Inovonics Broadcast will acquire Broadcast Tools as founder and President Donald “Don” Winget prepares to retire, according to a dealer letter reported by Radio World on October 5.
Winget informed dealers October 1. The Broadcast Tools name and product line will continue, with manufacturing moving from Sedro-Woolley, Washington, to Inovonics’ facility in Felton, California.
The company makes routing, remote-control, mixing, silence-monitoring and scheduling equipment used in broadcast facilities. Winget founded the business in 1989 while serving as chief engineer of Seattle’s KXRX.
In his letter, Winget expressed confidence that Inovonics President Ben Barber and his team would maintain product quality and relationships with dealers. Inovonics already supplies broadcast processors, monitors, streaming equipment and other specialist products.
The RNN question: How will existing customers obtain repairs, replacement parts and technical support while manufacturing changes locations?
For engineers, the transition’s practical details matter as much as the ownership announcement. A station using these devices for routing or silence detection needs to know where to seek service, how warranties will be handled and whether production lead times will change.
The announcement identifies the planned acquisition and production move; those customer-service questions merit a separate transition guide.
Source: Radio World’s October 5 report on Winget’s dealer letter.