• CEPro_logo_blue-new
  • TOPICS
      • News
        • People & Places
        • Product Briefs
      • Projects
      • Events
      • Control
        • Central Vac
        • Energy/Power
        • HVAC/IAQ
        • Interfaces/Devices
        • Lighting
        • Motorized Shades
        • Whole House Systems
      • Audio/Video
        • Audio/Video
        • AV Accessories
        • AV Racks
        • Cabling
        • Displays
        • Furniture
        • Headphones
        • Home Theater
        • Media
        • Mounts/Lifts
        • Multiroom AV
        • Projectors/Screens
        • Speakers/Subwoofers
        • Wireless AV
      • Security
        • Access Control
        • Alarms/Sensors
        • Services/Platforms
        • Surveillance/Cameras
      • Business Support
        • Associations/Buying Groups
        • Cell Phone Boosters
        • Distributors/Reps
        • Operations
        • Recurring Revenue
        • Research
        • Sales/Marketing
        • Software Services
        • Tools/Testers
      • Networking
        • Cellular
        • Devices/Equipment
        • Wireless
        • Wired/Installation
      • Markets
        • Builders
        • Commercial
        • Design
        • Europe
        • Outdoors
        • Resimercial
        • Wellness
      • CE Pro Hub Pages
        • Bose
        • Savant
        • Inside Sound United
  • PRODUCTS
  • RESOURCES
    • Reports/Downloads
    • Buyer’s Guide
    • Webcasts
    • Podcasts
    • Integrator Jobs
    • Digital Edition
    • CE Pro-iQ
  • SUBSCRIBE
    • CEDIA SHOW UPDATES
    • CEPRO PRINT EDITION
    • CEPRO DIGITAL EDITION
    • CEPRO NEWSLETTERS
  • DISCOVER
    • CEDIA Expo
      • September 29 – October 1
        Dallas, TX
      • VISIT SITE
    • KBIS
      • February 8 – 10
        Orlando, FL
      • VISIT SITE
    • Total Tech Summit
      • October 26 – 28
        Orlando, FL
      • VISIT SITE
    • Commercial Integrator
      • VISIT SITE
    • Security Sales
      • VISIT SITE
    • Tech Decisions
      • VISIT SITE
    • Campus Safety
      • VISIT SITE
    • Design Well
      • VISIT SITE
    • KBB Online
      • VISIT SITE
    • AV-iQ
      • VISIT SITE
    • CE Pro-iQ
      • VISIT SITE
  • Search
  • TOPICS
    • News
      • People & Places
      • Product Briefs
    • Projects
    • Events
    • Control
      • Central Vac
      • Energy/Power
      • HVAC/IAQ
      • Interfaces/Devices
      • Lighting
      • Motorized Shades
      • Whole House Systems
    • Audio/Video
      • Audio/Video
      • AV Accessories
      • AV Racks
      • Cabling
      • Displays
      • Furniture
      • Headphones
      • Home Theater
      • Media
      • Mounts/Lifts
      • Multiroom AV
      • Projectors/Screens
      • Speakers/Subwoofers
      • Wireless AV
    • Security
      • Access Control
      • Alarms/Sensors
      • Services/Platforms
      • Surveillance/Cameras
    • Business Support
      • Associations/Buying Groups
      • Cell Phone Boosters
      • Distributors/Reps
      • Operations
      • Recurring Revenue
      • Research
      • Sales/Marketing
      • Software Services
      • Tools/Testers
    • Networking
      • Cellular
      • Devices/Equipment
      • Wireless
      • Wired/Installation
    • Markets
      • Builders
      • Commercial
      • Design
      • Europe
      • Outdoors
      • Resimercial
      • Wellness
    • CE Pro Hub Pages
      • Savant
      • Bose
      • Inside Sound United
  • PRODUCTS
  • RESOURCES
    • Reports/Downloads
    • Buyer’s Guide
    • Webcasts
    • Podcasts
    • Integrator Jobs
    • Digital Edition
    • CE Pro-IQ
  • SUBSCRIBE
    • CEPRO PRINT EDITION
    • CEPRO DIGITAL EDITION
    • CEPRO NEWSLETTERS
    • CEDIA SHOW UPDATES
  • DISCOVER
    • Cedia Expo
      VISIT SITE
    • Commercial Integrator
      VISIT SITE
    • Security Sales
      VISIT SITE
    • Tech Decisions
      VISIT SITE
    • Campus Safety
      VISIT SITE
    • Design Well
      VISIT SITE
    • Total Tech Summit
      VISIT SITE
    • KBB Online
      VISIT SITE
    • AV-iQ
    • CE Pro-iQ
M
POPULAR SEARCHES
News
Projects
Control
Audio Video
Security
Business Support
Markets
SUBSCRIBE CEDIA EXPO CEPro-iQ
Audio/Video | Control | Lighting | Motorized Shades | News | Projects | Security | Services/Platforms | Slideshow
December 29, 2016

