Located in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, Sanctuary Cove is a self-contained gated community featuring a world-class marina, thriving retail and dining district, and more. For residents, however, the real show-stoppers are the first-class homes located throughout the community’s 474 hectares, the latest of which is a four-bedroom, single-level gem on The Parkway. Constructed of steel, concrete, and glass, the home features a sleek, modern design with clean lines, 20-foot ceilings, and a large open floorplan for the living room, dining room, and kitchen. Of course, the high-end residence also offers the latest technology, installed by integrator Bridger Automation, with control and automation provided by RTI.
Highlights of the home include five audio zones, with audio distribution powered by the RTI AD-8x, a 16-channel audio amplifier with a matrix-switching amp, which allows the homeowners to listen to different audio sources in any zone. Video sources include a Foxtel IQ4 set-top box, Apple TV, and Vodafone TV smart box distributed via a Blustream HDBaseT 4×4 HDMI matrix switcher to displays located in the living room, sunken lounge, alfresco bar, and master bedroom.
A C-Bus lighting system showcases the home’s sophisticated design, while motorized curtains in the kitchen, living room, and master bedroom add another element of luxury and privacy. The master bedroom features both sheer and block-out curtains, allowing the homeowners to tailor the bedroom environment to their liking, no matter the time of day. In addition to HVAC, the home’s climate control elements include C-Bus motorized louvres, which play a key role in removing hot air and promoting natural breeze ventilation, and ceiling fans in the bedrooms.
For the owners, a big concern before moving into their new home was that they would be overwhelmed when operating its technology. To ensure a smooth experience, they wanted simple control over their home’s systems via an easy-to-use iPad interface, while also having the option of voice control and the ability to access their systems when away. To meet their needs, Bridger Automation relied on the RTI control and automation platform.
“We’ve used control solutions from other manufacturers on previous installations, and none has been able to match RTI’s ease of use, strong control capabilities, and surprisingly low cost,” says Mark Bridger, managing director of Bridger Automation. “With RTI, you simply get more bang for your buck. And with the AD-8x being used for audio distribution in this project, choosing the company’s control platform to go with it was a no-brainer.”
Control at the Sanctuary Cove home is powered by an RTI XP-6s processor, which brings the residence’s various technologies together into one unified system using a variety of control methods. A Sonos Port music streamer and Hayward OmniLogic pool pump and heating control system are integrated with the RTI platform via two-way IP drivers, while two-way RS-232 drivers allow for integration with the C-Bus lighting, louvres, fan, and shading systems; RTI AD-8x audio distribution system; and BluStream HDMI matrix. IR control is used for the Foxtel set-top box, Apple TV, and Vodafone TV.
The homeowners interact with their technology using the RTiPanel app with a custom-designed interface on their iPhones and dedicated iPads docked in the home’s common areas, in addition to voice commands via Amazon Alexa. When away from home, they have secure remote access to their systems via a VPN set up by Bridger Automation.
“With RTI, it was simple to integrate all aspects of this high-tech home into one control system,” adds Bridger. “The homeowners love the sleek look of the interface and how simple it is to control the technology in their home. When they tell the system to do something, it just does it — quickly and reliably. That is true luxury.”
