Home Automation


growing one and offers the potential for the electrical contracting and wholesaling industry to work towards designing, supplying and installing products which will facilitate the continued independence of the growing aged population.


The appeal of smart home technology in


assisted living is simple: elderly citizens, people with disabilities and other persons who are less able to live alone can be empowered by being given the tools to help them continue to live independently and safely. Rather than crossing a dark room to turn on a switch for example, automated technology can be set up to trigger the coming on of lights once there is motion detected in the space. A wireless door station allows a person to see who is at the door via a downloaded app, and let the visitor in if required, thus negating the need for an unnecessary and potentially perilous journey to the front door. If a person suffers from Alzheimer’s or dementia, alerts can even be sent to a phone if a window is left open overnight. In this way, people are given back the ability to do simple tasks that may have become unmanageable before. Smart home technology is even able to provide 24-hour non-invasive home monitoring, allowing the families of those needing assistance to be alerted if there is something amiss.


Introducing innovations There is no shortage of products and services that can support independent and healthy living in old age. It is predicted that over 130 million smart homes devices were shipped in 2017, and by 2020 the average home will have more than 500 connected devices. Yet uptake of such technology is often slower to materialise due to the actual or perceived costs. The ability to easily adapt and update a home is being made more achievable due to the wireless control and automation products available. These enable the upgrade of an electrical installation to provide added security, energy saving, comfort and control for those in need of assisted living, without the need for intrusive and unwanted disturbance.


Part M Solutions It isn’t just high-tech solutions that are working their way through and providing much needed help for this sector. As a manufacturer, we are looking at ways to improve some of the simplest products that have been around for years. Switches which feature wide rockers and sockets that have wider gaps between rockers, as well as outboard rockers, are all designed to facilitate the use of products for those with impaired vision. The Approved Document M of the Building Regulations was first published to help those with a disability to access and use buildings and the facilities within them and is now an essential element of virtually every new building project. The latest document reflects to a much greater extent the notion that people’s abilities are not all the same and they signal a move away from the narrow aim of making buildings accessible to, and usable by, disabled people towards an aim to make buildings accessible to, and usable


by, everyone - including people with disabilities, the elderly, hard of hearing and visually impaired. At Scolmore we are continually assessing our


offer and making improvements where we can. Our Click Mode wiring accessory range incorporates a range of products designed to offer practical and stylish solutions that comply with the various elements of the Part M regulations. The range is available in an anthracite grey finish to provide an effective visual contrast against the high reflective decors used in the majority of today’s buildings. One of our most recent innovations is the


perfect example of looking at everyday activities and product uses and coming up with improvements. The Mode Locating Plug Socket - developed with the assisted living sector in mind - is designed to assist people with impaired vision or poor hand to eye coordination to more easily insert a plug into a socket. The contoured shape of the front plate guides the earth pin into position, and it is this plug guide which gives the product a greater focus on usability and means its use can be extended to situations where a socket isn’t easily accessible. With dementia identified as the one of the main causes of disability in later life and expected to double globally by 2030 and triple by 2050, the assisted living sector is one that will continue to grow. All those involved in the design, manufacture and supply of solutions will continue to have a part to play in easing the burden. With more and more consumers switched on to the idea of adapting or future- proofing their homes to enable them to continue to live there independently in the long term, there is a growing opportunity for manufacturers to develop the products and solutions that will service this demand.


scolmore.com ewnews.co.uk May 2019 electrical wholesaler | 29


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