Home Synthesis

"It's quite a jump to go from a data-centric world to the home automation world," he said, pointing to different standards and technologies and widely differing customer expectations. Hambrick was especially surprised by the few customer demands for home networks. "Networks in general are not a big part of my business. I've been surprised,I thought that people getting structured wiring would want a network, especially because home automation is a big thing," Hambrick said. "Some people are doing networking themselves or are making sure that the house is wired for the future, but they don't see a need for a network now."

Instead, the biggest areas for him are the distribution of audio and video throughout the home and home automation. "Audio/video is a big wild factor for people,the first field to adopt structured wiring was the A/V companies, and a lot of consumers are getting into it. It's a good selling point for most people," Hambrick said, adding that he often uses wall-mounted touch screens, alarm system keypads or telephones as the control point for the media distribution and home automation.

Appliance and network service contracts are another big revenue stream for Home Synthesis. Hambrick looks forward to the day when all of a home's devices are wired for Internet connectivity, pointing to the tremendous support required for this.

Of all his IT experience, Hambrick said his IT programming know-how has been the most useful, especially when setting up home automation and security systems. For solution providers interested in entering the market, Hambrick recommends going to trade shows and taking advantage of other educational opportunities to do some in-depth research into the technologies and standards. Next he recommends getting a basic home automation system and playing with it for a few months before entering the market. It's also important to make contacts with home builders as a key source of business, he said.