Astro Communications looks back on three decades in comms and sharpens its focus on the time to come...
Dartford-based Astro Communications celebrated 30 years of successful trading in December and marked the occasion with the launch of a new website and staff changes geared around its 'ambitious growth plans'.
Co-founder Steve Smith told Comms Dealer: "We believe it is important that we keep up to date with technology, and to keep our public facing image and content current in order to stay relevant and interesting. Our new website sends a clear message that while we may have been going since Band Aid was in the charts the first time around, we are every bit as in touch with the market, our customers and our employees and will remain so long into the future."
Smith will be spearheading Astro's development plans in his new CTO role and Adam Crocker-White will assume the position of Head of Delivery and Operations. Managing Director Steve Hodges said: "Although we are a relatively small company we now think and act with the underpinning processes and professional standards of a large business while maintaining the flexibility, agility and customer focus we have always had. Giving specific focus to key areas of the business as we realise our growth plans is key to maintaining that balance, and the new positions that Steve and Adam take on will enable us to better achieve that."
Founded by Steve Smith and Rob Trollope in 1984, Astro now delivers complex solutions ranging from safety systems on Fortis Field oil rigs to satellite overlay networks at holiday parks around the UK coast. While the firm now focuses mostly on providing a high quality service wrap around more standard technical solutions, there are opportunities at times to engage in the obscure or technically challenging, such as delivering EFT POS-supportable wireless connectivity to TGI Fridays in Bluewater or wireless connectivity on board Wightlink Ferries.
Astro has recently completed the build of its new ISP grade core network and Virtual Data Centre offering to deliver niche ISP services to customers who are not getting the quality of service or level of support they need from the larger suppliers. Hodges said Astro has big growth plans and exciting targets around customer satisfaction, staff engagement and partner accreditation for technical competency as well as a sharp focus on company culture.
"We would like to be a company our employees feel proud to work for, our suppliers privileged to partner with and for whom our customers have the highest regard," said Hodges. "With 30 years under our belt and a clear strategy I firmly believe we can achieve all of these things - and more."
Pictured above (l-r): Rob Trollope (Co-founder and Director), Adam Crocker-White (Head of Operations and Delivery), Steve Hodges (Managing Director), Dean Bruce (Head of Network Services), Stuart Burgis (Head of Systems and Development), Steve Smith (Co-founder and CTO).