Sound and Communications - February 2008 Issue

Government Facilities & Public Works
By Dan Ferrisi
“Data Scan” is our monthly analysis of information provided by respondents to our annual Commercial Systems Integration Survey
(the 22 nd edition, published with the July 2007 issue) and the Worship Center Survey (the 11 th edition, to be published next month).
Each month, we examine cross-referenced data culled from responses to specific questions from the surveys. This information is
meant to supplement the published reports, not duplicate those efforts.
To tie in with this month’s Government Facilities and Public
Works theme, this time we are analyzing information provided
by respondents to the 22 nd annual Commercial Systems
Integration Survey who indicated in Question #18 (asking
about venues and percentages of each company’s business)
that 10% or more of their business relates to public/government
building integration projects.
Question #4 relates to business trends, specifically total
dollar sales for one year compared to the previous year. For
integrators working in this segment, the news is good: About
two-thirds of respondent integrators reported a business
increase, with the vast majority of them indicating 5% or
more. Indeed, among all respondents, nearly half reported an
increase of this magnitude. About a fifth of respondents
reported no change, which, although not as propitious as a
business bounce, still is indicative of stability in the marketplace.
Finally, although only 14% of respondents reported a
business decrease, most of those integrators suffered a
decrease of 5% or more. Whether this is cause for concern
remains to be seen.
Question #7 asks about average dollar size of projects. This
question’s chart indicates that the government and public
space sector is not monolithic, because the values are spread
comparatively evenly. Respondents most frequently selected
$25,000 to $100,000, which garnered 38% of response. Also
firmly in the middle range of values is $100,000 to $500,000,
which itself got nearly 30% of the response. With respect to
average project sizes exceeding $500,000, response dropped
off sharply, with such categories garnering only 3% support.
The lower end of the scale ($1,000,000 clearly was dominant, collecting 42% of
integrators’ response. $100,000 to $500,000 and $500,000 to
$1,000,000 tied for second place, each with 17%. Response for
the other values was much lower, amounting to less than 25%.
The message here seems to be that, although the largest
projects might not be typical for integrators in this segment,
such projects do come around at least a few times a year.
And, as those who frequent government spaces demand
audiovisual outfitting, such facilities’ alacritous adoption of
AV seems sure to enhance this market’s future prospects. ■
Based on responses to the 22 nd Annual Commercial Systems Integration
Survey, published in the July 2007 issue, which polled 3912 Sound &
Communications readers across the US. This survey report is sent to
subscribers as part of their subscription to Sound & Communications.
Additional copies of the survey are available for $2.95. To request
Commercial Systems Integration Surveys, subscribe to the magazine
and read select articles, visit www.soundandcommunications.com.