What Putterman Scharck & Associates does

Peterson Scharck & Associates (PSA) is a privately held manufacturer's representative firm founded in 1963 and headquartered at 10855 Tanner Road, Houston, TX. PSA serves as the exclusive or primary sales channel in a 29-county Houston metropolitan territory for approximately eight commercial and architectural lighting manufacturers, including Cooper Controls/Cooper Lighting, ARON Lighting, Delray Lighting, wakaNINE, BIOS Lighting, Architectural Lighting Works (ALW), Eaton Ephesus (sports lighting), and First Light Technologies. The firm earns commission revenue by connecting these manufacturers with architects, lighting designers, general contractors, and commercial end customers on specification-based projects.

PSA's service offering extends beyond transactional rep work to include project-specific applications engineering, quotations, lighting-controls integration support, and a QuickShip program for stocked-product fulfillment. The company organizes its 40+ person team into specialized functions — Principals (Michael, Taylor, and Tim Scharck; Jason Peterson), VP Business Development, Quotations, Applications, Lighting Controls, Inside Sales/Customer Service, Stock Sales, and Warehouse — reflecting a full-service rep model rather than a simple broker. The family-owned firm, with the Scharck and Peterson families holding principal positions, has executed flagship projects for enterprise customers across legal (AZA Law, Lone Star Legal Aid), technology (HP Houston), commodities trading (Gunvor Group), financial (Quantlab), mining (BHP Billiton), real estate (Galleria Tower), e-commerce (Blinds.com), higher education (Bonfire Memorial at Texas A&M), municipal (Gene Green Park), sports (Ford Park LED retrofit), and government IT (CSRA) sectors, with leading architectural firms including Gensler, PDR, AMB Architects, and Abel Design Group specifying PSA-represented products.

Name

Putterman Scharck & Associates

Legal name

Peterson Scharck & Associates

Website

https://psalighting.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1963

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Peterson Scharck & Associates is a Houston-based manufacturer's representative firm that sells commercial and architectural lighting products from multiple brands across a 29-county Texas territory, serving architects, lighting designers, and commercial end customers on specification projects.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial Lighting Representation & Distribution

NAICS

Electric Lighting Equipment Manufacturing (33513)

SIC

Wholesale-Hardware & Plumbing & Heating Equipment & Supplies (5070), Electric Lighting & Wiring Equipment (3640)

akta.pro primary industry

Lighting Parts, Shades & Accessories Retail (Harps, Finials, Glass, Mounting) (CRAIAHAI)

Keywords

• Commercial lighting representative
• Architectural lighting specification
• Lighting controls systems
• Manufacturer's rep services
• LED lighting distribution

Headquarters

HQ city

Houston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Others

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Peterson Scharck & Associates operates as a commercial and architectural lighting manufacturer's representative firm, selling and specifying lighting products from multiple partner manufacturers (Cooper Controls, ALW, Aron Lighting, Delray Lighting, wakaNINE, BIOS Lighting, Eaton Ephesus, First Light Technologies) to architects, lighting designers, and commercial customers across a 29-county Houston, TX territory. The firm supplements its manufacturer-brand sales with project specification support, applications engineering, quotations, dedicated lighting controls expertise, and a QuickShip program for stocked fast-fulfillment products.

Product overview

Peterson Scharck & Associates is a manufacturers' representative firm specializing in commercial and architectural lighting products. They represent multiple lighting manufacturers including Aron LED Lighting, Delray Lighting (UNO Helix), Cooper Industries (Shaper Sense), and BIOS Lighting. The company offers a comprehensive line card of commercial lighting products, architectural fixtures, and lighting controls for projects throughout the Houston, Texas area. They provide professional consultation, quotation services, and applications support for lighting specification projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Commercial & Architectural Lighting Product Representation

