Eighty employees researching the Internet all at the same time, all day long, day after day, adds up to some serious bandwidth needs for any company. For All Pro Sound (www.allprosound.com), it was just one part of the overall communications challenge the company faced to maintain its aggressive growth and high level of service as one of the largest companies of its kind.

When All Pro Sound first started 25 years ago, it was just two guys and no computers. Today it’s a leading seller of integrated audio, video and lighting services to churches, schools and government clientele, as well as residential customers in all 50 states. From its central office in Pensacola, more than 100 employees work to design, deliver and install integrated systems, and it all starts with detailed, extensive product and vendor research and documentation on the Internet. “From our warehouse to the engineering department, catalog operations, drafting and administration, we place a lot of demands on our data system,” said Rafaele Venditta, IT Manager for the company. “We have to make sure all computers are up and all systems are running 24/7. That means we need a provider who’s really up to the challenge — we want no downtime at all if we can avoid it.”

“Two years ago when I joined the company, we had a T-1 line,” Venditta explained. “That’s when our Cox representative came to us and suggested we consider scaling up to their fiber-based product, given our high-capacity needs. We jumped on it. This not only gave us the ability to handle our heavy product researching and documenting, but also equipped us to establish a true e-commerce website, with phone order tracking and other sophisticated functions.”

The Cox fiber-based service used by All Pro Sound enables every department in the company to operate more efficiently and productively. Venditta added: “We’ve been on an aggressive growth pattern for the last few years — up to 60%. It’s really amazing, but it requires services and vendors who can keep up with our growing demands. Cox’s fiber-optic service lets us do just that.” How important is reliability for All Pro Sound? Venditta explained: “We have a remote office using another vendor for its Internet service, and their service is constantly dropping off our network. By contrast, our service from Cox is very, very steady — in terms of reliability, it’s wonderful.”

Did the advantage of Cox being part of a large, stable company help solidify All Pro Sound’s decision to partner with Cox? “Absolutely,” Venditta said. “I use them for my home office, too.”

Partnering with Cox Business has helped All Pro Sound maintain its steady, ambitious growth in a highly competitive market. Venditta and the entire company are convinced that Cox is the only provider they can trust with their high-capacity and varied data demands. The ability to maintain a robust website with e-commerce capabilities has increased All Pro Sound’s productivity and marketability.

“We look to Cox Business as more than a vendor,” Venditta explained. “They’re a true partner with our business and we look forward to continuing that partnership in the years to come.”