There couldn't be a more appropriate name for the award that the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce gave Sound (the company formerly named Sound-Eklin) at its annual awards dinner in March: The Phoenix Award, named after the Greek mythological bird that is reborn from fire and ash.
A year ago, the company's building was destroyed by the Poinsettia fire, which struck the City of Carlsbad on May 14, 2014. Within two weeks, the company, which provides services to the veterinary industry including digital imaging, ultrasound and digital radiography, was supporting its clients, moving into a new building, undergoing a name change and rebranding effort, moving ahead with the launch of two new products and streamlining its product line.
"We certainly had our challenges," said President Tom Jacobi. "We focused on looking for the opportunity in each challenge and I think overall we were successful … There were definitely a lot of lessons learned over the past year."
On the surface, the most obvious change was the renaming of the company, the result of a 2009 acquisition of Eklin Medical Systems by VCA Antech Inc., which had acquired Sound Technologies five years earlier and merged the companies (Sound remains a VCA company).The Poinsettia fire allowed the management and the executive team to look at how the business should move forward and decided it was the right time to rebrand.
"We are investigating some new products and some new technologies which would take us outside of imaging and it was also an opportunity to present as a new organization to our customer base and the market," said Jacobi.
Also factoring into the decision was the fact that many people had a hard time pronouncing the company's name, including a newscaster who, according to Jacobi, repeatedly mispronounced the business' name even while standing in front of the damaged building's sign.
The fire, which also allowed the company to take a hard look at the products it offered, including "legacy" items that went back to the merger.
"When a lot of the inventory was lost in the fire, we sat down and looked at the product mix and decided what should our product offering look like for customers going forward," Jacobi said. "We basically went from 20 products down to six. That significant a change with the idea that it was time to have a new face in the market."
The company was able to serve its customers immediately after the fire thanks to Art Barter and the Servant Leadership Institute, who allowed the company to use space in its building to keep providing its service and to serve as a command post of sorts. The company realized it needed to start looking for a new home immediately.
"We really didn't have a choice," Jacobi said. "We had to find another place to operate the business."
The company started moving into its new facility at 5810 Van Allen Way within two weeks and was entirely relocated within six weeks. The building was move-in ready and the previous tenant had left furniture and other features that Sound would have had to spend money on in other buildings, which provided an ideal situation. The building is now home to about 90 employees and another 60 that work in the field and transition in and out.
"You go through a phase where everything is not perfect, you're still trying to get the kinks out you're trying to get in the work flow of the new building," Jacobi said. "But we do a lot of things from a culture standpoint to keep our people focused."
Jacobi said the positive thinking of his employees, their passion and commitment to service has allowed the company to deal with the transition.
Jacobi said the company is glad to be a part of Carlsbad's community.
"We had a tremendous outpouring of support from people, the businesses and this is a very close-knit community," he said. "We're very pleased that we could stay and contribute to the rebuilding in Carlsbad."
AFTER, Sound moved into a building on Van Allen Way with a new name and rebranded logo.
BEFORE, The lobby of Sound (then known as Sound-Eklin) destroyed by the Poinsettia Fire.
Firefighters recover servers and other equipment after the Poinsettia fire tore through the former home of Sound.
A year ago, the company's building was destroyed by the Poinsettia fire, which struck the City of Carlsbad on May 14, 2014. Within two weeks, the company, which provides services to the veterinary industry including digital imaging, ultrasound and digital radiography, was supporting its clients, moving into a new building, undergoing a name change and rebranding effort, moving ahead with the launch of two new products and streamlining its product line.
"We certainly had our challenges," said President Tom Jacobi. "We focused on looking for the opportunity in each challenge and I think overall we were successful … There were definitely a lot of lessons learned over the past year."
On the surface, the most obvious change was the renaming of the company, the result of a 2009 acquisition of Eklin Medical Systems by VCA Antech Inc., which had acquired Sound Technologies five years earlier and merged the companies (Sound remains a VCA company).The Poinsettia fire allowed the management and the executive team to look at how the business should move forward and decided it was the right time to rebrand.
"We are investigating some new products and some new technologies which would take us outside of imaging and it was also an opportunity to present as a new organization to our customer base and the market," said Jacobi.
Also factoring into the decision was the fact that many people had a hard time pronouncing the company's name, including a newscaster who, according to Jacobi, repeatedly mispronounced the business' name even while standing in front of the damaged building's sign.
The fire, which also allowed the company to take a hard look at the products it offered, including "legacy" items that went back to the merger.
"When a lot of the inventory was lost in the fire, we sat down and looked at the product mix and decided what should our product offering look like for customers going forward," Jacobi said. "We basically went from 20 products down to six. That significant a change with the idea that it was time to have a new face in the market."
The company was able to serve its customers immediately after the fire thanks to Art Barter and the Servant Leadership Institute, who allowed the company to use space in its building to keep providing its service and to serve as a command post of sorts. The company realized it needed to start looking for a new home immediately.
"We really didn't have a choice," Jacobi said. "We had to find another place to operate the business."
The company started moving into its new facility at 5810 Van Allen Way within two weeks and was entirely relocated within six weeks. The building was move-in ready and the previous tenant had left furniture and other features that Sound would have had to spend money on in other buildings, which provided an ideal situation. The building is now home to about 90 employees and another 60 that work in the field and transition in and out.
"You go through a phase where everything is not perfect, you're still trying to get the kinks out you're trying to get in the work flow of the new building," Jacobi said. "But we do a lot of things from a culture standpoint to keep our people focused."
Jacobi said the positive thinking of his employees, their passion and commitment to service has allowed the company to deal with the transition.
Jacobi said the company is glad to be a part of Carlsbad's community.
"We had a tremendous outpouring of support from people, the businesses and this is a very close-knit community," he said. "We're very pleased that we could stay and contribute to the rebuilding in Carlsbad."
AFTER, Sound moved into a building on Van Allen Way with a new name and rebranded logo.
BEFORE, The lobby of Sound (then known as Sound-Eklin) destroyed by the Poinsettia Fire.
Firefighters recover servers and other equipment after the Poinsettia fire tore through the former home of Sound.