Vera Living utilises KNX to improve the lives of their tenants

Vera Living is a Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) provider that aims to empower their tenants to achieve a high level of independence, largely made possible through housing that is fit for purpose.  

They provide a range of accommodation options to support the specific living needs of each tenant. These homes incorporate design elements that support a range of physical and cognitive abilities, such as specialised lighting design that responds to sensory stimulus to automate the control of blinds/curtains, lights, doors and windows. Their homes can also incorporate design elements that cater to specific physical and mobility support needs, such as wide doorways for wheelchair access or modified bathrooms and kitchens with height-adjustable benchtops.

“The goal for our homes is to provide increased independence, safety and comfort for our tenants. The assistive technology we use in the homes is critical in helping us achieve these goals.”  

In 2021, Vera Living completed the construction of seven properties in Coomera on the Gold Coast and Pallara, Brisbane. The assistive technology used in these homes is made up of two parts: the first being the actual devices (e.g., automatic doors, motorised blinds, etc.) and the second, arguably more important part is the system used to control these devices.

Key to the success of each building is choosing the most appropriate technology for the building to meet the tenants’ needs. Vera Living worked with Stratus Integrated Systems to design and implement a control system that enables the assistive technology devices to be used in a manner that best suits the individual needs of each tenant, for example:

• Customisable app on a personal device
• Voice control
• Accessibility features on an iPad
• Smart switches on the walls

At the core of these SDA homes is a control system called KNX. KNX is an open standard system that was developed to allow products from various manufacturers to work seamlessly together to control all aspects of a building, such as lighting, heating, cooling and ventilation, blinds/shutters, security and door communication systems, audio and video, and metering. KNX is proven to provide a future-proof system that can live up to customers' expectations irrespective of future market changes.

KNX works as a hub in each of these SDA houses linking all the different assistive technology devices. This could be as simple as switching on a light from a smart wall switch to using voice control to open and close blinds, or sending a live video link to a personal device when the front doorbell is rung with an option to open the front door.

The technologies used in these homes are integrated across the KNX system and include products from brands such as Theben, ABB, Hafele, TosiBox and CoolAutomation.

Stratus utilises the technical expertise of the Ivory Egg Australia team to advise on the best and latest product selection, while also ensuring the products selected are future proofed.  Ivory Egg is a technical distributor of the world’s best building technologies, supplying and educating trade installers on the best ways to create intelligent buildings for their clients’ needs.   

“I’m thrilled to see that building intelligence is being incorporated into homes for people living with disability. These smart technologies make such a difference to the way people can live their lives, and when it is planned from the outset of a building project, like we do with Vera Living, we can make amazing things happen – automatically.” David Tattersall, General Manager, Stratus Integrated Systems

Click here to see a 3D walkthrough of one of these properties
For more information about these SDA homes, visit: www.veraliving.com.au
For more information about the technology in these homes, visit: www.stratus.com.au