How We Work with Architects and Interior Designers

Integrating home technology seamlessly into high-end residential projects — from first fix to final calibration

Updated June 2026 · Custom Controls · Technology partners to architects and designers since 1998

The most successful home technology installations begin at the design stage, not after the building work is complete. When Custom Controls is involved from the point where plans are being drawn, the result is a property where the technology is invisible, fully integrated and perfectly matched to the architect’s and interior designer’s vision. When we are brought in after construction, we solve problems that were entirely preventable. This page explains how we work with design professionals, what we bring to a project at each stage, and why the best results always come from early collaboration.

Our Services

Smart Home

Mood Lighting

Home Cinema

Security

WiFi

Why Technology Needs to Be in the Room from Day One

Every element of a high-end home technology installation has a physical footprint that must be accommodated in the building fabric: cable conduits running between floors and rooms, equipment room dimensions and ventilation requirements, ceiling heights above acoustic ceilings in cinema rooms, wall depths for in-wall speaker enclosures, floor loading for equipment racks, and the precise positions of keypads, touchscreens and control points that need to work with the interior design rather than conflict with it.

When these requirements are communicated to the architect during the design phase, they are accommodated without compromise and without cost. When they are discovered after the structure is complete, they require remedial work — chased conduits through finished walls, lowered ceilings that were not planned for, equipment rooms carved from other spaces. The technology works either way, but the first approach delivers a result that looks designed; the second looks installed.

What We Bring to a Project at Design Stage

Technology brief and system specification. We work with the client and their design team to establish what the technology needs to deliver — not what specific equipment should be installed. The brief defines how the home should work: which rooms need audio, how the cinema room should function, what the lighting scenes should achieve, how security should integrate with the smart home. The specification follows from the brief.

Building services coordination drawings. We produce cable route drawings, equipment room layout plans, and technical specification sheets for the M&E engineer and main contractor. These define exactly what conduits need to be installed during first fix, where cable draw points need to be positioned, what power supplies are required and where, and what structural provisions are needed for screens, speakers and control equipment. The drawings are produced in formats that integrate directly with the architect’s package.

Lighting design coordination. Lutron lighting control is most effective when the lighting designer, the interior designer and Custom Controls have aligned on the lighting architecture before the electrician installs a single fitting. We work with the lighting designer on circuit grouping, dimming compatibility and scene logic, ensuring the control system can deliver everything the lighting design requires.

Cinema room acoustic design. For any project that includes a home cinema room, we produce acoustic models and 3D renders of the finished space at the design stage. These inform the room dimensions, the ceiling height requirements, the speaker void dimensions and the acoustic treatment positions — all of which affect the structural design of the room. Waiting until the room is built to address these requirements is the single most common cause of cinema rooms that underperform relative to their equipment specification.

What We Bring During Construction

During the build phase, Custom Controls provides first-fix installation — running cable infrastructure, installing back boxes, positioning conduits and preparing equipment spaces. We work alongside the main contractor’s M&E team, coordinating the technology installation with the broader building programme. Regular site visits at key milestones ensure that what was specified at design stage is being delivered correctly on site.

For projects with a dedicated cinema room, our team installs the acoustic structure — stud walls, acoustic ceiling, speaker enclosures and treatment — as a specialist subcontract within the wider building programme. This is work that requires specific expertise and that general contractors cannot deliver to the standard required.

What We Bring at Second Fix and Commissioning

At second fix, Custom Controls installs the visible equipment — keypads, touchscreens, speaker grilles, display screens and control hardware — into the finished interior. This is the stage where the quality of the first-fix coordination pays dividends: every outlet is in exactly the right position, every cable is terminated correctly, and the installation progresses without the delays and compromises that follow poor first-fix preparation.

Commissioning — programming the Crestron or Lutron system, calibrating the audio and video systems, configuring lighting scenes and testing every function in every room — typically takes one to two weeks on a whole-home installation of moderate complexity. We do not hand over a system until it works exactly as specified. Client training is included, covering every system function and every user interface in the home.

The Technology We Specify

Custom Controls specifies and installs the complete range of home technology systems:

• Crestron Home Automation — the reference standard for whole-home control. AV distribution, lighting, HVAC, security, blinds and intercom on a single integrated platform.
• Lutron Lighting Control — RadioRA 3 and Homeworks QSX for lighting control that matches the quality of the finest interior designs.
• Home Cinema Design and Installation — acoustic design, fabric walls, Artcoustic speaker systems, Sony and JVC 4K laser projection and Trinnov audio calibration.
• Whole-Home Audio Video — Bluesound, Sonos and Origin Acoustics multi-room audio; 4K video distribution to every display in the property.
• Network and WiFi — Cisco Meraki and Ubiquiti UniFi enterprise-grade networks designed for the specific demands of a modern luxury home.
• Security and Access Control — Texecom intruder alarm, 2N IP intercom, Hikvision CCTV and Paxton access control integrated with the Crestron smart home.

Working With Us

The most productive way to begin a working relationship is a brief conversation at the point where the project is at RIBA Stage 1 or 2 — early enough for the technology requirements to inform the design, late enough to have a realistic picture of the brief and the budget. We are happy to attend design team meetings, review plans and provide a preliminary technology brief and indicative budget at no charge as part of establishing whether a working relationship makes sense.

We work regularly with architects and interior designers across London, Cheshire and internationally. Our portfolio includes projects with some of the most respected practices working in the luxury residential sector. References are available on request.

Get in touch → · View our portfolio → · Crestron Home Automation → · Lutron Lighting → · Cinema Design →