman concludes, “From an integrator’s perspective, Bogen is the number-one choice. The rapid response makes them the go-to for intercom and paging needs. If we have a choice, we always choose Bogen.”
