Select your language

Home projects are now stricter

domótica

The fundamental objective of audiovisual systems is to be able to transmit information in audio and video. In home automation we attach other services such as lighting, security and networks.

Juan Tamayo*

Although the pandemic passed, well, in theory because we are still suffering with the lack of inventory of manufacturers that I will address later in this opinion column, I can say that it has left us with great lessons. And with this change in social habits, it is time for design, consulting and/or installation companies to start changing our sales philosophy and start building advisory philosophies.

In homes or living spaces we must think more about advising and designing instead of making large sales that may reflect at the end of the fiscal year a bulky utility, but that over time will create problems due to a dissatisfaction of the user or users who live in that home.

- Publicidad -

About a year and a half ago, writing about the subject of home design, I raised four important points that an audiovisual project for homes, called home automation, should have, where the advisor must:
- Create the analysis of customer needs.
- Know the activities and customs of the client.
- Take into account the cleaning and maintenance of the smart home.
- The backbone of the smart home will be the data network.

And it is important to carry out these points and possibly more, because now the home has become important that before the pandemic was not seen. Before the Coronavirus, home was a place of passage where many only went to sleep and be on the weekend, so they did not pay much attention to it. But in pandemic this changed, as many spent more than three months locked in their home. As I called it, we were in jail, but we had benefits. Users learned to pay attention to their space and that may be the reason why after-sales have been increased, possibly to order new elements or, in the worst case, to make corrections to previous installations.

As a consultant it is sometimes difficult to tell a client that the person or company that performed the installation was not professional enough and that it left some mistakes that should not have happened. And you can not imagine the faces of disappointment that I have had to see, and it is because for almost everyone, our house is the place we want and it has cost us to build and automate.

Let's face it, home automation is expensive, no matter what level we want. For this reason, companies that carry out household projects must be much more careful than companies that are dedicated to making corporate installations, the technical support times are different, and generally in homes we must have a 24/7 attention, because the client expects us to feel their home as if it were ours. As an experience, the cost of installing homes can be up to 3 times higher than the cost of installing corporates.

domóticaFor this column I want to touch on some topics, which I wish we could debate or comment on online events that are already common and easier, or why not, in the comments section of the articles, because, although you do not believe it as readers, they nourish our knowledge and motivate us to continue doing this work of sharing our experiences.

The first issue to touch on is the lack of stock of the audiovisual market in general. The crisis after the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the lockdown in China has been the headache for almost all manufacturers. And in many cases I have seen that the company that executes the project does not clearly inform the client about these problems, and does so once the client signs the contract or delivers the advance. So, as a recommendation, it is important to always inform the possible delivery times, delays and have updated product delivery schedules, so the customer's dissatisfaction will be less and will know day by day how the product delivery process is.

One topic I discussed in the previous article is the importance of data networks. Our home audiovisual project must have a robust structured cabling, identified and documented, in which the minimum bandwidth capacity required must be one gigabit per second. And if the home has video over IP transmission, a data network infrastructure analysis should be performed so as not to have bandwidth problems. Remember that, of the total bandwidth capacity, services should only consume 30 percent, and of this maximum consumption space 80 percent should be used constantly.

- Publicidad -

The fundamental objective of audiovisual systems is to be able to transmit information in audio and video. In home automation we attach other services such as lighting, security and networks. If our goal is to communicate, we must make a great effort to be able to talk to other important actors in the construction process. Therefore, in our execution plans there must be periodic meetings in which we ask and be given information on work progress, changes, infrastructure review.

Home projects are dynamic, they can have unforeseen changes and if they are not communicated in time they can be a headache for our design. I also remind you that, although we do not install the infrastructure such as pipes and electrical outlets, we are responsible for verifying that the construction process is adequate.

And to close, documentation is the final product of our project. Yes, of course, as are the equipment and the installation. But if the company that installs the system is not governed by the different standards, does not document and does not carry out a correct maintenance plan, over time the project will degrade, generating disagreements with the client. My invitation is for you to study, prepare and help the industry raise awareness that we need to be on a professional level.

*Juan Tamayo, CTS-D, is an electronic engineer and currently serves as Manager of T-Árbol Audiovisuales SAS, product application engineer for Latin America for International Sales and Support Engineer for Synthax Inc.

Richard Santa, RAVT
Richard Santa, RAVTEmail: [email protected]
Editor
Periodista de la Universidad de Antioquia (2010), con experiencia en temas sobre tecnología y economía. Editor de las revistas TVyVideo+Radio y AVI Latinoamérica. Coordinador académico de TecnoTelevisión&Radio.


No comments

• If you're already registered, please log in first. Your email will not be published.

Leave your comment

In reply to Some User
Dante Controller 4.15 is now available for download

Dante Controller 4.15 is now available for download

Latin America. Audinate announced that the Dante Controller update, to version 4.15, is now available for download. This update includes:

KNX Latam's Building Automation Days arrives in Chile

KNX Latam's Building Automation Days arrives in Chile

Chile. On May 15, Santiago de Chile will become the epicenter of automation and smart technology with the Building Automation Days by KNX LATAM, Chile edition.

Shure microphones supported the Viña del Mar Festival 2025

Shure microphones supported the Viña del Mar Festival 2025

Chile. The LXIV edition of the Viña del Mar Festival, held from February 23 to March 1, was broadcast live worldwide for the first time to more than 5 million viewers. To ensure exceptional...

AI drives innovation and business growth

AI drives innovation and business growth

Colombia. Companies in Colombia have made significant progress in the adoption of Artificial Intelligence. As reported by the QS World Future Skills Index 2025, the country has had a 669% increase...

Cooling: key to efficient and sustainable data centers

Cooling: key to efficient and sustainable data centers

Mexico. As more servers run their information processing in data centers, it is inevitable that they will generate a large amount of heat that must be dissipated in order for them to remain in...

Maverick Storm 1 Flex, experience without hot spots

Maverick Storm 1 Flex, experience without hot spots

Latin America. The latest addition to Chauvet's Maverick Storm family, the new IP65-rated spot/beam/wash projects a smooth, flat field of light thanks to its LED motor, which replaces a lamp, thus...

This is the jury of the Cala Awards for the Best AV Project

This is the jury of the Cala Awards for the Best AV Project

Latin America. Three of the winners of the CALA Awards in its Best AV Project category will be the juries in charge of choosing the finalists in the 2025 version of the contest that recognizes the...

Vertiv, NVIDIA and iGenius will have sovereign AI data center

Vertiv, NVIDIA and iGenius will have sovereign AI data center

International.Vertiv will collaborate with NVIDIA and iGenius, to deploy Colosseum, one of the world's largest NVIDIA DGX AI supercomputers with NVIDIA Grace Blackwell superchips. 

Automation and security define labor productivity

Automation and security define labor productivity

Latin America. Deloitte's 2025 survey on Global Trends in Human Capital revealed that the main drivers for investing in new technologies are enabling the workforce to do more and faster, and...

Siemens appoints Miguel D'Alessio as CEO in Colombia

Siemens appoints Miguel D'Alessio as CEO in Colombia

Colombia. Siemens has appointed Miguel D'Alessio as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for Colombia, who has a solid track record in the industry, previously leading the Digital Industries...

Suscribase Gratis
Remember Me
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR ENGLISH NEWSLETTER
DO YOU NEED A SERVICE OR PRODUCT QUOTE?
LATEST INTERVIEWS
SITE SPONSORS










LATEST NEWSLETTER
Ultimo Info-Boletin