Rich AV Brings Invisible Automation to Manhattan Townhouse with Savant, Lutron

What can you do with zero budget restrictions? Rich AV Design says the sky's the limit on this New York smart home automation project that included Lutron lighting, Savant control, Access Networks and remote monitoring.
Michelle de Carion
What can you do with zero budget restrictions? Rich AV Design says the sky's the limit on this New York smart home automation project that included Lutron lighting, Savant control, Access Networks and remote monitoring.
Article:
Audio/Video | Control | Lighting | Motorized Shades | News | Projects | Security | Services/Platforms | Slideshow
December 29, 2016

Rich AV Brings Invisible Automation to Manhattan Townhouse with Savant, Lutron

When the team at Rich AV Design started working on a seven-story townhouse in Manhattan, New York, about three years ago, the client didn’t give any budget restrictions. This enabled the whole crew to really stretch their limits for smart home automation design.

Rich AV Design had completed a smart home installation for the client on another property, and they loved the results so much that they hired Rich AV Design again to complete this townhouse on the Upper East Side.  

Rich AV Design was actually the only company the client brought back for this project since they were so impressed with the service.

“It was a unique project in that the client didn’t have a budget,” says Joshua Rich, owner and CEO of Rich AV Design. “The kind of job where the sky was the limit. You could make it really nice, and it makes you stretch your limits and see what you can do since there are no barriers.”

The townhouse previously housed 14 apartments. Since it was an older building and wasn’t well taken care of, the only aspect of the property the homeowner and architect wanted to keep was the exterior façade.

During the initial phase of construction, the workers had to dig out the floor by hand to create a wine cellar, mechanical room, and AV room. Originally this crawl space was only three feet high, so they spent a month digging it out to create a normal height of nine feet.

The project was well managed and included many site meetings and conference calls involving builders, interior designers, architects and engineers.

Completely Invisible Automation

The goal of the project was to fully automate the house – including lighting, shading, audio, video, security, intercom, phone system and HVAC – and everything had to be invisible. The client wanted the best of the best smart home products and components, but didn’t want to see it at all.

To accomplish this, the team concealed all of the equipment. The only pieces of technology you can see are the Lutron HomeWorks keypads – one in each area to control the lights – and the tablets, which are hidden in closets when not in use.

Another big part of the project was coordinating with all of the trades involved and making the system work seamlessly.

Talk about an invisible automation system. Where is everything? See more photos.

For example, the HVAC system was very complicated since the client wanted a traditional cooling and heating system along with radiant heating. The Rich AV team integrated all of the moving parts together with a Savant System.

Three equipment racks, 5 Lutron dimming panels, and 4 Lutron shade power panels were placed in the cellar’s AV room. A commercial grade generator sits on the roof and is capable of running the entire home if power ever goes out in the city, allowing the family to still fully use their smart home.

This is complemented with redundant cable, internet and satellite TV providers.  A fully managed Cisco/Ruckus wired and wireless network was built by Access Networks and is the foundation of it all functioning properly.

Lights, Media, Action

The multipurpose media room on the top floor has surround sound, complete with invisible speakers by Stealth Acoustics, and a Samsung TV. The room can be used for entertainment or simply reading a book.

The lighting designer on the job worked carefully with the team to make sure every light dims properly and can be fully controlled. Every aspect took a lot of attention to detail. Installing the whole house music system was challenging because some of the rooms had intricate walls.

One of the main rooms had custom millwork, so the team had to cut out wooden panels to recess the speaker in it and then refinish the wood so that it could be acoustically transparent. The millworker created a custom spackle with a wood texture to match the wood paneling, and then lacquered over it it to match.

One part of the project that really challenged the Rich AV team was the intercom system. The client wanted to be able to answer the door if someone rang the bell so that it would appear as if they were home, even if they were actually in another country. At the time, a solution like this didn’t exist, so Rich AV had to create it from scratch.

