The Challenge
Serving 350,000 passengers annually with flights to Auckland, Christchurch, and Stewart Island, Invercargill Airport’s aging surveillance system — installed during the 2016 terminal construction — had become a serious operational liability. Camera resolution was too poor to capture critical incident details, and the system’s architecture had created barriers that made even basic tasks unnecessarily difficult and costly.
Access to footage was restricted to two physical on-site computers. Any system change — from adding a user to expanding coverage — required a contractor on site. Camera expansion was locked to costly blocks of 16. And critical remote infrastructure like the pump house had no data connectivity, meaning staff had to physically visit it every hour during storm events just to check water levels. Something had to change.
The Solution
Teltrac introduced Invercargill Airport to Verkada’s cloud-based CCTV platform. What started as a simple camera replacement quickly became a comprehensive security transformation. The pump house challenge — previously quoted as requiring expensive data cable trenching — was solved instantly: a Verkada cellular gateway provided connectivity with no trenching required. A trial of three cameras proved the platform’s potential, and a full rollout followed.
Verkada Deployment Across the Airport
- Terminal interior: high-definition cameras monitoring passenger areas, check-in counters, and baggage claim
- Airport exterior: coverage of car parks, roadways, and key entry points
- Airside operations: cameras positioned to monitor aircraft stands for safety and operational efficiency
- Critical infrastructure: remote monitoring of the pump house via Verkada cellular gateway — no trenching required
- Control tower: newly installed PTZ camera providing panoramic views of the entire airfield
Why This Solution
Verkada’s cloud-native architecture eliminates the on-premise servers, NVRs, and licence blocks that made the old system so restrictive. Cameras are managed entirely through a browser or mobile app, giving authorised staff full access from anywhere. User permissions can be managed internally with no contractor involvement, and the system scales with no hardware upgrade required — as long as there’s power and data, a new camera can be added.
- Cloud-based platform enables full mobile access for all authorised personnel — no physical terminal required
- Verkada cellular gateways solve remote connectivity challenges without costly infrastructure works
- Unlimited camera expansion with no “block” licensing constraints or additional NVR hardware
- Internal user and permission management eliminates contractor dependency for routine administration
- Intuitive interface reduces training time and encourages active, daily use of the system
- Multi-camera synchronised views streamline incident investigation and reduce resolution time
Installation
Teltrac began with a trial installation of three cameras to demonstrate the platform’s capabilities. The process was straightforward — existing cameras were removed, network cables reconnected, and the new Verkada units were live immediately. The pump house was connected via cellular gateway, avoiding the expensive trenching previously quoted by other contractors. Following the successful trial, the full site rollout was completed across the terminal, exterior, airside, and control tower.
“Teltrac was able to just literally unscrew the old ones, unplug the network cable, plug in the new ones, and they worked.”
Outcome
The transformation has been immediate and far-reaching. Pump house checks that once required hourly physical visits during storm events now take three clicks from any device. Incident investigations that previously struggled with poor-resolution footage now benefit from synchronised multi-camera views. And the security team has full autonomy — no contractor required for user management, permission changes, or system configuration.
“We use our camera system a heap more. The old one was so limited in its functionality, it was almost a last resort to go to it.”
Looking ahead, Invercargill Airport is exploring people-counting cameras to better understand building traffic patterns, and the scalable Verkada platform means future expansion — as the airport continues to grow and develop — requires no infrastructure redesign. As long as there’s power and data, it works.
“Get a trial and play with it — it’s really hard to understand just how good it is until you’ve actually got it on your system and you’ve got it on your phone.”