The Fabric of our Society

November 2022

Relationships Underpin the Role of the Distributor

Glenn Buchholz
Senior Vice President, Chelsea Lighting

Because a good lighting distributor interfaces with all of the parties in a lighting project, from specifier to rep to manufacturer to contractor, we strive to have strong relationships with everyone involved. Ultimately, strong relationships and a thorough knowledge of roles and responsibilities helps meet the players’ needs to execute a successful commercial lighting project. Personal relationships really differentiate a distributor and allow us to fill the logistical gap between the lighting design and the completed installation.

Early in the project, a lighting distributor must understand the specifications, drawings, and details in order to work with the lighting reps and manufacturers to generate a bill of materials and price the project. Of course, we follow the RFI process through contractors, but having a relationship that enables a conversation with the designer, even over a cup of coffee, can pay huge dividends by allowing the project to be priced properly with better priorities! This helps ensure that the client gets what is specified and prevents the designer from expending large amounts of time on unnecessary redesigns and VE.

Once we have a purchase order for the project, the distributor begins the voluminous logistical work of submitting, getting approvals, releasing, and shipping all the light fixtures. (An average project for us is 30 fixture types from 12 manufacturers!) Done right, this verification process ensures that the client gets exactly what the designer specified with all the parts and pieces. Sometimes picking up the phone to speak with the designer or the manufacturer’s engineering team can prevent a logjam in this often-tedious process.

Get It There On-time
We then make sure that these hundreds of light fixtures all arrive at the proper time on the right floor of the right building to fit in the right sequencing of the general contractor’s construction schedule. Specific to New York City is the logistical challenge of very detailed building delivery regulations that often require delivery windows late at night or very early in the morning with preapproved trucks and drivers. Sometimes I think it’s a miracle that these lights actually get to the right spot to be installed!
 
To meet the financial needs of the lighting manufacturers, a lighting distributor pays manufacturers promptly, either prepaying before materials ship or within 30 days. We then work through the project cycle with the contractor to get paid in return at various milestones, often months later. Without solid relationships with NYC lighting reps (I’ve exchanged hundreds of texts daily), we wouldn’t be able to successfully align the shipping requirements of the projects with the capabilities of the manufacturers.
 
On-site, we coordinate all fixtures with the installing electrician and the related trades to make sure that the finished product that the client sees matches the design intent. We work with electricians, carpenters, drywallers, and others to ensure seamless installation. In maintaining management relationships, it helps to support industry groups and charity events that align with the client’s interests. This helps us to know that when there’s a problem, they’ll call on us for onsite support through our in-house field technicians.

Always Learning
With the technology available in 2022 and beyond, we provide technical support to all the players. Lighting control systems and technically complex fixtures —like RGB+, DMX, tunable white, and PoE—are often critical to the uniqueness of a lighting design and tricky to size and budget for. Care must be given to specify, install, and commission these technical features of lighting properly, without expensive glitches or change orders. To us, key features are well worth reviewing, over the drawings or over a meal with the designer, to fully understand and properly oversee high-impact, signature features of the design.
 
There are many perspectives in the industry about the role of a lighting distributor. And hopefully, this column has shared some insider perspective. The right distributor is one who plays the role of commercial lighting technology provider and project management firm. We can help meet the goals of each member of the project team and the client, easing the path and ensuring a successful lighting project. The relationships make this possible.