SimpleHome selected by Barratt Homes for major riverfront development

25 May 2017

Comelit is supplying its award-winning SimpleHome intelligent home automation system to Fulham Riverside, a £438 million development on the north bank of the Thames in London. The new development is a phased urban renewal project that includes residential buildings by Barratt Homes set around an acre of landscaped gardens and features a maze, gymnasium and 24-hour concierge.

In the first phase, London-based installerRJK Security Systems has fitted an IP door entry system in 196 high-spec apartments and SimpleHome home automation in the penthouses and townhouses. The system gives residents full control of their lighting, heating and ventilation, with the ability to programme schedules for up to seven days. SimpleHome is also compatible with most types of switch and is used in other projects for the distribution of AV entertainment and even intelligent monitoring of energy and water consumption.

Lifestyle product

Residents can build their own ‘scenarios’ or sequences. These might include light dimming, closing of blinds and graduated heating or cooling. They can also create a combined routine of activations and deactivations for common occurrences, such as leaving for work in a hurry. SimpleHome recently won a Benchmark Magazine Innovation Award, with judges selecting it because “the system elevates the package of access control (door entry), surveillance and alarm management into a lifestyle product.” SimpleHome is also extremely intuitive and can be controlled remotely from a web browser anywhere in the world, using a smartphone or tablet and connecting to the home router.

Fulham Riverside also uses Comelit’s ViP video door entry solution. At the site, calls are made using a video entry panel from Comelit's 3one6 IP range, which is made of mirror-finish brushed steel. This ultramodern-looking panel features an 8-inch HD touchscreen with CapSense™ capacitive keys that can be controlled with very light touches of a finger.

Inside the apartments and houses, residents can speak with visitors using the full-duplex hands-free loudspeaker on Comelit’s Planux Lux monitor, which also features a 3.5-inch screen that displays an image of the caller.

Concierge software makes it easy to message residents

The finished Fulham Riverside scheme will cover 8.25 acres and the second phase of apartments will also be centered on a courtyard garden. The site has planning permission for 462 homes in total, with a proportion being affordable housing. On completion of the project, reception staff will be able to communicate across the buildings using Comelit concierge software and send messages to individuals, groups of apartments or all residents.

The overall Fulham Wharf regeneration is transforming a derelict warehouse area into new community spaces, a Sainsbury's supermarket and cafés with river frontage. The joint developers are Barratt Homes and housing association London & Quadrant. Traditional building materials are being used wherever possible and with limited construction access on three sides, much of the plant and equipment has been brought in by river. The refurbishment of a jetty has also created an ecological area for riverside wildlife.