Industry News

Ronald S. Naus, President of B-K Lighting + TEKA Illumination passed away early Saturday morning, May 31st, 2014 at the age of 47. He was born January 1967 in San Jose, CA. 

Naus is survived by his wife, Danielle whom he married on May 20th, 2000 in Las Vegas, Nevada, and their two children, Christian and Kai who were born in March 2003 and January 2006 respectively. He is survived by his mother Belinda, sister Linda and brother Rich. 

Ron was raised on Long Island, NY and spent his formative years in McHenry, IL. He graduated from McHenry High School in 1985. Ron's last year of high school he served as an intern with the Illinois Department of Commerce Commission.

He attended Illinois State University where he majored in Political Science and vigorously participated on the debate team. His first job in the lighting industry was with Big Beam Emergency Systems, Inc. in Crystal Lake, IL and went on to become the principle of Silver State Lighting in Las Vegas, NV.

In 2001, Ron left Las Vegas to accept a position with B-K Lighting + TEKA Illumination (Madera, CA). Ron joined the B-K Lighting team as Sales Manager. Within six months he was promoted to Sales and Marketing Manager. 2006 he was elevated to Executive Vice President and appointed President in 2012.

Ron's inventiveness and dedication to the specifier was wholly evident in his creation of B-K University. It was Ron's firm belief that if both Sales Representatives and lighting industry specifiers were brought into BKU where they could be shown how products were designed, manufactured, tested and finished, he could prove just how B-K Lighting + TEKA Illumination products are uniquely positioned to meet the requirements the industry demands.

This internal institution has seen thousands of participants and continues to be one of the most polished and exclusive events within the lighting industry. After twelve years, Ron's Dare to Compare BKU class remains the most popular with over 8,400 tallied votes. It should be noted that owner and company founder Doug Hagen's BKU course closely trailed Ron's for 23 semesters. It should also be noted the two shared a common wall and attendees were encouraged to let the other instructor know just how much better one was over the other at the class conclusion. The applause has been at times deafening.

Ron's love of hands-on learning was incorporated into the return of B-K Lighting + TEKA Illumination's participation at Lightfair in 2012 after a four year hiatus. His D2C course ultimately included hundreds of attendees who, at Ron's direction, were pre-registered for a private booth experience. It was Ron's firm belief that by offering a value-packed, detailed, proprietary seminar in a concise and efficient format, specifiers and end users would come to understand the quality and benefits of B-K Lighting+TEKA Illumination's product ingenuity and intrinsic value.

Ron's best moments were in front of groups of people, leading them in the classroom, at a tradeshow or teaching them about lighting, its rapidly changing technology and the future of the company and the lighting industry as a whole. His work in raising funds  for the IALD Educational Trust was a very natural extension of his personality. His quick wit and snarky style was always entertaining, memorable and most importantly, genuine.

Ron's daily routine not only included answering clients lighting issues, conducting webinars with Sales Representatives, working with the IES, the IALD and technology vendors but included the development of new products that pushed the envelope of lighting design into the future. The private ownership of B-K Lighting + TEKA Illumination is a source of pride and Ron often said that "lil 'ol B-K Lighting continues to show what can be done and what conglomerates think can't be done."

Ron relished the opportunity to explain how a lighting manufacturer nestled in the rural orange tree landscape of Madera, California is the company that could - and does. His continual research into technology and his infinite dedication to detail was unmatched. Ron was a leader that expected great things not only from his peers and coworkers but from himself - and it was that unwavering fact that made him an irreplaceable visionary at
B-K Lighting + TEKA Illumination.

Ron's intensity understandably permeated his family life. He was a dedicated husband and father. His boys, Christian and Kai, who play both football and baseball, could count on Dad to not just keep the score but also announce their games. He was called upon many times - if not outright nominated - to be the disc jockey for many of the sporting events. Ron also loved to cook and created a Friday night at the Yosemite Lake Parks Rec Center where families of his hillside neighborhood could build stronger community relationships. It was a venue he used to perfect his culinary skills.

Traveling was an important tradition to Ron and for the entire Naus family that included annual camping trips to Mammoth Lakes, CA for the 4th of July while Pismo Beach, CA was a routine getaway destination. Ron always looked forward to returning to Danielle's ancestral home of Hawaii and the Big Island for gourmet luaus hosted by Danielle's family.

No words can adequately express our sadness at Ron's passing or our gratitude for the opportunity to work with him. We will honor his memory by dedicating ourselves to continuing the work he loved so much.

B-K Lighting + TEKA Illumination has establishing a benefit fund for Ron's boys. For more information contact Dionna Smith at [email protected].

ABOUT B-K LIGHTING
Since 1984, B-K Lighting has provided the highest quality, most innovative and fairly priced outdoor architectural lighting fixtures available in the industry.  B-K Lighting manufactures path lights, sign lights, area lights, flood lights, recessed building mounted and in-grade lighting fixtures. Our custom lighting designs and solid-state lighting products are installed in high-end residential, corporate office and landmark applications around the world.

ABOUT TEKA ILLUMINATION
Since 1993, TEKA Illumination has manufactured sustainable indoor and outdoor luminaires. All TEKA Illumination lighting products are manufactured from copper, brass and bronze - three of the oldest natural and man made materials. These materials are extremely resistant to environmental corrosion and physical abuse attributing to their sustainability. Enduring metals. Elemental designs. New technologies. These are the inspirations for TEKA Illumination landscape lighting and indoor lighting products.

QUALITY, SERVICE, INNOVATION, and VALUE all add up to make B-K Lighting and TEKA Illumination the number one choices in outdoor architectural lighting. B-K Lighting has a long history of supporting 'green' manufacturing. As members of the USGBC (United States Green Building Council) and IDA (International Dark Sky Association) they have led their industry in providing earth-friendly designs and manufacturing concepts.

For more information about B-K Lighting + TEKA Illumination products and representatives visit our websites at www.bklighting.com and www.tekaillumination.com. Monday-Friday 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. PST at 559-438-5800 or fax 559-438-5900. Located at 40429 Brickyard Drive, Madera, CA 93636.