The bedroom cool, the bathroom warm in the morning, the home office heated only when you are working in it. We plan individual room control, ventilation and heat pump as one KNX system.
With KNX every room gets its own target temperature, its own time profiles and its own logic: set back when nobody is there, warm for getting up, cool for sleeping. Room temperature is measured by well-made switches and sensors from Gira and Jung — unobtrusive and precise, with no extra plastic thermostats on the wall.
Underfloor heating responds in hours, not minutes. That is exactly why it needs anticipatory control: setback periods that end in good time, valve actuators driven properly, hydronic balancing as the basis. We plan the control strategy to suit the floor build-up and the heat source instead of copying standard values — even warmth without overshoot.
We connect modern heat pumps into the KNX system through the manufacturer's interfaces. The house then knows the operating states and uses the connections between them: in summer the shading takes load off the cooling, in winter solar gain supports the heating. We settle the interface together with your heating contractor — then heat pump and house control in the same direction instead of against each other.
Heating, ventilation and shading are contracted separately — and work separately, sometimes against each other.
Sensors, control strategy and interfaces out of one plan — agreed with the heating contractor and the architect.
The most expensive mistake in a house is invisible: the underfloor heating is heating while the split air conditioning cools the same room — each with its own control, its own remote, its own app. We bring all the trades together into one logic, with proper hysteresis, clear priorities and an energy management system that sends surplus PV to where it does the most good.
Heating and cooling are given a single lead with a dead band: between the heating limit and the cooling limit nothing happens. Underfloor heating, split air conditioning, ventilation and the fireplace each know the state of the others — instead of cancelling one another out in the same room.
Every control loop needs switching differentials and minimum run and minimum off times. Without proper hysteresis the compressor short-cycles, the valve actuator pumps away and the heat pump wears out. We set the values per circuit — slow underfloor heating differently from a fast air conditioning unit.
Instead of thermostats sprouting everywhere: a PI controller per room, a control-value comparator for the flow release, valve protection against seizing, setback, night and holiday modes. The room knows its setpoint, the central system knows the sum of all the demands.
Solar electricity that would otherwise be exported to the grid goes into heat: the buffer store first, then hot water, then raising the screed temperature, or cooling. The energy management system sets priorities to your instructions and keeps an eye on the state of charge of battery and vehicle.
The pool is the ideal store for surplus: the heat pump or the absorber runs by preference when the roof is delivering — with a target temperature, a time window and priority over export to the grid. Surplus electricity turns into swimming temperature instead of a feed-in payment.
Many heat pumps can cool, passively or actively. We integrate that function properly — coordinated with shading, ventilation and split air conditioning, so that in summer the cheapest source of cooling works first and the air conditioning only adds to it.
With surface cooling the dew point decides: humidity and temperature sensors monitor every cooled area, the flow temperature is adjusted or the circuit is blocked before condensation forms. That keeps screed cooling safe — even with the terrace door open in August.
Mechanical ventilation to demand instead of to a fan setting: CO₂ readings lead the air volumes, humidity sensors in bathroom and kitchen switch on purge ventilation, bypass and pre-heating step in in a coordinated way. Fresh air, without throwing the heat out of the window.
The air conditioning belongs in the system, not on the sideboard: we integrate the indoor units through gateways — setpoint, operating mode, fan speed and interlocks all run through the same controls as everything else. The remote stays a fallback, not everyday practice.
Window and terrace door contacts block the control, the fireplace reports that it is in use to the ventilation, the towel rail and the additional bathroom heating run on their own time profiles. Special cases are the normal case — they only have to be thought through properly once.
Consumption, flow temperatures, room readings and run times all go into the visualisation. You see what your house is doing instead of guessing at it — and during fine-tuning we can see straight away which circuit is out of step.
A house with five self-contained controllers uses more and feels worse than one with a single considered logic — and that is exactly what we plan and program.
From the sensors to the interface: the building blocks we plan, agree and document.
Temperature measured through switches and sensors from Gira and Jung — precise, with no extra thermostats on the wall.
Time profiles, setback periods and control behaviour to suit the floor build-up and the heat source — documented and open to later adjustment.
Proper control of the underfloor heating room by room — with hydronic balancing as the basis.
Connected through the manufacturer's interfaces, agreed with the heating contractor early — ideally before the order is placed.
CO2 and humidity sensors lead the mechanical ventilation on demand: fresh air at night, a dry bathroom after a shower.
Adjust setpoints while you are away — the control keeps running locally, even if the internet goes down.
We start with what is already fixed: heat generator, underfloor heating, ventilation. Sensors, actuators and control logic are built on that — not the other way round. That way the technology stays subordinate to the concept.
We agree the heat pump connection, the ventilation integration and the responsibilities with the heating contractor and the architect early — before the plant is ordered and options are given away.
The electrical installation is carried out by our sister company elektrofabrik if you wish. We parameterise the control, the time profiles and the logic, define how it works together with shading and ventilation, and document all of it so it can be followed later.
Indoor climate is fine work: after commissioning we readjust setback times, setpoints and control behaviour with the house lived in — until every room feels the way it should.
A listed building, brought to smart home over a wireless system — proof that age and existing fabric rule nothing out.
Around 645 PV modules in 23 strings with a tenant electricity supply, carried out by our sister company elektrofabrik — energy expertise from within our own group.
We took over an existing KNX installation in a private house in Oberhausen and made it maintainable again — documented instead of grown over the years.
smartfabrik is a smart home planning practice based in Düsseldorf (Reisholzer Werftstr. 31A). We plan for private clients and companies in Cologne, Düsseldorf and across North Rhine-Westphalia — and, where wanted, nationwide and internationally. A selection of the places we have already planned and delivered in:
Comfort you notice and less wasted energy: rooms are heated only as much as you use them. The bedroom stays cool, the bathroom is warm in the morning, the guest room runs on setback until visitors arrive. How large the saving turns out to be depends on the building and how it is used — the gain in comfort is clear in every case.
In most cases, yes. Many manufacturers offer interfaces or gateways to building automation; which data points can be used differs from model to model. We check that for your specific unit and agree the connection with the heating contractor — ideally before the plant is ordered.
There most of all. Because underfloor heating responds slowly, badly planned setback times are the most common mistake — too cold in the morning, too warm at midday. Anticipatory KNX control starts in good time, works with moderate setbacks and prevents overshoot. Short-winded up and down is the wrong approach with surface heating; considered profiles are the right one.
Yes. Through the visualisation you can see room temperatures and adjust setpoints while you are away — if you come back from holiday earlier, for instance. The control itself runs locally in the KNX system, though: if the internet goes down, your house carries on heating unchanged. The app is a convenience, not a requirement.
Yes, with the right planning. In a full refurbishment we plan as we would for a new build. Where major work is not an option we use bus-capable valve actuators, wireless sensors or a combination — depending on the heating system and the cable routes. A 400-year-old manor house is among our references: an existing building rules nothing out for us.
The earlier the interfaces are settled, the more your system can do later — arrange an initial conversation, with no obligation.
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