Crestron Programming — Design, Programming & Commissioning

Crestron Programming Written for the Client, Not the Programmer

Crestron programming is where the quality of a smart home installation is determined. The hardware — processors, dimmers, touchpanels, AV endpoints — is available to any certified Crestron dealer. What separates a system that transforms daily life from one that frustrates the people living with it is the quality of the programme written to run on that hardware: how the scenes are structured, how automations are triggered, how edge cases are handled, how the interface is designed for users who have never encountered the system before. Custom Controls have been writing Crestron programmes since 1998. We are five-time Crestron Integration Award winners and Dealer of Distinction — recognised by Crestron itself for the quality of our installations.

Five-Time Crestron Integration Award Winners — Unique in EMEA

Five Crestron Integration Awards, won in five consecutive years. No other installer in EMEA has done it. The awards are judged by Crestron itself against entries from across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Our award-winning entries were a Dubai estate with eight processors and 72 audio zones, a whole-home Derby lighting scheme built entirely on Crestron’s own fittings, two wins for Best High Rise in Europe at Claridge’s and the Beetham Tower, and the first Crestron Digital Media installation in the UK, on Baker Street. Open any award below to see the project behind it.

Best International Project — A Whole-Estate Crestron Installation, Dubai

Our most celebrated Crestron case study — and the project that won us the Crestron Integration Award for Best International Project — is a complete Crestron system spanning two large villas, extensive gardens, a swimming pool, a basketball court, a lake and a stream on a private estate in Dubai. Eight Crestron processors provide integrated control throughout, distributing audio to 72 zones, video to 32 zones and managing well over 400 lighting channels across both villas and the grounds. Five surround sound zones, five Kaleidescape movie servers, four Apple TVs, 24 audio sources and a full Crestron Sonnex audio distribution system serve the family villa, the guest villa, staff areas, offices and classrooms simultaneously.

The scope is perhaps best illustrated by its details: the basketball court has four cabinet speakers mounted on the floodlights with two sunken subwoofers; the garden fire pits are Crestron-controlled; the gym features Artcoustic speakers enhanced by subwoofers; and the master bedroom suite houses a bespoke Stax headphone system with a valve amplifier and DaVinci DAC for private listening. The dedicated home cinema room in the family villa seats eight in Cineak chairs with backlit Onyx tables, with a 3.5m screen and 17 channels of surround sound — one of the most comprehensive Crestron installations ever delivered in the residential market. Read the full case study →

Best Lighting Control & Design — A Whole-Home Lighting Installation, Derby

Where the Dubai estate shows what Crestron can do at maximum scale, this new-build home in the Derby countryside shows what it can do with lighting alone, done properly — the project that won us the Crestron Integration Award for Best Lighting Control & Design, and the first installation in the UK to use Crestron’s own dimmable LED fittings end-to-end, with nothing else involved in the lighting. Over 350 fittings across 200+ channels — each drawing roughly 18 watts while matching the output of a 50-watt halogen downlight — are managed through six distributed lighting racks for clean cabling and full redundancy. The client calculated that the entire house now uses the same lighting energy previously used by just the kitchen and dining room alone. Scenes, scheduling and remote access are available from the wall touchpanels, more than 50 keypads or an iPad, and every keypad is custom-engraved so each button says what it does.

Lighting sits alongside 24 audio zones and 16 video zones over Crestron Digital Media, full heating and air conditioning control, gate intercom distributed via touchpanels throughout the property, and a complete monitored security and CCTV system with automatic camera-follow logic — every part of it native Crestron, controlled from the same wall touchpanels and iPad interfaces used for everything else in the home. Read the full case study →

Best High Rise in Europe — Claridge’s Hotel Penthouses, Mayfair

Working inside the listed Claridge’s Hotel, we installed Crestron-controlled Loewe multimedia systems in two penthouse apartments of three rooms each — the project that won the Crestron Integration Award for Best High Rise in Europe. The interiors are listed, so no new cable routes could be created and nothing could be chased, drilled or rewired. Every decision about equipment and control started with the building rather than the product catalogue.

Every room has a Loewe LED TV and Blu-ray player. In the living rooms, 46-inch Loewe TVs are paired with upgraded audio: the Individual Sound Projector in one apartment and stand-mounted stereo speakers in the other, both supported by subwoofers. Wireless control removed the need for wall-mounted keypads or new wiring to each control position, which is what made a full Crestron system possible in rooms that could not be physically altered.

