COMPANY PROFILE

AV MATRIX

Technology, company profiles, April 2007, COMMENTS

Harrogate-based production and installation specialists Matrix AV count a diverse range of clients amongst their portfolio. In the past six months the company has installed a quarter of a million pounds’ worth of sound, light and video into one of Manchester’s swankiest new nightclubs; run production for the glamorous Leeds Bar and Club Awards; and lit more than the odd castle.

Since Mark Parker set up the business in August 2003 it has grown rapidly in response to demand from the club, corporate and private events sectors: explaining why in a single week it can work in a tiny local pub, at a 1,500 seater awards dinner and in the grounds of a country house. One year, he remembers, “we did a job where a well-heeled client wanted a club environment creating in a castle keep: effectively a portable nightclub with full sound and light systems in a 1,000 year old building. We had to pass just over a tonne of equipment through holes in two floors – including 24 moving heads. It was pretty amazing.” In 2007 he and his team are heading into Europe for the first time, for a corporate event in Rome.

The diversity of AV Matrix’s work wasn’t something Mark anticipated at the outset. But when positive word of mouth about the company’s services started to spread, requests came in from all angles and it made sense to accept the jobs. Now half of his time is spent on corporate AV events, the rest split equally between club and private contracts. Fuelling the demand, thinks Mark, is the company’s calm and professional approach - which is as important to a family staging an elaborate birthday party as it is to ASDA, for whom the company manage several events each year.

“We deliberately stay calm and relaxed through the process,” he says. “We understand the importance of deadlines and work to them, but we’ll do it in a fuss-free way. Our aim is to take the stress out of things.”

Also a factor in its popularity is the company’s commitment to service. Customer focused from the start, Mark’s staff are commonly made available 24 hours a day with help and advice. And quality plays a central role too, evident in the products the company uses, the systems they design and the way they carry out the job.

On the product side, “we work fairly closely with suppliers so we know their products and their capacities very well, but at the same time we’re not tied to any of them, so we’re not in the position where we’ve got to push products if they’re not appropriate,” says Mark. The products they work with, he says, are deliberately selected to offer value for money at their different price points – which is reflected in their build quality, the availability of replacement parts and in product lifetimes. “Where budget is an issue on an installation, some companies will use cheap kit to get the contract – but then a year down the line, the operator will have spent as much as they initially paid out to patch up or replace it all as the equipment has failed.

“Our belief is that the products need to be right for the job, and we won’t cut corners,” Mark says strongly. “It’s about getting good quality equipment at the right price point. Product lifetime is important, which is why we work with brands like Nexo, Martin Professional and Pulsar. The fact that these products are more expensive at the outset is rendered almost irrelevant by the end of the first year when they’re still in perfect working order and not in need of massive repairs. And if five years down the line the kit still hasn’t cost the operator anything – there’s no doubt it was the right choice.”

These product lifetime and service issues are increasingly relevant today, as cheap imports often offering the same high levels of functionality as more established brands flood onto the market. Now, the key question is no longer “what does the equipment do”, but “how long will it last, and what kind of after sales service can I expect”. With lighting, and in particular moving lights, reliability is paramount. “Inevitably because it’s a moving light, with moving parts, things will eventually go wrong and require servicing. At that stage it’s important to have a supplier on hand with the parts readily available – something that brands like Martin and Pulsar really deliver on,” concludes Mark.

From: April 2007 Issue

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