Case studies: ‘The Country Retreat’ (With a difference)

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Sitting high on a hill two hours south of Sydney is a retreat that has undergone a technological metamorphosis

‘The Scope’

From the outset the overseas client wanted to ensure that all aspects of his retreat could to be controlled and monitored from anywhere in the world.

‘The Challenge’

To achieve this, the client engaged the services of AVD Australia to undertake the entire home automation system. AVD brought to the project 20 years of experience in Advanced Home Automation and immediately employed their tried and true philosophy of systems engineering to achieve the result within time and within budget.

‘The Responsibilities’

To enable the design, integration and implementation of a fully functioning Home Automation System AVD undertook the following;

• Scope of Works Development
• Systems and Infrastructure Engineering & Design
• Documentation of
  - Electrical Systems
  - Electronic Systems
  - Lighting Schedules
  - Cabling Schedules
  - Switching Schedules
• Infrastructure Project Management
• Product Selection
• Installation & Project Management of Systems
• Control System Development, Programming and Testing
• Final Commissioning and Handover

‘The Solution’

To bring together a house with such an advanced level of electronic integration required a control system that was capable of communicating seamlessly and reliably with each of the stand alone systems.

The AMX product allowed AVD to develop a custom Graphical User Interface (GUI) that met exacting design and functionality criteria. This was critical in order to achieve easy operation of the house.

At any one of the four 15” Modero Touch screens, the owner is able to control every aspect of his home, from the initial control of the base and global functions through to drilling down to the finest detail of each system.

To achieve complete functionality the AMX system consists of 182 custom designed GUI screens. However, only about 20 of these are needed to be used on a daily basis to achieve the majority of daily functions.

‘The People’

ARCHITECTURE & INTERIOR DESIGN
Nicholas Graham & Associates

BUILDER
Munio Pty Ltd

ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING
AVD Australia Pty Ltd

ELECTRICAL CONTRACTOR
Project Connection Australia Pty Ltd

SECURITY CONTRACTOR
E & C Security Pty Ltd

MECHANICAL CONTRACTOR
R J Air Pty Ltd

LANDSCAPE DESIGN
Spirit Level Pty Ltd

“AMX was selected as it is the only
integration control system that allowed
us to bring together the complex
functions and communications
requirements of this home to a stable
and intuitive platform”.
Sandy Howard, AVD

‘The Timing’

Documentation Period: 6 months
Construction Period: 18 months
Fit-Off: 3 months

‘The Budget’

The following figures are approximate only;
Construction: $8,000,000.00
Electrical: $1,500,000.00
Home Automation: $ 700,000.00

‘The Systems’

CONTROL HARDWARE
4 AMX 15” Modero Touch Screens
4 AMX NI-700’s
3 Multinet 4 port RS-232 to TCP-IP
1 x 3GHz Server
2 AV AutoPatch Matrix Switchers

GUI & COMMUNICATIONS PROTOCOLS
182 Custom Screens for the Graphical User Interface
950 Custom Buttons
RS-232/485

TCP-IP
ARCNET over ETHERNET
IR/RF to RS-232

LIGHTING
943 Light Fittings
85 Individual Areas
Clipsal C-Bus Lighting System
Schedule Plus Operating Software
3 C-Bus Networks
78 Custom Switch Plates
131 Dimmer Channels
148 Relay Channels
631 Group Addresses
455 Programmed Lighting Scenes

MOTORISED DEVICES
46 Blinds
6 Awnings
4 Doors
1 Gate

INFRASTRUCTURE
Main & Sub Mains Cabling: 6, 174 meters
Lighting Cable: 21, 700 meters
Power Cable: 15, 892 meters
Security Cable: 14, 355 meters
Cat 5e Cable: 9, 455 meters
Cat 6 Cable: 2, 135 meters
RG-6 Co Axial Cable: 3, 415 meters
Half Inch Aluminium Co Axial Cable: 1, 400 meters
Conduit: 7, 064 meters
Cable Tray: 513 meters
Optic Fibre 6 Core 1, 050 meters
Cable Ties: 19, 280
Power Points: 228

SECURITY
Tecom Challenger Version 9
16 Areas
350 Plus Inputs
No Further Details Available

MATV / CATV
9 Ikusi 7MHz Stereo Modulators
4 Foxtel Digital Inc IQ Boxes
6 Distributed DigitalView HDTV STU’s
17 TV Points

CCTV
Extensive NiceVision CCTV System
No Further Details Available

NETWORK
4 Netgear 24 port switches
28 Cabled Points
Extensive WAN
ADSL2+

ELECTRICAL
2 dedicated distribution rooms
250 Amp 3 Phase Power Supply
50 kVA 3 Phase Uninterrupted Power Supply
Surge protection

COMMUNICATIONS
Panasonic TDA 200 Digital Hybrid Phone System
16 Digital 6 Line LCD Handsets
DECT Cordless Solution with 7 Base Stations
4 Custom Front Door Stations

‘Project Partners’

AVD Australia Pty Ltd
Advanced Home Automation
Electronic Systems Integration
Ph: + 612 9906 2424
www.avd.com.au

Project Connection Australia Pty Ltd
Electrical • Communications • Integration
Ph: + 612 9439 9111
www.project-connection.com.au

AMX Australia Pty Ltd
Distributor of the World’s Best Control System
Ph: +617 5531 3103
www.amxaust.com.au

Runco Pty Ltd
The World’s Finest
Home Theater Products
Ph: +61 2 99499349
www.runco.com

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