Spanning 580 acres, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Powell, Ohio also boasts a water park, golf course, various dining options and hosts countless special events for nearly 2.5 million visitors annually who expect a quality, memorable and immersive experience. As the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium expanded over the years, different audio systems by different designers and contractors were deployed in each area to support its variety of background music and the public-address system. This resulted in an inefficient and ineffective system with over 900 unintegrated audio points, very low security, minimal control capabilities, and no centralized network management. With so many devices, cross-points and administrators involved in controlling the audio, the zoo needed a system to manage its hardware in an efficient and secure manner. Enter the Dante audio network platform, which pulled together the more than 300 speakers, 50 amplifiers, 50 wireless microphones and 20 digital processors that are Dante-enabled and already installed on the zoo’s campus.