Knightsbridge

Project time and cycle: 1 month - Value: £25,000

Our Involvement:

• Initial design & specification
• Total system design
• Cable run out schedules & CAD designs
• Managing & overseeing the first fix works
• Second fix installation & equipment supply
• System programming & Commissioning
• Supply of Cyber Homes operating system manuals
• After sales training & support

A newly refurbished two bedroom apartment situated over 1165 sq ft in a third floor building in London’s Sloane Street.

The brief by the client was to keep a contemporary style and décor along with sophisticated but simple technology. All aspects of the home entertainment and automation system had to disappear into the apartment’s modern design and act as subtle as possible.

The key elements included:

• Hardwired and wireless networks
• Multi-room music system
• Audio/Video distribution
• Surveillance monitoring
• Lighting and Curtain control
• Intercom and access control
• In particular, it was essential that it could all be controlled in a convenient way

The controls should be comprehensive enough to provide ‘blanket’ coverage of all systems, yet intuitive enough to allow use by all in the house - even the less technically minded!

In order to fit in to the carefully planned decorative finishes of the house, it was decided to use stainless brushed steel in wall key pads and touch screens to control Audio and Lighting. All the speakers were in-ceiling Speakercraft 8 drivers, with their grills and surrounds painted in the same finish as the ceilings they were mounted in.

In wall Kef speakers were specified for the Home Cinema lounge’s front array with Speakercraft AIM series in-ceiling speakers complimenting the rears.

The technology in the outside terraced areas also had to remain invisible, but also be weatherproof as it was an open roof terrace.

Audio systems
A 6 zone Living Control multi-room audio system was provided and distributed throughout the apartment to Speakercraft in-ceiling speakers and ‘Speakercraft’ rock shaped speakers on the terrace; a hard disc sound server was used to store all the clients’ cd’s, album and cover art information which was then viewable from the cinema room and any plasma within the property. The in wall touch screens provided full control of all the equipment stored within the rack (ie Dab Tuners, sky, DVD, Sound server) and audio within each zone.

The terrace was a sub-zone of the kitchen area, so there was no need to install an outside keypad, keeping the walls free from clutter.

Lighting and Automation
The Lighting was controlled using a Rako Lighting system. The apartment was completely rewired during the refurbishment so every room was spoilt with atmospheric scene lighting.

The sleek steel keypads were capable of four individual scene settings and a dim up, and dim down facility. Every room was individually programmed to have its preset scenes individually tuned to the clients liking.

The Home Cinema Lounge also had electrical curtains which on the Rako system, and control came via a combined Living Control and Rako in wall keypad. This meant that only one keypad was needed again avoiding wall clutter.

The entrance hall had a wireless Rako remote control by the front door, which was capable of turning the whole apartment on or off or to a preset scene. The idea being that when leaving a single button press would ensure all the lights were switched off, and similarly turning lights on when returning in the evening.

A second remote was also used for the outside terraced areas. This meant that no external keypad need be fitted, and still gave the client a choice of four preset scenes.

Products used:

• Lighting Control - Rako Controls
• Multi-room Audio - Living Control
• Touch screen control - Living Control and Rako
• Speakers - Kef & Speakercraft
• Cinema Audio products - Denon, Lowe