Boating Industry Canada June 2015 - (Page 25)

nmea: FrOm tHe CeOs what's Ahead for marine electronics? At the NMEA International Marine Electronics Conference & Expo in October, leaders of three multinational corporations that help make the marine electronics industry tick gave their take on the future of the market, new technology in the wings, challenges ahead and a host of other topics. On the panel were Andrew Teich, President & CEO of FLIR; Leif Ottosson, President & CEO of Navico Holding AS; and Martin Kits van Heyningen, President, CEO & Chairman of the Board of KVH Industries. The CEOs responded to a dozen questions prepared by the NMEA Convention Committee and to queries from the audience. We published several of their answers in the past two issues. Here are the final questions we posed and their responses. CeO panel-part 3 1) In recent years we've seen an increase in the development of "glass helms" and integrated electronics, including engine controls, at the Oem/boat builder level. If you were operating a dealership, how would you assess and respond to this development? Ottosson: I don't see glass helm integration as a threat- rather I see this technology as a stepping stone to further integration and opportunities-the need for more training and service. Concern over esthetics is growing, which offers more opportunities for the dealer for more integration to display more data. There are parallels to the IT industry-service is where to make money but you need to take a broad view of what service is. Dealers should embrace this new technology, align themselves with what's being done-think in terms of "here's the value added I can provide." Kits van Heyningen: It's a double-edge sword. It means OEMs take more of the business but on the other hand there are opportunities to install all types of additional sensors. Once the battle for the dashboard has been decided the fight can move somewhere else. As long as glass helms can display data, there are opportunities for small companies to develop sensors that are compatible with the display. A dealer can work with them to integrate their sensor into, say, a Raymarine display. Small companies often find it difficult to get their display on the dashboard because someone else controls the dash. It's a healthy thing that dealers can work with small manufacturers to do more integration and make it compatible with what's there. Teich: I think Leif and Martin covered this very well. It's all about service, training and finding opportunities to sell add-on accessories that aren't currently present. 2) Is there anything the marine electronics industry can do to help solve the problem of an aging population of boaters and keen competition for potential new boaters' leisure time and dollars? Kits van Heyningen: That's difficult for us because it's like the tail wagging the dog. People today are much more demanding in terms of technology. One thing we need to do as an industry is to cater to those "digital natives." It's critical that we look at shifting demographics-the average power boater is now 65 years old-that's not good for our industry. It's critical to get younger people into boating. Parents need to stop asking their kids to put away their portable devices. We need to recognize the younger generation wants to do everything at once-be on Facebook, text, use their iPad, watch TV. We need to embrace that on the boat. We need to give them what they want and not turn it into a war. Teich: This summer my family spent some leisure time on a lake. The kids were constantly inside playing video games. When I asked them if they wanted to go out on the water, their answer was like-eh. But the reality was they had a great time once they were out on the water and wanted to do more. We need to use tools that are there to light the spark around boating fun-social media, GoPro cameras, video photography. The fact is, once someone is out having fun on a boat, they www.boatingindustry.ca 25 http://www.boatingindustry.ca

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Boating Industry Canada June 2015

Insight
Industry News
Impact: Rob Rule
Industry: Marine Tech Crisis
GE Spotlight
Ad Nauseam
Marketing: Beating the Boomer Bust
Made In Canada: Sideshift Thrusters
Made In Canada: Nova Braid
The Boat Shop: NMEA
The Boat Shop: ABYC

Boating Industry Canada June 2015