The design centred on the Crestron TPS-6X wireless touchpanel, which uses RF rather than WiFi for instant response and freedom from interference by neighbouring wireless networks. Each panel carries the Claridge’s crest in a bespoke finish, and guests reach the Loewe LED TVs, Blu-ray, Sky HD and hotel TV from one interface that had to be intuitive for guests of any nationality with no instruction. Read the full case study →

Most Innovative Control — The First Crestron Digital Media Installation in the UK, Baker Street

This modern townhouse near Regent’s Park was the first Crestron Digital Media installation in the UK, and won the pan-European 2010 Crestron Integration Award for Most Innovative Control Solution. It also became an official Crestron case study. HD audio and video from Sky HD, ArabSat, Apple TV and a Kaleidescape server reach eight TVs over Cat5e cable, with an audio matrix feeding ceiling speakers in each room, including DAB radio.

Centralising the sources means one Sky HD, ArabSat, Apple TV and Kaleidescape installation serves the whole house rather than a box beside every television. The Kaleidescape server holds the client’s film collection for instant access in any room, and the CCTV cameras appear as just another source on any screen. The interface was programmed from scratch around the property and the people living in it, with weather feeds and local times for each of the client’s international home locations embedded on the touchpanel home page.

Lighting, heating, Hitachi air conditioning and an Axis IP CCTV system run from the same Crestron interface, on a mix of wired TPS-6L and wireless TPS-6X touchpanels, with iPhone control from anywhere in the world, including switching on the underfloor heating during the transfer from the airport. The Axis cameras are viewable from the client’s laptop or full-screen on a touchpanel at home, with a large storage server keeping all footage available for analysis. The interface is so intuitive that the client turned down training, and it is used regularly by non-English-speaking staff. Read the full case study →

Best High Rise in Europe — Beetham Tower Penthouse, Manchester

The top two floors of the 168.87m Beetham Tower, the highest residential living space in Europe at the time of installation, won us the 2009 Crestron Integration Award for Best High Rise in Europe and became an official Crestron Digital Media case study. The biggest challenge was not distributing audio and video but controlling the building management systems: underfloor heating, ventilation, swimming pool temperature and the irrigation for a 4,000 square foot rooftop olive grove, all from Crestron 6-inch touchpanels.

Bringing these systems under one controller means the client never deals with a separate thermostat, pool controller or irrigation timer. Temperature setpoints are adjusted room by room with a simple scroll and tap on the touchpanels, and the heating, ventilation, pool and garden sit in the same interface as the audio, video, lighting and security, so the whole penthouse is run the same way.

Alongside the environment sit eight audio zones and four video zones with a Kaleidescape server that stores the client’s DVD and CD collection so several different films or albums can play at once in different zones, and an FM tuner that is particularly popular in the his-and-hers bathrooms. More than 60 lighting channels and 25 keypads give direct scene recall around the apartment, and CCTV, including the private lift lobby, records on a rolling basis alongside a monitored alarm that notifies the concierge and the client, all in one interface. Read the full case study →

Alongside the awards, we are a Crestron Dealer of Distinction, Crestron’s higher dealer level, and we have been certified Crestron dealers since 1998, the year Crestron was establishing itself as the dominant residential automation platform in the UK. For over two decades we have remained continuously active in the Crestron ecosystem, installing hundreds of systems across every generation of Crestron hardware and software.

Design Before Programming

A Crestron system is only as good as its design document. Before a line of code is written, we produce full system schematics: every source, every display, every lighting circuit, every AV endpoint, every third-party device and every control interface is mapped. Input and output counts are verified. Signal paths are traced. Integration strategies for third-party systems are confirmed at the specification stage rather than discovered during commissioning. Redundancy is designed in — a failure mode that takes down a complete system is engineered out before installation begins.

This level of design rigour is what allows our programmes to be written efficiently, tested thoroughly and delivered reliably. A programme written without a complete design document is a programme written twice — once to get it working and once to fix what the first version missed. We write ours once.

Programming for the End Client — Not the Programmer

Too many Crestron programmes are written to demonstrate what the system can do rather than to serve the people living with it. Our programmes are designed around the client’s daily life: what they do in the morning, how the cinema room is used, what the arrival and departure sequences should feel like, what the household staff need to operate and what guests should be able to use without instruction.

