When to plan home automation in a villa

The question we hear most is which system is best. The one that should come first is different: what stage the build is at.

When automation enters the project decides what can be done. It changes more than the choice of brand.

At design stage, before building starts

The best case. We design the network and the control points with the architect, before there are walls.

This is where you decide where the panels sit, where structured cabling runs, and how many points are prepared in each room. Nothing is irreversible and nothing has to be opened up later.

With works underway

Almost everything is still possible, as long as the walls are open.

We run cabling without breaking anything already finished. The limit is the calendar: the install has to follow the build phases, so the earlier we talk, the less improvising at the end.

In a home already lived in

There are two routes.

Open the wall, with the disruption that brings in a house someone lives in. Or use wireless, which avoids building work and still automates lighting, blinds and climate room by room.

You do not have to do it all at once. You can start with one zone and grow later, provided the network underneath is done properly.

Do not get locked to one brand

We work with open systems, which means your hardware does not all have to come from the same manufacturer.

A closed system looks simple at the start. The problem shows up years later, when you want to expand, change supplier or add new equipment and the system will not allow it.

In an open system, today's logic still accepts tomorrow's changes. In a house you will live in for years, that counts for more than the badge on the panel.

What defines the scope

What makes a project bigger or smaller:

• Rooms and control points. Each light, blind, climate zone or audio point is work and hardware.
• What you want to automate. Lights and blinds only is one level. Adding climate, radiant floor, audio, video intercom and access is another.
• Level of integration. A single panel takes more work to design than separate pieces, and is far simpler to use and maintain.
• Network. Good automation sits on a solid network. Cabling, fibre and mesh Wi-Fi are part of the project.
• Energy and security. CCTV, access control, solar and batteries come in when they are part of the plan.

Leave room for what you skip now

Not everything has to be in phase one. What is worth securing from the start is the infrastructure: cabling, space in the panels, and a network that can carry whatever comes later.

A well-automated home also uses less energy, with savings rules, presence-based climate and solar integration. There is a simulator on the services page that shows the logic.

What to bring to the first conversation

So we can understand your case in one go:

• The floor plan, or the number of rooms.
• The build phase: design, works underway, or finished home.
• What you want to control now and what you want left ready.

With that we measure the scope and design the system.

Talk to us and we will look at your plan.