Is it Time for a System Takeover?
February 25, 2023
Control4, Crestron, Lutron, Savant.. Unfortunately, not every Smart Home System becomes what it was or intended to be. Even despite the best intentions of all involved, and money having been spent, there is a very significant number of systems out there that are either unreliable, half-baked or completely non-functional.
Where does it all go wrong for these systems? The answers are numerous. Often it’s a combination of a few of these soon-to-be-summarized pitfalls. Here are some that we see out there:
No Actual Plans/Not Enough Planning: A smart home system is a complex machine. It consists of processors, network hardware, relays, sources, amplifiers, thermostats, switchers, speakers, motors, transformers, cameras, keypads, sensors, protocol adaptors, wiring.. just to name a few! The reality is many get put together “on the fly” and never professionally planned or coordinated. In some cases, the overall scope is split up between multiple contractors that don’t communicate or align with one another.
The best systems have their scope clearly identified early on in the build, floorplans, schematics, wire charts produced, and a clear plan from the very beginning. Significant changes on the fly are very often a primary cause for smart home disasters in the end.
Lack of Expertise: As implied already – automation systems are extremely difficult to put together well. To be a master at automation, you actually need to be a master at networking, electrical (both low voltage and high voltage), programming, security systems, camera systems, lighting, wiring and terminations, troubleshooting, signal flow, audio-visual, and motorization.. just to name a few. The truth is the number of people out there that can do all of this to an expert level is actually zero. The only solution to delivering quality of smart homes is the collective knowledge of a team combined with huge amounts of collaboration amongst it. Unfortunately, small teams may not have all of their expertise bases covered, resulting in gaps of quality in their systems.
Sometimes Nothing is Better Than Something: After seeing hundreds of lackluster smart homes in my life, I have arrived at the point where I would feel very comfortable saying to someone, “Maybe we should just skip this.” Or, ‘Maybe we should take this portion out of the scope so we can do these other parts correctly.” Why would I walk away from someone who is willing to open their wallet to invest in a Smart Home system? Because, just doing it, and doing it properly are two very different things when it comes to Smart Homes. Ultimately, if the correct budget is not available to invest in the right combination of products to do the job – then truly, for all parties, don’t do it!
The reality is, every system needs the right components, a proper network, power management, some form of racking, and the right items to support the project both short and long term. Many of the takeovers we perform center around installing a proper network to support the existing equipment that ‘Just never worked’ as the client’s integrator had used the network equipment they received from the local telecoms company.
Not Budgeted Correctly: This is a tough one. These systems always vary in size and scope, have hundreds of components to them, significantly complicated and elaborate scopes of work, and a variety of types of end-users. So, how much should a system cost? The answer: it’s extremely difficult to predict and a science in itself.
One of the most difficult things to foresee at the beginning of a job is the number of hours needed to complete it with quality and polishing. Bid it too high – and you are uncompetitive with the market. Bid it too low… well, it’s a takeover waiting to happen! Simply put – what we see in many cases are projects where the integrator saw some money on the table and took it – but in reality, did not properly consider the real cost of doing the job well.
Often by the end of the job (the critical time the system’s components get installed, programmed, commissioned and supported) they have run out of their budget of hours long ago… so they rush, or cut corners, or try to change the terms. This is highly common. Unfortunately, when you are rushing out the door, you are missing so many quality checks and polishing that really makes the difference between a good system and a not-so-good system. Some integrators will take the loss and do the honorable thing and see their commitment through. Others will rush and say it is complete – which it may appear to be on the surface, but under the hood, far from it.
No Plan for Aftercare: The final hurdle! A reality about Smart Homes is that no matter how high quality of a system deployment that has taken place, it all needs servicing at one point or another. Here are things in a smart home that will always need (or want for) aftercare:
- Routers: most brands and models have frequent firmware upgrades or patches, adding new functionality, allowing for new standards or simply security patches.
- Control Processors: In the case of all brands, frequent stability improvements and bug fixes are made. In the case of many brands, firmware upgrades can include new features, abilities and improvements that enhance the experience. This holds true for brands such as Control4, Crestron Home, Lutron, Savant Systems and more.
- Power Supplies: small, inexpensive transformers are often either built in, or externally power electronics. Unfortunately the lifespan on these can vary a lot and unfortunately not all of them live long lives – affecting the equipment they power.
- Things with motors: Garage doors, Gates, Power shades – anything that moves as part of these systems always needs something eventually – whether it’s simply cleaning a sensor or re-setting a shade limit after the fabric stretches over time.
We meet a lot of ‘takeover’ clients simply because the service relationship has deteriorated between them and their Integrator to the point where one if not both sides are unhappy with the arrangement, and communication breaks down.
So – here you are reading this because somewhere in the world, your smart home that you paid a lot of money for is not living up to your hopes. What can you do? Fortunately our Service team at Pure Image Technology has few limitations.
If you are in the Vancouver, Victoria or Whistler area – Pure Image has local technicians to support you. If you are not local, in the right scenario we can chat about it becoming one of a select group of projects we support worldwide.
Our system takeover process starts with a comprehensive 54 point inspection of the various elements of the smart home system – noting what makes the grade and what needs to come up to standard. From there, we can assemble a recommended bill of materials and estimate of time to completely turn your system around and allow you to begin unlocking the benefits of your Smart Home.
It might comfort you to know that our company successfully takes over dozens of Smart Home projects per year and gives them a brand new lease on life.
To learn more about Smart Home Systems – visit our dedicated page – or one of our brand pages for Control4, Crestron, Lutron and Savant. If you’d like to get in touch with our Service Team to chat about what we can do for you – Contact Us today!
- Do I need a Control System? - March 20, 2024
- Your Smart Home is Only as Good as Your Integrator: The Importance of Superior Aftercare - May 10, 2023
- Is it Time for a System Takeover? - February 25, 2023