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A legend turns 25

In the laser and multimedia sector, a lot has changed in 25 years. In a market that has seen many companies rising and falling, LOBO established itself at the top.

01A00100 The Company Headquarters  Headquarters Aalen 2

Hardly a minute passes without an enthusiastic audience enjoying a show by LOBO somewhere in the world.  

While LOBO lasers entertain well-heeled guests of the Queen Mary 2 on the Atlantic Ocean, LOBO lasers can also be found sailing all other seas – for example as a regular part of on-board entertainment on the five newest ships of Costa, Europe’s biggest shipping company, or on Celebrity Cruise ships. Even one of the world’s biggest private yachts is crowned by brightly shining laser beams of LOBO.

On land, you can find LOBO installations mainly in amusement parks, but also in movie theaters or planetariums. Many people in Germany know the LOBO attractions of Europa Park, Hansa Park or the new highlight "AMACEON“ at Holiday Park. Some have seen LOBO lasers at Hamburg’s planetarium, at the one in Stuttgart, or know the laser show classics of the former planetarium in Munich. However, only a few people know that most laser and multi-media installations created by the Aalen-based show specialists, some of them at a rather impressive scale, can be found outside of Germany, for example in Italian amusement parks, Lebanon, Malaysia, Indonesia or China. But also in clubs in Chile, Korea or Argentina, and, of course, on stage, from the French revue theatre Royal Palace to the National Theater in Weimar. Members of the LOBO team are used to traveling a lot, because 80% of the company turnover is made outside of Germany, about 60% even outside of Europe.

That alone would be quite an accomplishment for a company of this size that, unlike any other provider in this industry, is able to draw from a wide product range of the highest technological standard - developed and made in-house. LOBO has always been the proverbial jump ahead of the competition and the company's trailblazing concepts make it a much copied innovative force in the industry. Be it the first series of RGB color mixing units for laser shows, the first 3D real-time computer, the first safety measuring system for laser shows or with countless big and small developments that the competition often launches many years later with much ballyhoo. Unimpressed by the mainstream, LOBO often goes its own way, so that the difference between a LOBO show and a show with commonly available equipment, becomes obvious even for an amateur audience. These achievements were honored with the LDI Award, SIB Award, the International Show Award, the  Golden Eye Award, the Innovation Award Ostwürttemberg and the Innovation Award of the State.

However, LOBO is not just a manufacturer, but one of the major players in the field of events, which is a market that contributes about 30% to LOBO’s turnover. Right before the anniversary celebration, a large part of the rental equipment returned from a government project in Bucharest. As in so many cases, LOBO was contracted, because exceptional creative approaches posed exceptional technological challenges and required the best possible reliability. Apart from working with the Romanian government, LOBO has realized government projects for up to 1.2 million spectators in Hungary, Saudi-Arabia, Liechtenstein, Turkey, and, of course, in Germany.

LOBO is also in great demand as a specialist for major international events, such as the Olympics. Last December for example, a TV audience of no fewer than 3.4 billion people watched live, as LOBO once again raised the bar for the possibilities of laser technology at the Asian Games in Qatar. Apart from this, LOBO is an esteemed partner of many agencies, as well as of the marketing and PR departments of big corporations, such as Daimler-Chrysler, BMW, EADS, BAYER, Microsoft, Thyssen-Krupp, Hewlett-Packard, Allianz and many others. Most of them are regular clients, because LOBO enjoys a long-standing reputation as a reliable, established solution provider with international experience for spectacular product presentations, opening ceremonies or incentives. For the benefit of rental clients, LOBO invested in a large multi-media studio in Aalen, unique in size and equipment in the world. Here, the LOBO design team works with the client under realistic conditions, in order to develop and present even the most demanding shows.

LOBO's success proves that the company is on the right path. There is hardly an award the LOBO show designers haven't received for their creative achievements. The most important one is the ILDA Award of the International Laser Display Association, the umbrella organization of the laser show industry: LOBO was awarded 97 of these Laser Oscars to date – a unique record in this industry.

Leader in technology and the number one in creative design - how is that possible?

LOBO’s success is not the story of a big boom during the start-up phase, but one of many small, yet strategic steps.

Like many other innovative companies, LOBO was established when its founder Lothar Bopp came of age. At the time, he had already created light and sound installations in clubs and dance schools. From the very beginning, original developments in the field of control engineering were the focus of the business. At the same time, the general laser enthusiasm in the US made its way across the pond. At first, LOBO went into the market as a retailer, then turned to the development of new systems due to negative experiences with the technology available at the time. In 1987, LOBO was already able to produce and offer complete systems, and distinguish itself from the competition to conquer many new markets where lasers had never been a popular choice before. At Bayreuth, LOBO created scenery with laser light, at the Hannover Messe, the Hoesch corporation built its pavilion around a bombastic multi-media spectacle made by LOBO, the first LOBO shows came to Dubai as early as 1991, and even the GDR celebrated its own downfall at the Palast der Republik with laser technology from the class enemy.

By means of constant innovation, LOBO left behind one competitor after another, until there was nobody left to overtake. While many other companies vanished from the market, LOBO remained virtually untouched even by major economic crises. The company always managed to present the right product at the right time or expand to other business segments, such as water projection surfaces, well known and very successful around the world under the LOBO trademark "Water Screen".
 
Even though LOBO has always remained flexible enough to adapt to a changing market, the company's basic principles remained the same. Then and now, technological innovations, outstanding ideas, perfection down to the smallest detail and the passionate commitment of all team members create the solid foundation for LOBO's continuing success.

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