New opportunity: Innovation House!
Innovation House offers a fantastic opportunity for dealers to explore new horizons and discover fresh opportunities within established core competencies.
With a big fanfare Midwich recently announced a major overhaul of Innovation House so that the site now represents the UK’s largest multi-technology experience facility, revealing a refreshed experience within its impressive 50,000sqft Innovation House. The enhanced space showcases the latest technologies and offers immersive interactive experiences across LED, image processing, workplace solutions, residential AV, home cinema, pro audio, lighting, security, rental fleet and events technologies.
Since 2021, the Bracknell-based company has delivered an impressive performance welcoming more than 3,000 visitors every year. Building on that success, the latest update introduces new technologies and spaces including a fully equipped content creation studio that allows partners to produce, record and broadcast professional content for promotional purposes.
Present at the event in the space’s impressive home cinema, Simon Gibbs, Head of Projects & Sales at Pulse Cinemas, underlines:
“Obviously a lot of the time the demonstration focus with us is on Pulse HQ in Stanstead. However, our whole team is keen to underline just how important a part Innovation House can play for dealers, particularly ones who want to add some light commercial work into their portfolio or of course those who already do.
“There are significant opportunities now and in the future for agile residential installers to either grow their presence or begin a journey into providing projects in places such as bars, pubs, clubs, restaurants, office spaces (including home offices), gyms and a whole load of other spaces that could and should benefit from some carefully thought-out AV, networking and automation.”
Simon adds, “There are also opportunities to expand the offer of cinemas to spaces outside the strictly residential sector. Apartment blocks wishing to offer a communal space and other more straightforwardly commercial spaces that would benefit from a cinema are other market opportunities that are particularly well catered for at Innovation House. A good example of this type of expansion is the project Pulse Cinemas was involved in creating two separate cinemas for the Hub on Verulam in St Albans, a private members club that enhances its offering with world-class viewing and entertainment spaces.”
What is on show?
Plunging right in, the cinema at Innovation House was in particularly fine form during the event, wowing audiences with its mix of Krix, Trinnov, Kaleidescape, madVR, Screen Innovations, Grand Film Chairs and the most recent resident, the Epson QL3000. The whole room is ably and elegantly controlled via an AVA remote. This space is really popping and offering an exciting introduction to the world of cinema for those unfamiliar and a very respectable representation for those already initiated. The event provided a timely reminder of just how impactful this space can be for those who are not yet familiar with the level of performance offered, delivering a chance to expand the client base for this type of space whether for purely residential or more commercial use. The combination of brands in this cinema delivers very strong bang-for-buck performance and it’s a fantastic part of our cinema demonstration offering. Its location can also be useful for those clients who don’t like to travel too far and are close by.
Outside of the cinema and on the rest of the show floor the benefits of being part of the wider Midwich group are really underlined for Pulse/Invision dealers. Just a few highlights include a Drone Zone with projection mapping to showcase both technologies; a Microsoft Teams Signature area powered by Copilot demonstrating the next generation of AI-enabled collaboration; and a UC&C Room featuring two complete room setups provided by Ashton Bentley. There is also a Retail Zone which brings interactive projection mapping to life.
Other vital brands that installers can leverage in the light commercial world from the Midwich Group that Pulse/Invision dealers have access to include Biamp with 45 years of providing commercial audiovisual solutions, Netgear the networking experts with solutions for residential and commercial spaces, and Bose with its commercial audio solutions. Also don’t forget brands such as Lithe Audio which straddle residential and commercial spaces well. This has been demonstrated to great effect recently as the brand played a key part in a Greystar-managed build-to-rent community called Bloom Nine Elms, executed by Cerebrum Systems. Look out for a case study on this soon.
Simon concludes:
“Visiting Innovation House really underlines the power of Pulse/Invision being part of this wider Midwich world helping installers refine and expand their offering, matching the opportunities old and new that the market presents. If you have never been or have not been for a while, get in touch and begin exploring the power of all we can offer.”