TIS3, a Service Disabled Veteran Owned (SDVOSB CVE Certified 8(a)) business specializing in technology enablement for federal civilian and defense sectors, partnered with Davra to implement a condition-based maintenance solution for legacy assets along the southern US border.

We spoke with Richard Goodwin, CTO at TIS3, about the impact partnering with Davra has made on the business.

Outcomes

• TIS3 secured key government contracts thanks to accelerated security and compliance certification.
• Improved operational efficiency of CBP with condition-based maintenance of remote assets.
• Increased agent safety by reducing the need for on-site inspections.
• TIS3 and Davra are creating new processes for CBP to extend the life of legacy equipment.

Background

TIS3 is a U.S.-based IT services firm delivering technology enablement and staffing solutions to federal civilian and defense agencies. The company supports organizations including the U.S. Air Force, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Transportation, and the Library of Congress.

With expertise in IoT innovation, secure network services, and program office support, TIS3 also helps agencies source critical skills such as cybersecurity, software development, and program management. By combining advanced technical solutions with flexible staffing, TIS3 enables government customers to modernize operations, improve efficiency, and achieve mission success.

The Challenge

For U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), maintaining thousands of assets along the southern border presented significant challenges. Equipment often operates in remote or contested areas, and when outages occurred, agents had no visibility into the root cause—resulting in time-consuming and sometimes risky inspections.

TIS3 aimed to deliver a condition-based maintenance solution using TIS3’s proprietary Internet of Things (IoT) (opens new window) technologies that would improve efficiency, enhance visibility, and increase agent safety. But operating within the Department of Defense and federal civilian sectors requires adherence to strict security standards, including NIST requirements and other security standards up to DoD Impact Level 5 (IL5) certification.

When TIS3’s original partner for its SBIR Phase 2 contract withdrew, the company needed a new IoT platform provider who could help them achieve certification and meet CBP’s unique deployment requirements quickly.

CBP also required the solution to function in highly secure offline environments, meaning the system had to be self-contained, fully managed, and free from dependence on hyperscalers or external vendors.

As CTO Rik Goodwin put it: “We needed somebody that could help us meet those strict security requirements—and help us hit them quickly.”

The Solution

TIS3 found Davra’s platform (opens new window) to be the ideal solution. Davra’s existing security components and certifications, such as ISO, SOC 2, and NIST compliance, were crucial for TIS3’s operations in the federal space.

Equally important was Davra’s deployment flexibility, which enabled TIS3 to meet the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)’s strict requirement for secure offline environments.

The deployed system monitors the health and performance of legacy power systems for critical infrastructure components along the southern border. By tracking critical metrics such as power status, fuel levels, and component health, it provides real-time visibility that allows agents to better manage refueling and maintenance schedules—all without requiring frequent on-site inspections.

Accelerated Certification

Davra’s pre-existing security and compliance (opens new window) controls, including ISO 27001 (opens new window) and SOC 2 (opens new window), enabled TIS3 to achieve DoD Impact Level 5 certification in just eight months—a milestone that significantly accelerated their ability to secure new contracts.

Accustomed to building solutions from the ground up, Rik was initially unsure whether a platform approach would suit TIS3. But after seeing the advantages of Davra firsthand, his perspective has started to shift.

“As I’ve gotten to know Davra—both the platform and the company—you’ve managed to sway me a bit,” he admits.

Offline Environment Support

The Davra platform enabled TIS3 to meet the CBP’s unique requirement for secure, disconnected operation.

Davra’s self-contained architecture allowed the solution to be deployed in a secure, offline environment without any loss of functionality.

“We've proven that we can reside in highly secure environments for the DoD, and that helped us demonstrate to CBP that we could provide that same level of operational capability in their secure hosting environments,” Rik noted. “That was a huge win for us.”

Enhanced Efficiency & Safety

With condition-based monitoring (opens new window) in place, CBP can now optimize maintenance cycles, reduce downtime, and maximize asset lifespan. When issues arise, the system pinpoints the problem so the right crew can be dispatched, reducing wasted trips, saving fuel, and improving overall efficiency.

By transforming data from remote assets into actionable insights, the solution also reduces the need for manual inspections in challenging or hazardous locations. This not only saves time but also enhances agent safety.

Rik praised the success of the solution, highlighting that “the customer reports all the time how happy they are.”

Predictive Analytics & AI

TIS3 is enthusiastic about leveraging Davra's advanced capabilities, particularly predictive maintenance (opens new window) tools and Generative AI, to transform the way its customers interact with data.

For TIS3, it’s about helping people make better decisions. Instead of relying on analysts and lengthy reporting cycles, end-users will be able to query data directly and receive instant, reliable insights—empowering faster, smarter decision-making.

The unified data platform and built-in predictive models also help streamline operations, eliminating the time-consuming work of data cleaning and preparation.

Rik explained, “Our data is already structured, so we know it will work how we want it to, and we don’t have to go back and spend time cleaning it. That’s a big time and money savings due to Davra.”

This saves significant time and effort and means AI and machine learning algorithms can be applied immediately.

Conclusion

By partnering with Davra, TIS3 was able to rapidly deliver a secure, offline-capable IoT solution that not only met strict federal requirements but also transformed how CBP manages and maintains critical assets along the southern border. The solution improved visibility, optimized maintenance, and enhanced agent safety—all while accelerating TIS3’s path to DoD IL5 certification and opening new opportunities for future government contracts.

If you’d like to learn how Davra can help your organization achieve the same level of security, flexibility, and innovation, get in touch with our team today to explore the possibilities.