We do not train clients on how to use our systems. A well-designed Crestron programme is self-evident — a visitor who has never encountered the property’s control system before can navigate it correctly because the interface has been designed to be understood, not learned. This is the standard we hold every programme to, whether it is a single-room Crestron Home configuration or a complex eight-processor bespoke installation.

Pre-Build, Pre-Programme, Ship to Site

Every Crestron system we install is fully pre-built and pre-programmed at our UK workshop before it arrives on site. The rack is wired, labelled and loaded with the programme. Every source is connected and tested. Every integration is verified. Every scene is checked against the design document. The rack leaves our facility in operating condition.

On-site commissioning involves connecting the rack to the building’s infrastructure, walking through the programme with the client’s preferences and refining scenes in the finished space. It does not involve writing code in a plant room or debugging integrations that were not tested before installation. For international projects — Dubai, the Alps, West Africa — this methodology is not optional. Debugging a Crestron programme on site in a different time zone, against a deadline set by a client’s arrival, is not a situation we put ourselves in.

Testing and Handover

Every programme is tested function by function on site before handover, from each keypad button and touchpanel page to the timed events and integrations with third-party systems. We then walk the household through the system room by room, adjusting scenes and interface layouts until they suit how the family actually lives. The programming files and documentation are kept up to date after every change, so the system can be supported and extended for years without depending on any one engineer.

Handover includes written guidance for the household and staff, and a follow-up review once the family has lived with the system for a few weeks. Any scenes or layouts that do not suit daily life are adjusted at that point.

Crestron Programming as a Standalone Service

For properties where the Crestron hardware was installed by another company — or where the original programmer is no longer available, no longer trading or no longer able to support the system — we provide standalone Crestron programming services. We take over the programme, audit the existing code, identify what is working and what is not, and rewrite what is needed to bring the system up to our standard. Scene reprogramming, new circuit additions, keypad remapping, AV source updates, third-party integration fixes and Lutron integration setup are all available as independent services without a full system reinstall. Read more about our system takeover and renovation service →

The first step is always an audit. We document what the existing programme controls and test what works, then give the owner a written view of what can be kept, what should be fixed and what would be better rewritten. Work is then carried out in stages, so the household keeps a working system throughout rather than losing control of the house while it is reprogrammed.

Remote Programming

Crestron processors are remotely accessible — programming changes, software updates, integration fixes and new scene additions can all be deployed without a site visit in most cases. For properties in Dubai, the Alps, Portugal, West Africa and elsewhere in our international portfolio, the majority of programme updates are delivered remotely from our UK operations. Where a physical visit is required, we schedule it efficiently alongside other site work rather than as a standalone call-out.

Every change is agreed with the household first and recorded in the system documentation, so the programme on file always matches the programme in the house. Changes are scheduled for a convenient time, so the household is never left mid-update. Where hardware needs replacing or adding, our engineers visit site with the programme already prepared.

Crestron Programming FAQs

• What does Crestron programming involve?
  It starts with a full design document: system schematics mapping every source, display, lighting circuit, AV endpoint, third-party device and control interface, with input and output counts verified and signal paths traced. Only then is the programme written, structured around scenes, automations and an interface designed for the people living with the system.
• Can you reprogram a Crestron system installed by another company?
  Yes. We provide standalone Crestron programming for systems where the original installer or programmer is no longer available. We audit the existing code, identify what works and what does not, and rewrite what is needed, with scene reprogramming, new circuits, keypad remapping, AV source updates and Lutron integration available without a full reinstall.
• Can Crestron programming changes be made remotely?
  Yes. Crestron processors are remotely accessible, so programming changes, software updates, integration fixes and new scenes can be deployed without a site visit in most cases. Every change is agreed with the household first and recorded in the system documentation.
• Why is the system programmed before it reaches site?
  Every system is pre-built and pre-programmed at our UK workshop: the rack is wired, labelled, loaded with the programme, with every source connected, every integration verified and every scene checked against the design document. That means commissioning on site is connecting, walking through and refining, not writing code in a plant room.
• Will I need training to use the system?
  The programme is designed to be self-evident, so a visitor who has never seen the system can navigate it. Handover still includes a room-by-room walk-through, written guidance for the household and staff, and a follow-up review once the family has lived with the system for a few weeks.
• How is a Crestron programme tested?
  Every programme is tested function by function on site before handover, from each keypad button and touchpanel page to timed events and integrations with third-party systems. Programming files and documentation are kept up to date after every change so the system can be supported without depending on one engineer.

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