Commercial Integrator 2023 - 44

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'Almost Like an Extension of Us'
By partnering with NETGEAR, Signals Audio Video leverages the benefits of its technical
diff erentiators, 24/7 support and constant industry engagement.
ust as individual components must work together eff ectively to
create a functional audiovisual system, integrators and vendors
must collaborate productively to deliver outstanding client outcomes.
Sometimes, that means respected integration fi rms must look beyond
their existing vendor partners as they search for just the right mix of
technical capabilities and customer support. Signals Audio Video's
burgeoning relationship with NETGEAR is the perfect example, and
it's clear that this relatively new vendor partnership is empowering
the integrator to deliver exceptional value to its clients.
J
Exploring Signals AV
Here, Commercial Integrator chats with David Arellano, director of
operations with El Segundo, Calif-based Signals AV, to learn not
only about the NETGEAR relationship but also about the integrator's
core diff erentiators. And Arellano is the perfect person to ask,
given that he's been with the company since September 2011. Th e
integrator, with branch offi ces in La Quinta, Calif., Las Vegas and
Maui, Hawaii, primarily focuses on residential projects whose dollar
size rivals most commercial work. Although the majority of Signals
AV's projects are near its California base, the fi rm will travel with
key clients to outfi t their ancillary properties; indeed, you can fi nd
the company's handiwork in Idaho, New York, Cabo San Lucas, the
Bahamas and elsewhere.
Signals AV is very much in growth mode - its staff ballooned from
14 in 2011 to about 60 now - but leadership works hard to retain the
fi rm's small-business feel. Indeed, according to Arellano, " Our company
culture is one of the big things that drives a lot of people toward
us. " Th at applies to attracting job candidates and retaining existing
associates, some of whom have been with the company more than 25
years; it likewise applies to clients. " Most of our business is driven by
word-of-mouth referral, " he declares, adding that Signals AV enjoys
a great deal of repeat business. It also considers itself something of a
boutique fi rm, choosing projects very selectively. " We don't just say
yes to everybody, " Arellano attests, adding that, for Signals AV, it's
increasingly about deciding which relationships make the most sense.
Th at sentiment applies not only to clients but also to vendor partners.
When Arellano joined the company in 2011, Signals AV relied
on numerous disparate networking solutions: a Cisco switch here;
gear from Ruckus there; devices from Araknis Networks elsewhere.
In early 2020, with his ascension to a leadership role and the simultaneous
advent of AV-over-IP, Arellano found himself at an infl ection
point. " I was fi nding that [our existing platforms] didn't really have
all the things we needed for it to be a successful deployment, " he
observed. Amid extensive research, Arellano stumbled across a Facebook
group post that described an AV-specifi c line of NETGEAR
switches. He quickly realized that NETGEAR checked all the boxes
for what he expected a network-switch deployment to do; thus, Arellano
decided to " dip his toe in the water " by trying the NETGEAR
M4250 Series switches on just a couple of deployments.
When David Arellano (inset image) stumbled across a Facebook group post that described
an AV-specific line of NETGEAR switches, he quickly realized that NETGEAR checked all the
boxes for what he expected a network-switch deployment to do.
An Auspicious Beginning
If Arellano had any hesitation, the initial NETGEAR deployments
erased them instantly. " I immediately started fi nding all the tremendous
benefi ts, " he enthuses. " From the design steps, to the commissioning
and the support from NETGEAR, to the constant updates
they're doing. " Arellano recalled an incident when one switch was
having problems before he got onsite; to his delight, NETGEAR
tackled the problem immediately, arranging for next-day replacement.
" You're not alone, " Arellano says with a smile, refl ecting on
NETGEAR's 24/7 support. " Fire off an email and somebody will
be available for you. " He continues, " It's comforting that we have
someone able to support us when we get into situations where we get
stuck. " It's probably unsurprising, then, that Arellano attests to using
NETGEAR components on virtually all his projects and deploy
Commercial Integrator 2023

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