Commercial installations are a great way for custom integrators to spread their wings as the home automation sector continues to mature. It is also a chance to encounter new challenges and find new solutions.

Commercial installations can sometimes present problems that residential installers are yet to come across.

This was the case for a Mackay-based installer who needed to install one cohesive system in two buildings with separate power supplies – and make it user-friendly for 40 people.

“One of the biggest problems in this restaurant installation was that the two buildings were 10m apart, with a breeze-way separating them,” says Mackay Stereo Sales owner/manager Mike Dray.

“All of the cables had to run underground between the buildings.

“We spoke to Leaf Audio’s Australia and New Zealand sales manager, Mark Vorstenbosch, and found that the Full House interface would suit our client’s needs perfectly. After that we found it hard to look at other brands and solutions.

“We also knew we would have support from Leaf if any issues came up during and after the sale. Leaf proved to be the smart choice, as we later found out.”

Mike says the installation was progressing without a hitch, until everything was turned on.

“Thanks to the Leaf interface we were able to use all of the sources in both buildings, and everything was going well until we had all systems switched on.

“Everything worked well except for one thing, which we now know was a ground loop problem caused by having two buildings with separate power supplies.

“At the time we didn’t know what the cause was, so we contacted Mark and asked him to check all of the obvious. Once everything was given the ‘all clear’ he figured out the two buildings had an electrical sync problem.

“Leaf went out of its way to manufacture a ground loop isolator to fix the problem. This was flown to us after a two-day turnaround.

“In more than 20 years of retail and installation experience I have never had this much support from any brand. Companies like this are hard to find.”

Mark Vorstenbosch says, “At Leaf it is important to know that as a skeletal control system we need to be able to identify issues, even when our product is not at fault.”

“We will always try to find a solution, no matter what the cause, to satisfy our clients and in turn their clients, no matter if it is due to our equipment or not. It is simply not our way to wash our hands and say it’s not our problem.

“In this case, the earth loop was able to be diagnosed by the moving line of interference that was present in the video signal. The problem was that it’s easy to diagnose but difficult to isolate.

“In this instance it was magnified because one system was running more than one restaurant, in more than one building, with completely different mains power and earth feeds – and the buildings were built at different times.

“Add to this the amount of equipment, which compounds the issue. Any piece of equipment could be at fault.”

Mark says Leaf has had wide experience in the commercial sector through its Nexus range of AV distribution products, which are used extensively in the commercial field, sometimes linking up to 300 panels.

“This was a unique situation, and our systems are usually immune to such happenings, so we have not used this design since and have not marketed such a product. However, I am sure it would provide market interest.

“Our sole aim in this case was to support our Leaf dealer. With an Australian-designed, engineered and manufactured range we offer our dealers support on our knowledge-base as well as product line-up.”

Mike notes that Leaf’s products are designed for residential AV distribution, but 24 months in the restaurants has shown it to be a great commercial product as well.

“We used domestic plasmas and rear projection TVs in the first building, as the client had a tight budget, and commercial products would have cost $1,500 more.

“The installed products have been operating in very hard conditions, as the restaurant is on the harbour with a salty breeze blowing in all year round. The backs of the plasmas now feel like the side of a salty boat.”

Little did Mike know that the client would soon be back in touch.

“Just 12 months from the end of the project we were asked to expand the system to yet another building. The client had added another restaurant and wanted everything to be easier to use for the staff.

“We set out to see how the staff would want to operate the system, and see whether it was similar to the owner’s ideas. The solution became easier once we had spoken to everyone who would be using it.”