Avon company Vasu Communications celebrates 50 years in business

AVON — What started off as a television repair shop has grown into a four-location company best known for providing mobile, portable and dispatch radio systems for public safety personnel around the area. Wednesday marked half a century for Vasu Communications Inc., founded in Avon and now including three other locations in Mansfield, North Canton and Columbus. Employees and friends of the company celebrated the anniversary Wednesday during a cookout at the company's Ridgeland Drive offices and were presented with a commemorative plaque from Avon Mayor Bryan Jensen. President and co-founder Donna Vasu said that at the beginning of the company's existence, no one imagined the business would take off like it has. Now, her husband, co-founder and Vice President Alan Vasu, said the company works with clients including the Avon Police Department, Avon Fire Department, Avon Schools, Avon Lake Police Department, Sheffield Lake Police Department and Sheffield Police Department, to name just a few. He said Vasu Communications built the 320-foot-tall Lorain County 911 tower located near Lorain County Community College. The company does work in about 40 counties, Alan Vasu said. Prior to the company's founding, Alan Vasu said he had a background in electronics. He said he worked at a TV repair place in high school and had an amateur radio license, and he later went through microwave school in the U.S. Army. So when Vasu Communications was formed, he already had the experience to get started. "Within about a year, the police departments started needing some service and they came in. We got our license to service their stuff," Alan Vasu said. "I suppose within about five, six years, we were totally doing commercial. We did police, fire, different businesses." Allen Vasu said these days, business is split about in half between commercial work and government work. Vice President Mike Vasu, the son of Donna and Alan Vasu, said the plan for the next 50 years is to continue growing and providing communications and emergency services to customers. As technology evolves in the two-way radio industry, he said a priority for the company is "making sure that everybody has interoperability between frequency bands and departments." Technological developments have been among the most significant changes for the company in the past 50 years, Mike Vasu said, particularly making the move from analog to digital radios. Contact Dylan Reynolds at (440) 329-7123 or dreynolds@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter @drey1357.