With 13 locations spanning across three states, Fun Town RV is the nation’s top-selling towable RV dealer. As the Director of IT and Marketing, Malachi Salazar makes it his mission to provide customers with the service they need to find the best RV for their next adventure. From having a wide selection of recreational vehicles always available on-site to hosting customer events to attract new customers, video security plays an evolving role in keeping everything from vehicles to guests safe and secure.

“Our Cleburne location sells 400 RVs a month, and at any point in time we have up to 500 vehicles on the lot. We needed a better way to maintain visibility over these widespread areas, as well as our four indoor showrooms.”

Upgrading to Enterprise Cloud-Based Surveillance

To reach the level of security he required, Malachi had to upgrade the company’s video surveillance system from a prosumer- to enterprise-grade model. Their previous solution was a minimal monetary investment and felt like a good idea at the time, but the price reflected in all its components. System features were limited, and grainy image quality made it impossible to see what was happening in the scene.

“Being number one in our industry, we want to partner with other industry leaders who are providing the best in their products and services. Verkada had all the features, ease of use, and scalability that we expect and require from an enterprise-grade solution.”

Since replacing the legacy system with Verkada’s solution, Malachi and his team are able to effectively surveil the property corner-to-corner—from indoor showrooms and offices to outdoor entrances and parking lots.

1. Overhead costs for maintenance and overnight security
2. Difficult installation and limited user access
3. Poor connectivity and scalability across large remote sites
4. Physical servers required to store footage

Solutions and Benefits of Verkada:

1. Proactive alerts to maintain 24-hour coverage and offsite visibility
2. Easy to install and use for team members
3. Remote and reliable Cradlepoint connections
4. Hybrid cloud-based and local on-camera storage

Solution #1: Proactive Alerts to Maintain 24-hour Coverage and Offsite Visibility

With hundreds of RVs on-site, having round-the-clock monitoring was imperative. Malachi hired overnight security teams to monitor each location, however, the unreliability and difficulty to access footage made coverage costly and inefficient.

“Verkada provides us with ²⁴⁄₇ remote visibility and proactive alerts if cameras go offline, or when anything meaningful is happening onsite. This takes out the guesswork so we no longer need to manually check cameras or allocate budget towards security personnel and costly repairs.”

If a Verkada camera goes offline, Malachi knows immediately. He receives an alert straight to his mobile device and is able to address the issue right away. Verkada’s software also enables him to mark areas of interest for each camera, and set up triggers to be notified when meaningful events occur within a certain time window.

Solution #2: Easy to Install and Use for Team Members

Malachi recalls that deploying the old system was a complicated process that involved hiring contractors to come onsite. Verkada’s system, in contrast, took his team to install in a span of two days.

“Verkada is truly a plug-and-play solution. Installation and onboarding were easy, and now our whole team uses it without any help.”

With Verkada, Malachi has set custom permissions for team members based on their role and site location. Depending on their permission level, team members can independently view, manage, and share footage from certain cameras and areas. In case of an incident, they know exactly what to do to escalate it to the right authorities. “The intuitiveness of the platform is what makes it so effective, and something we can use on a day-to-day basis.”

Solution #3: Remote and Reliable Cradlepoint Connections

Limited network connectivity was another challenge that Malachi faced. He needed to find a way to bring cameras online far from the main office—without having to run wires across large parking lots.

“If you can imagine, at any point in time we have hundreds of RV units parked in our lots, wired ISP connectivity wasn’t possible given the size of the area. Verkada provides options for remote connectivity, so our team uses Cradlepoint to get cameras online quickly and effortlessly.”

Since Verkada cameras only require 20-50 kbps in a steady-state, Malachi was able to utilize cellular connectivity via Cradlepoint, which provides both connectivity and power to the camera over a PoE connection. Now, coverage has been scaled across all parking lots corner-to-corner, ensuring visibility without having to run complex wiring.

Solution #4: Hybrid Cloud-Based and Local On-Camera Storage

Malachi had to install servers at each location to store video for their previous system, a latent expense that accumulated over time. After switching to Verkada’s hybrid cloud architecture, Malachi no longer needs to purchase onsite NVRs or DVRs, resulting in a more straightforward cost of ownership.

With Verkada, there is no ongoing maintenance or complexity for managing video storage. Each Verkada camera has a built-in solid-state drive, with options ranging from 30 to 365 days of rolling continuous footage. Footage can then be accessed directly from Verkada’s cloud-based Command platform, where Malachi can view and archive footage. Each camera also includes 30-days of cloud storage, providing Malachi with options for backing up cameras in critical or high-risk areas.

“Verkada’s storage solution is simple and reliable, the footage is stored simply on the camera and in the cloud-based video management platform. We can access video easily, and eliminate the expense of maintaining servers at every location.”

Looking Ahead: Scaling Security Corner-to-Corner

In Verkada’s hybrid cloud system, Malachi has greatly improved visibility over large lots while also usability among his team members. Outside of being easy to deploy and use, Verkada has eliminated hidden fees in the total cost of ownership, resulting in cost-savings that Salazar can now invest in campaigns to grow the business. As a next step, he plans to deploy additional cameras across their Texas locations.

“It has been a great investment through-and-through. If you’re looking for a high-quality system you can trust to take care of you, look no further.”