Named customers12 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Cooper Controls / Cooper LightingcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCooper Controls and Cooper Lighting are major lighting manufacturers whose products PSA represents and sells in the Houston territory. PSA maintains a dedicated Cooper Controls section on their website and provides links to Cooper Lighting resources including photometric tools, Revit files, and the Cooper Controls Product Selector App. The company has operated as a Cooper Controls partner over multiple decades.
• ARON Lighting LLCcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPSA now represents Aron Lighting – a US-based manufacturer of customer interior LED lighting products. Aron Lighting focuses on enabling new dimensions in lighting design with perfected beam performance and easy-to-install mounting options. This is a current and active representation relationship.
• Delray LightingcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPSA represents Delray Lighting, a manufacturer of architectural luminaires. Featured product includes the UNO Helix by Delray. This is an active representation relationship.
• WakaNINEcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPSA represents wakaNINE, which works directly with design partners as the exclusive North American master representative providing sales, marketing, customer service, and distribution to all channels. WakaNINE is a current active representation partner.
• BIOS LightingcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPSA represents BIOS Lighting, whose SkyBlue lighting solutions contribute to circadian lighting design under the WELL Building Standard. BIOS Lighting specializes in interior LED products with circadian and human-centric lighting technology. This is an active representation relationship.
• Architectural Lighting Works (ALW)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorALW is a privately owned, international manufacturer of high-performance, commercial luminaires. PSA represents ALW in their territory. ALW also acquired Neidhardt Inc. (based in Redwood City, CA) in 2017. This is an active representation relationship.
• Cooper Industries – Shaper SensecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPSA represents Cooper Industries' Shaper Sense product line – an award-winning integrated acoustic and lighting product featuring LED edge-lit panels, sound-absorbing acoustic panels with FilzFelt materials, and optional wireless controls. The product satisfies WELL Building Standard features for circadian lighting.
• Eaton / EphesuscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPSA represents Eaton Ephesus LED sports lighting products, including the Ford Park LED retrofit project in Beaumont, Texas. Eaton Ephesus specializes in LED sports venue lighting.
• First Light TechnologiesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFirst Light Technologies products were used in the Gene Green Park project in Houston, TX. This appears in the project portfolio as a manufacturer represented by PSA.
• Illuminating Engineering Society (IES)minorOthersPSA maintains links to the Illuminating Engineering Society as an industry association member/follower, along with links to the International Dark Sky Association, American Institute of Architects, US EPA Green Lights Program, US Green Building Council, Designers Lighting Forum, and other industry organizations.
• LightfairminorOthersLightfair is referenced as a trade show that PSA participates in as part of the commercial lighting industry.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Cooper Lighting Solutions: Signify-owned commercial lighting brand and PSA's most prominent represented partner (Cooper Controls features directly on PSA's homepage). Comparable as the manufacturer whose territory mandate underpins a large portion of PSA's revenue.
• Lutron Electronics: Dominant architectural lighting-controls manufacturer competing directly with the Cooper Controls products PSA represents. Specifiers in PSA's Houston territory frequently choose between Lutron and Cooper for premium projects, making Lutron a natural adjacent peer.
• Leviton Manufacturing: Major lighting controls and electrical devices manufacturer competing with Cooper Controls and other brands PSA specifies. Comparable as an incumbent whose products are specified on the same commercial/architectural projects PSA services.
• Hubbell Lighting: Major lighting fixture and controls manufacturer (Columbia, Hubbell Lighting brands) that PSA's commercial customers also specify. Comparable as a broad incumbent whose commercial channel and product roadmap directly influence rep-firm opportunities.
• Acuity Brands: One of the largest North American commercial lighting and controls manufacturers, competing with PSA's represented brands (Cooper, Hubbell, Eaton) for the same spec-grade commercial projects in Texas and nationwide.
• Current Lighting Solutions (a Daintree company): Commercial LED and controls manufacturer (formerly GE Current) that competes with PSA's represented brands in retrofit and architectural projects. Comparable as a broad incumbent using regional rep networks analogous to PSA.
• Eaton (Ephesus Lighting): Industrial/electrical giant whose Ephesus LED sports lighting line is actively represented by PSA (Ford Park retrofit). Comparable as a large manufacturer that uses independent rep firms like PSA to access non-residential customers in regional territories.
• Signify N.V. (formerly Philips Lighting): Global lighting leader and parent of Cooper Lighting Solutions, one of PSA's flagship represented brands. Signify owns the products PSA sells in the Houston territory, but is comparable as the dominant upstream player whose commercial strategy shapes rep-firm economics.

Emerging players

• RAB Lighting: Commercial/industrial LED lighting manufacturer that has grown aggressively through rep and distributor networks. Comparable as a competing manufacturer whose products overlap with several brands PSA represents in the commercial/architectural segment.

Direct peers

• Voss Lighting: Long-established B2B lighting channel partner operating as a regional lamp and lighting products distributor across the U.S. Both Voss and PSA sit between lighting manufacturers and commercial end customers in regional U.S. markets, earning margin on third-party brands rather than proprietary products.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Putterman Scharck & Associates