Custom Scenes & Remote Monitoring

A couple of the custom scenes the team included were the Good Night scene and the arrival scene. When pressing “Good Night” using the Savant system, all of the lights in the house would turn off except for the ones in the master bedroom.

Also, if a person takes the elevator up to one of the seven floors, the lights will turn on before they even take a step out of the lift. The lighting control sequences make it easy to control the home so that people don’t have to run up and down the stairs to turn off the lights.

The townhouse previously housed 14 apartments; now it's a magestic seven-story home. See more photos.

The townhouse is also remotely monitored by the Rich AV team, so they know if a system is down immediately – even before the client does in many cases. The home can be serviced and repaired remotely as well. With such a large scale system, Rich AV Design is proud to have completed this project.

“We want our customers to know that we have what it takes to see a major project like this through, and do it successfully from start to finish,” says Rich. “We did go in with an estimated budget, even though there were no limitations, and we stuck to that. So we completed the job for the price we said we would. The custom proprietary solutions for monitoring and remote access are also examples of how proactive we are in resolving problems. We make sure our systems are designed properly and run properly all the time.”

ARTICLE TOPICS

Audio/Video • Control • Lighting • Motorized Shades • News • Projects • Security • Services/Platforms • Slideshow

ARTICLE TAGS

Access Networks • Lutron • Savant

SHARE

Share On Facebook
Share On Twitter
Share On Linkedin
Share On Whatsapp
Share Via Email
Copy URL
← Previous Article Next Article →
Article Amplifiers/ReceiversAudio/VideoCommercialEventsHome TheaterISEMarketsMultiroom AVPress Releases

AudioControl HT Gear, Commercial Amps at ISE 2023

At ISE 2023 in Barcelona on Jan. 31 to Feb. 3, AudioControl will show products with technologies such as 70-volt, Audinate Dante, and 8K compatibility.
Article ControlLightingMotorized ShadesProjectsWellnessWhole-House Systems

Audio Impact Has Lutron Choreograph the Colorful Lighting of This Ocean View Home

The San Diego integration firm shows how a little change in color goes a long way in this luxurious smart home.
Article Amplifiers/ReceiversAudio/VideoCommercialEventsHome TheaterISEMarketsMultiroom AVPress Releases

AudioControl HT Gear, Commercial Amps at ISE 2023

At ISE 2023 in Barcelona on Jan. 31 to Feb. 3, AudioControl will show products with technologies such as 70-volt, Audinate Dante, and 8K compatibility.
Article Audio/VideoCommercialDesignDisplaysHome TheaterMarketsMultiroom AVNewsProducts

Sony Announces BH and CH Series MicroLED Displays

Sony's latest microLED products provide integrators with a choice of high brightness or wide color gamut customizable display solutions.

SHOW NEWSLETTER

Sign Up

CE Pro

Subscribe Sign Up

Content Types

News
Products
Projects
Companies
Downloads
Webcasts
Podcasts
Events

Specials

IntegratorJobs
CEDIA EXPO
CE Pro 100
CE Pro Summit
Awards Programs

Company Info

About
Contact Us
Customer Service
Media Solutions & Advertising

Subscribe

Magazine
Newsletters
Digital Edition

Connect

Twitter
Facebook
LinkedIn
YouTube
RSS Feed

Categories

AUDIO/VIDEO
AV Accessories
AV Racks
Amplifiers/Receivers
Cabling
Displays
Furniture
Mounts/Lifts
Multiroom AV
Projector Screens
Speakers/Subwoofers
Wireless AV
CONTROL
Central Vac
Energy/Power
Interfaces/Devices
HVAC/IAQ
Lighting
Motorized Shades
Whole-House Systems
NETWORKING
Cellular
Devices/Equipment
Wireless
Wiring/Installation
SECURITY
Access Control
Alarms/Sensors
Services/Platforms
Surveillance Cameras
BUSINESS SUPPORT
Associations/Buying Groups
Distributors/Reps
Operations
Recurring Revenue
Research
Sales/Marketing
Software/Services
Tools/Testers
MARKETS
Builders
Commercial
Design
Europe
Outdoors
Wellness
FOLLOW US ON
  • Follow
  • Follow
  • Follow
  • Follow
  • Follow

© 2023 Emerald X, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

  • ABOUT
  • CAREERS
  • TERMS OF USE
  • PRIVACY POLICY