Musical instrument maker Yamaha Corporation of America has expanded its Buena Park headquarters with a 5,000-square-foot workshop that the company plans to use to research and develop instruments for its band and orchestral division.
The workshop, dubbed L.A. Atelier, is set to make prototypes of custom brass, wind and percussion instruments with the help of musicians and schools.
L.A. Atelier also will act as a custom shop for musicians who want to fix or enhance their instruments.
“Our mission is to develop new instruments and support artists’ needs,” said Roger Eaton, marketing director for Yamaha’s band and orchestral division.
Yamaha’s musical unit has spent more than $1 million building the workshop with state-of-the art machinery and a studio equipped with video conferencing equipment and acoustic sound.
The workshop will allow artists to design and test instruments with Yamaha specialists. The company also plans to use its video conferencing equipment to host demonstrations for its offices in Japan and elsewhere, Eaton said.
“It’s one thing to describe the way something sounds to the designers in Japan but it’s totally different to have them actually hear it,” said Bob Malone, director for L.A. Atelier.
So far, the response has been positive, according to Eaton.
Earlier this month, Yamaha launched a private preview celebration at L.A. Atelier for executives from its Japanese parent, Yamaha Corp.
“This is really the mother ship for Yamaha’s wind instruments in North America,” Eaton said.
The company started building L.A. Atelier in September and plans to open for business in February, according to Eaton.
L.A. Atelier will employ about four full-time custom designers, a small chunk of the 375 or so workers Yamaha counts in Buena Park.
L.A. Atelier is the first of its kind in California, Eaton said. Yamaha has other ateliers,a French word that means workshop,in New York, Japan, Frankfurt, Germany, Vienna, Austria and Paris. They are used to research and design wind and percussion instruments.
Yamaha chose to open its West Coast atelier at its OC headquarters so that it could be near its Buena Park music units, including band and orchestral products, piano, consumer products and professional audio equipment, Eaton said.
Central to Everything
The company also thought that having an atelier in Buena Park would be convenient since it’s within driving distance from recording studios in Los Angeles, major performing arts venues, airports and universities, Eaton said.
“Orange County is central to everything. It made sense for us to open the atelier here,” Eaton said.
Yamaha plans to use L.A. Atelier to strengthen its relationship with artists in California, Eaton said.
The company already offers instruments to artists for tours and recording. The brand is indirectly promoted when bands perform with its instruments. Yamaha represents some 3,500 artists worldwide through its instruments.
During the past few years, the company has built research and development centers for guitars and drums,called Yamaha Artist Services,in North Hollywood, New York and Nashville.
The workshops have been used by artists such as Elton John, Alicia Keys and Paul McCartney.
“The ateliers and the workshops are beneficial for the company from a technical, development and design standpoint but they also help with marketing a great deal,” Eaton said. “The artists are critical because they spread the word.”
Yamaha ranks as the top U.S. music and sound company, according to Music Trades Magazine. It accounts for an estimated $800 million in annual sales of parent Yamaha Corp.’s $5 billion yearly sales.
Competitors include Harman Professional Group, part of Washington, D.C.-based Harman International Industries Inc. with about $500 million in yearly sales, and Scottsdale’s Fender Musical Instruments Corp. with $430 million in sales.
The company, which sells a good chunk of its products through 8,000 or so independent music stores and chains such as Sam Ash and Guitar Center, has seen some changes this past year.
Yamaha closed its Michigan and Georgia factories last year in a move to send production to Asia while cutting some 380 jobs. The company also closed its Yamaha Exporting Inc. unit, which handle instrument shipping, in Buena Park.
While large manufactures such as Yamaha struggle with the rising costs of producing mass goods in America, Eaton said the company’s local atelier helps Yamaha maintain its custom-made image and feel.
“It gives Yamaha a special quality,” Eaton said. “We’re focused on offering the high end quality of a custom shop here.”
