REPORT GAUGES FINANCIAL HEALTH OF THE INDUSTRY
NSCA‘s Financial Analysis of the Industry Report spotlights operations

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA, November 7, 2007 — Business owners know competition is a fact of life. A “keeping up with the Joneses” mentality can be a useful strategy to measure yourself against others in your field. But knowing exactly what the “Joneses” are up to is key. That‘s where NSCA can help.

Each year, the National Systems Contractors Association conducts research to zero in on industry financial ratios. The recently released 2007 Financial Analysis of the Industry focuses on three main areas of interest: company background, balance sheet and summary information, and sales ratios.

“The Analysis is a proactive yardstick to help measure your bottom line against other like-size companies in the industry,” said Senior Director of Member Services Jodi Montgomery. “It provides information on what the most profitable companies are doing. In addition, the Analysis outlines the technologies, vertical markets and sales methods that contribute to their profitability.

Company sizes were split into five different ranges — beginning with companies who earned less than $1 million a year up to one in 10 reporting gross revenues of more than $20 million. Companies that took part in the research were measured against the “best of the best;” those with the highest gross profit and those who had the highest income before taxes. A top 10 category is also included.

To further detail ratios, the study examines a company‘s age, U.S. region, primary sales methods, primary technological/systems focus and primary vertical markets. A few findings include:

• The singular most popular technology continues to be audio-visual presentation.
• Negotiated/direct sales account for 62.8 percent of company revenues.
• Corporate and educational markets topped all other vertical markets for total company revenue.
• A typical company has 30 full-time employees.
• Salaries were highest in the north central part of the United States.

To learn more financial information about the commercial electronic systems industry, corporate members may download the full report at: http://www.nsca.org/fai

About NSCA
NSCA is the leading not-for-profit association representing the commercial electronic systems industry. With more than 2,500 member companies worldwide, the National Systems Contractors Association is a powerful advocate of all who work within the low-voltage industry, including systems contractors/integrators, product manufacturers, consultants, sales representatives, architects, specifying engineers and other allied professionals. NSCA is dedicated to serving contractor members and all channel stakeholders through education, advocacy, outreach and member services. NSCA University offers a variety of courses on topics such as project management, business, sales, design and technical knowledge. Courses are delivered through a variety of methods including conferences, regional trainings, online learning and webinars. NSCA works in conjunction with a variety of industry partners to provide relevant and meaningful education and certification programs. It also provides leading industry research and market intelligence, insurance solutions, the industry‘s most comprehensive manual of practice, Essentials of Systems Integration™ and other business tools. For more information, please visit www.nsca.org.