Hundreds of Audio and Lighting Professionals Attend HARMAN TechXchange Roadshows Across Northern India

MUMBAI, India – Fuelled by the booming tourism, entertainment and hospitality industries in Northern India, cities such as Jodhpur, Lucknow, Dehradhun and Chandigarh have witnessed an unprecedented rise in cultural awareness, economic growth, and general prosperity. As demands for professional audio and lighting solutions have increased with this recent surge in Northern India’s economy, HARMAN India has an exclusive interactive roadshow, “HARMAN TechXchange”, to sound and lighting professionals throughout the region.

The event has proven to be an ideal platform for sound engineers, rental companies, DJ’s and other sound professionals to interact with live and portable PA sound technology and professional lighting technology through live demonstrations, and to obtain essential training on the HARMAN Professional product range.

With the participation of Hi-Tech Audio Systems, HARMAN’s Authorized Master Dealer for North India which has collaborated with other regional HARMAN partners, TechXchange has proven to be a major success. Leading pro audio and sound rental companies and HARMAN Professional dealers in North India such as Bhawani Audio and Rajan Amplifiers in Jodhpur, Harman Electronic Engineers in Lucknow, Audio Systems in Dehradhun and Pro Solutions in Chandigarh have helped to drive participation, identify key issues, provide local support and boost interaction within their respective cities.

Elaborating on the goals of the roadshow series, Ankush Agarwal, Director of Marketing & Business Development, HARMAN Professional India, stated, “HARMAN TechXchange is the perfect platform for building awareness about the latest developments in professional audio and lighting and we have seen tremendous success in the past while covering major cities – Mumbai, Kolkata and even Goa. Thus, launching the series in Northern India was extremely crucial for the sheer potential this region has to offer.”

The efforts of all the partners involved led to an impressive number of participants in each of the regions.

“As our initiative carries both direct and indirect benefits to the participants, it has developed rapidly into very engaging formats, and as a result, we have participants from far-reaching locations attending the programs, some of whom we haven’t known or met before. This enables us to move closer to the customer and build tremendous awareness and trust in the region – both for the product performance and service capabilities,” commented Amit Saxena, Regional Sales Manager – North, HARMAN Professional India.

The Who & What of HARMAN TechXchange:

TechXchange was led by HARMAN India staff — Sunil Karanjikar, Application Manager; Sudhagar Padmanabhan, Application Engineer; and Ashish Barje, Sales Manager – Recording & Broadcast — who provided an initial overview on HARMAN India before addressing a range of basic and advanced audio topics. Topics included microphone applications, PA rigging, line array design, troubleshooting, amplifier set-up, and standard formats. The event also featured basics of lighting design and the various applications/effects in lighting and video systems, followed by a seminar and demo of HARMAN’s Soundcraft Expression, Si Compact, and Vi Series consoles.

Being an avid live sound technology enthusiast and HARMAN user, Anil Panwar, Managing Director, Rajan Amplifier, Jodhpur, said, “HARMAN is often credited for creating benchmarks and innovation in the live sound space in India. Given that Jodhpur is a cultural hub and is increasingly becoming a sought-after destination for weddings, events etc. it is imperative that we receive such crucial trainings and we look forward to continual encouragement from HARMAN and Hi-Tech Audio Systems.”

The TechXchange sessions also included technical demos such as live rigging of HARMAN JBL’s VERTEC, VRX, STX, and PRX line of loudspeakers, wired and wireless microphone systems from AKG, and the Crown line of amplifiers. Local bands from each city aided the live demonstrations. Additionally, the Martin Professional lighting range was showcased at the events in Dehradhun and Chandigarh, conducted by Venkatesh Vishwanathan, Application Engineer, Lighting, HARMAN Professional India.

“We are delighted to be associated with HARMAN for an event of this nature and pleased with the good turnout. Also we commend the efforts of the trainers to connect with the participants, while keeping in mind the preferences for local language and making it simpler for some of the participants,” commented Prabjot Karla, Owner, Harman Electronics Engineers, Lucknow.

In addition to the interactive sessions with HARMAN India’s experts, the events have included a host of special promotional deals and offers for attendees. “We are very happy with the exceptional response and encouraging sales enquiries received at the HARMAN TechXchange event in Jodhpur, with participation from various other neighboring cities like Jaipur, Udaipur, which truly added to the success of this event,” stated, Lokpal Singh, Owner of Bhawani Audio.

Speaking on the success of TechXchange in this unique multi-city format, Nirdosh Aggarwal, Director, Hi-Tech Audio Systems, said, “This event was well received in all the cities and we are very pleased to collaborate with HARMAN on a platform that has become a benchmark for imparting and exchanging best practices, and providing updates on sound technology. The event provided the tools that will enable our partners in the Northern region to familiarize themselves with the HARMAN professional range and ensure that the users get the best out of the equipment they own”.

Additionally, the HARMAN TechXchange was successfully launched for the first time ever in Dehradhun in February 2014 with the help of local dealer, Audio Systems. While logistics and participation proved to be a challenge in the area’s hilly terrain and far-flung areas of operations, Audio Systems, led by Sameer Malhotra, provided valuable assistance in organizing as well as driving enthusiastic attendee participation in the area.

“Roadshows, trainings and workshops are the cornerstone of HARMAN’s strategy in India,” summarized Prashant Govindan, Director, India Operations, HARMAN Professional. “This year, our focus is to reach cities across the country, as they hold immense value and potential for us. Given the enthusiasm and demand for such programs, we are only encouraged to extend these crucial trainings required for our users, dealer network and channel partners.”

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures, and markets a wide range of infotainment and audio solutions for the automotive, consumer, and professional markets. It is a recognized world leader across its customer segments with premium brands including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon®, and Mark Levinson® and leading-edge connectivity, safety and audio technologies. The Company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a workforce of 15,200 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia and reported sales of $5.1 billion for the last twelve months ended March 31, 2014.