When should I get in touch with a smart technology installer?

You’ll learn a lot when you build or renovate for the first time. 

Even if you’ve built a home or renovated before, guidelines and standards can change, and it’s impossible to remember everything you’ve ever learned about an industry you don’t work in day-in-day-out. 

That’s where the professionals come in…

So, when should you get in touch with us?

For new builds

If you’re building a new home, the perfect time to get in touch is once planning permission has been submitted. At this stage there’ll be minimal changes to the layout of your home, so we can map your technology plans onto the space confident that the plans are close to final.

For architects reading and supporting a client’s smart home technology installation, we recommend getting in touch with us no later than RIBA stage three. 

Our approach to technology installations is design-led. That means that we take into consideration every layer of technology in your home and create an optimally functioning system for both practicalities and the emotional impact it creates. You can read more about that on our blog about what designing and installing smart technology systems looks like in practice. 

The goal with getting in touch so early is to build a relationship with you so we know exactly what you want from your new home, and have time to design a system that achieves the ends you communicate. 

Even if you decide not to install the whole system during the initial phase of the build, giving us plenty of design time at the beginning of the project means we can build the right infrastructure for giving your system flexibility. That means you can kick off your smart project with one or two systems like lighting and heating and then expand it in a few years to include, say, audio and access control.

After you’ve got in touch, keeping in touch is just as important. We promise to do that too. 

For big renovation projects

If an architect, interior designer, or other design professional is involved in your renovation, the best time to get in touch with us is as soon as their drawings are done. This goes for both residential properties and commercial buildings. 

We'll guide you (and them) through the rest of the process of working with us. Our design-first focus remains key for renovation projects. If you’re rewiring and tearing down walls then you’re in a brilliant position to get exactly what you want from the space, with our expertise guiding the way.

We’ve written a guide for interior designers who’ve never worked with a smart technology installer here. If you’re working with one for your project, pass this on to them so they know what to expect from us, and what we’re expecting from them.

For media rooms, home cinemas, or conference rooms

If you’re not planning a whole-home renovation but do want to upgrade your AV set up, then get in touch as soon as you have a rough idea of what you’d like to change about your media set up. 

If you’re thinking about installing a home cinema in an empty room, then we can get started any time, so don’t hesitate to get in touch. If you haven’t quite committed, sometimes an expert opinion on the suitability of the space is all you need to make the decision. 

Corporate conference rooms are similar. If you have a meeting room you know you want to upgrade eventually, come to us before you decide on anything else. Your virtual meeting set up is just as important as how comfy your chairs are. 

For outdoor projects 

To kickstart an outdoor project at an existing property, you can get in touch any time. You don’t have to have a smart system inside your home to benefit from outdoor smart technology. As long as you have somewhere a panel can go, we’ll be able to start the project from scratch. 

If there's significant work being done to your garden, please do contact us ahead of any digging so you have time for the design phase of our technology projects. We want to ensure your ground works are as efficient as possible with no pesky extras cropping along the way.

This might be an article to come back to early next year before spring rolls around again…

‘What do you need from me?’

To get a project started with us, you’re welcome to call us on 028 3881 0102 to make introductions.

If you have plans to share, that’s even better. Please email these to info@epitomeliving and we’ll set up a meeting from there.

There’s no project too big or too small for us, so don’t let not knowing what your project might entail delay you from getting started. It’s our job to help you understand where you go from there. 

We hope to hear from you soon!