SVG Sit-Down: Joseph Electronics CEO Yohay Hahamy on the Hot Industry Trends

In business for six decades, the company keeps an eye on next-gen tech, currently 4K and IP

For more than 65 years, Joseph Electronics has been focused on serving up more than 100 product lines to its customers. It also likes to consider its customers “partners” as the company’s staff works closely to ensure that the right technical solution is applied to the right job. CEO Yohay Hahamy took a few minutes to share his thoughts on current market trends and what is new from Joseph Electronics.

Yohay Hahamy, CEO of Joseph Electronics

Your team obviously sees a lot of technology requests from a wide range of customers, but what are some of the trends you are seeing in their interest in next-generation technologies like 4K, HDR, IP, etc.?
That is 100% correct. We first need to recognize where we fit in solution-designing, and usually that is on two avenues simultaneously. To the SI and end-user market, we provide “best-in-class products and materials as a broadcast distributor. And, as a “custom solutions provider,” we hear an increasing demand for 4K-capable transport (mainly for POVs) and HDR-capable monitors, where we provide a 20- and 32-in. production-wall–grade monitors. It seems the industry is waiting a bit to fully invest into 4K as technology still has not fully caught up with a single coax [cable] that will deliver 12G as well as fiber or IP.

The other buzz is IP, IP, IP. That is the current buzzword and the direction that a lot of folks are looking at adapting. AES67 seems to be the common language to both RAVENNA in the EU, and Dante in the U.S. Our place is between the camera and the truck where we are fully capable of transporting both standards down our fiber transport solutions. And, to the fixed facility, we also can provide both solutions-related products.

And lastly, the move to fiber. As signals get heavier and distances don’t get shorter, “payload transport via fiber” is the growth of our organization, and we continue to invest in that direction.

Your website lists 4K/12 Gbps at the top of the page, and I was just wondering if you are seeing interest in 12-Gbps solutions for 4K needs?
Being in the materials business, we were tasked by a few key OB folks to put together a quick tool that gives ongoing solutions for this 12G issue. We concentrate on the fittings (copper-based connectors) and cabling side with a few exceptions of fiber throwdowns.

The company has been around for more than 60 years and, obviously, has seen a lot of changes over the years and also had a chance to build up some great relationships. What do you see as your competitive advantages in a challenging marketplace?
Simple. It’s our team of professionals across the company who do the work and interface with the customer on the sales, technical, and engineering sides day in and day out. We understand the industry we serve and are available at the hours that they work. This is not a 9-to-5 job, and we get it. We also provide innovative solutions that make it easier for our customers to maintain and increase their respective profits.

Are there any recent deals or projects you have been involved with that you found interesting and can discuss?
I can name more than a few (some still ongoing), but some that stand out would be the ongoing phases of the new Wrigley Field-Chicago, which is an interesting project for us. We also designed a fiber system that connects the Boston Library to WGBH TV and allows them to air a full TV show (on two strands of fiber) from there. It was very challenging, yet a rewarding project that went very well. And, lastly, we provided direct-out MADI gear to Dolby in California that allowed them to manipulate and route large amounts of audio channels; [it] was also a challenging project.