Design, consultancy & project management

Smart home planning — independent. considered. built.

We plan your smart home the way an architect plans your house: manufacturer-independent, KNX-based and laid out for decades. From the first idea to handover — with the installation carried out by our sister company elektrofabrik.

100+projects delivered
KNX trainerswe teach the trade
100 %manufacturer-independent
3 countriesDE · ES · SA
What sets us apart

Planners. Not salespeople.

The pillar beside the architect

Your architect designs the building, we design the intelligence inside it. Room schedule, functional concept and interfaces fit into their process — coordinated with all specialist designers.

Manufacturer-independent, KNX at the core

No packages, no tie to a brand. Gira or Jung, Basalte as the ultra-premium choice, Occhio for the lighting — what we recommend is what suits your project. The backbone stays KNX, the open world standard.

We live smart home

Master electricians, technicians and engineers do the planning here — and we are certified KNX trainers, so we teach the trade ourselves. Just as important: we understand how technology and aesthetics work together. To us a switch is a component and a design element at once.

Designed and built under one roof

Our sister company elektrofabrik carries out the work — or your own contractor works to our documentation. Programming and commissioning always stay with us.

How we work

From the first question to long after handover.

Six stages, named contacts, no surprises — that is how a smart home comes about that fits your life.

1

First conversation: understanding what you want

We talk about requirements, wishes and preferences — not about technology. How is the house to be fitted out? Is an interior studio involved? How much weight do multiroom audio, lighting or security carry? Only once we have really understood your project do we talk about solutions.

No obligation · at your place, at ours or remote
2

Concept with a cost estimate

Out of the conversation comes your functional concept: every function room by room, properly documented — including a cost estimate. You see early what your project will be able to do and what it will cost, before decisions become expensive.

Concept + cost range in one document
3

Product selection: experienced, not leafed through

You handle what you are going to get. We visit showrooms together, show materials and samples at our office — or you experience the technology live at one of our reference clients. The decision is made with your hands, not in a catalogue.

Showroom · office · reference property
4

Planning & orchestration of all trades

Now comes the planning and the coordination: with the architect, the interior designer, heating, ventilation, the kitchen, multimedia. We orchestrate the electrical and smart home layer with every other trade — the interface nobody else takes responsibility for.

All trades at one table
5

Installation — as close as you need it

With our own electricians at elektrofabrik. Or, across Germany and Europe, with your own tradespeople: we coordinate remotely — or accompany the work intensively on site, including acceptances on the building site and documented progress.

Three models · you decide
6

After commissioning we are still there

Our responsibility does not end at handover. We remain your permanent point of contact — for changes, extensions and support. Your home goes on developing, and we develop it with you.

One named contact · for the long term
Delivery

Three models. Your decision.

Whether we build ourselves, coordinate from a distance or are there on your site — the quality of the design stays the same.

01

Our own electricians

Installation through our sister company elektrofabrik — one team, one responsibility, from design to handover.

Cologne · Düsseldorf · North Rhine-Westphalia
02

Remote coordination

You have your own contractor on site? We coordinate remotely: drawings, approvals, queries, programming — across Germany and Europe.

Germany & Europe
03

Intensively on site

We come to you: site supervision, acceptances, documented progress, commissioning on site — as far as Riyadh.

Worldwide on request
What we plan

One concept. Every trade.

Smart home planning here means everything thought through together — each subject with its own depth of design.

Lighting, shading & comfort

Lighting scenes, external venetian blinds by the sun, room climate — the everyday that feels right.

Security & access control

See who is coming. Into the house without a key. Sleep soundly — indoors and out.

Infrastructure, network & energy

The invisible foundation: network, PV, wallbox, control cabinet — planned in during shell construction so that everything works together later.

Design, consultancy & project management

The core: KNX design, electrical design, programming — the discipline behind it all.

Your starting point

New build or existing — both can be planned.

New build

Right from the start.

In a new build we lay the KNX backbone before the screed goes down — the cheapest minute for every decision.

  • Conduits & bus cables from shell stage
  • Distribution boards sized with spare capacity
  • Coordinated with architect & specialist designers
  • No opening up walls later
Refurbishment & existing buildings

Honestly analysed, sensibly retrofitted.

In an existing building we decide with you what is genuinely worth doing: KNX throughout, a hybrid solution or the targeted retrofitting of individual trades.

  • Analysis of what is there instead of gut feeling
  • Wireless where cable makes no sense
  • Project: a 400-year-old manor house — smart without opening a wall
Why smartfabrik

Depth of planning that works on building sites.

01

KNX trainers

We ourselves train specialists in the technology we plan for you — depth instead of half-knowledge.

02

100+ projects, three countries

From a detached house in NRW through Villa Remus on Mallorca to the 1,200 m² villa in Riyadh with 800 DALI luminaires.

03

Documentation down to terminal level

Distribution board drawings, address scheme, room data sheet — documents any specialist contractor can work from.

04

Partner to the best

Architects such as Dohmen and von Pidoll, interior studios such as Studio ASH — we are the technical link in the team.

05

We stay on after handover

The same named contact for changes, extensions and support — years later too. How an extension in an existing building works is set out there.

View all projects in detail
KNXGiraJungBasalteOcchioDALI
Where we work

Smart home planning in Cologne, Düsseldorf & NRW.

smartfabrik is a smart home planning practice based in Düsseldorf (Reisholzer Werftstr. 31A). We plan manufacturer-independent KNX smart homes for private clients and companies in Cologne, Düsseldorf and across North Rhine-Westphalia — and, when a project calls, nationwide and internationally too. A selection of the places we have already planned and delivered in:

FAQ

Frequent questions about smart home planning.

What does planning a smart home cost?

That depends on size and scope: a detached house with lighting, shading and heating is planned differently from a villa with multiroom and security systems. After the first conversation you receive a transparent quotation for the design work — clearly separated from the later installation. So before every decision you know what is coming.

When should I start with smart home planning?

As early as possible — ideally alongside the architect's design stage. Conduits, distribution board sizes and outlets then feed into the construction drawings at no extra cost. Anyone who plans only after the electrical installation pays twice: for the opening up and for the compromises. In refurbishment the same holds: concept first, tradespeople second.

Why KNX and not a wireless system?

KNX is an open standard with hundreds of manufacturers, in use for more than 30 years — wired at its core, and with KNX RF there is wireless inside the standard as well. Proprietary wireless systems are quicker to install but tied to one supplier, that supplier's cloud and its product policy. For a house meant to work for decades we plan the standard — we add wireless only where the building makes it sensible.

Does smartfabrik work with my architect?

Yes, that is how we see ourselves: the pillar beside the architect. We supply design documents that fit into their process, coordinate interfaces with specialist designers and attend site meetings. Your architect keeps overall responsibility for the building — we keep it for a smart home that has been thought through.

Does smartfabrik also handle the installation?

Yes. Installation and electrical work are handled by our sister company elektrofabrik — a well-drilled team that works to our drawings. Alternatively your own contractor carries it out on site; our documentation is set up so that any specialist contractor can work from it. Programming and commissioning stay with us in either case.

The first step

Tell us about your project.

In a first conversation we listen, think it through with you and say honestly what is worth doing — without obligation.

We use your details solely to deal with this enquiry. More in our privacy notice.

Prefer to call? +49 211 838 66 870