The Last Word with Sarah Lawson: Advanced’s US growth plan
Iain Hoey
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Sarah Lawson, Operations Director, Advanced, on driving compliance and innovation in the US fire safety market
North America faces stricter fire regulations and rising infrastructure investment.
How do these support your regional growth strategy?
We need to ensure the safest living and working environments, and this drives Advanced to design and manufacture compliant systems that are reliable and efficient.
In the US, that’s our Axis AX system which is UL approved, well established and supports low and medium rise buildings with its scalability.
This means designers and installers can opt for our small single panel up to our larger command centre.
What scale of opportunity do you believe exists for fire system manufacturers over the next few years?
The fire safety market is roughly $26 billion and that’s expected to grow to about $30 billion in 2030.
We believe that we’ve got a market opportunity of the $6 billion worth out there.
We’re really looking at operating costs, so we offer a system that’s easy to use, easy to programme and increases the installer’s efficiency.
The simplicity of our system is a real key differentiator and it can also scale.
How has the rigorous testing and certification standards shaped your product development and compliance strategy as you expand in North America?
UL’s high bar aligns with our global approach of designing for the world’s toughest standards.
Our R&D and product teams look to ensure that our systems meet and often exceed regulatory requirements.
We’re looking at what the regulator needs but also using customer feedback to try and drive a bit more of that market focus.
We’re utilising that with customer feedback and market insights, but we also have our distribution partner in the US, Harding.
As you exhibit at two US fire trade shows this year, what are you aiming to showcase about your technology and commitment to the US market?
We are returning to NFPA this year and we’re also exhibiting at ISC West.
What we’re looking to do is showcase our products, continue to increase our North American presence and to build the understanding of what Advanced can offer to the market.
We’d like to continue to demonstrate the reliability, usability and scalability of our Axis AX model and highlight our integration and smart building capabilities.
How is Advanced demonstrating its commitment to the US fire sector through investment, partnerships, and local support?
We have our distribution partner and we’re also investing in regional sales to support coverage in North America.
We are also continuing to understand the differences required in different areas and regulatory bodies.
We’re strengthening partnerships to improve local reach, while continuing to invest in training, customer support and after-sales support.
This ensures customers have a clear route to provide feedback, understand the breadth of our offering and get the most value from our products.