Custom integrator Electronic Living had just EIGHT days to fit a COMPLETE AV SOLUTION into Brisbane’s flagship Ferrari showroom while avoiding $8 million worth of sports cars.

Taking on a commercial installation around the regular day-to-day business of a client can complicate even the simplest of jobs. In many instances, extra care is required to preserve the integrity of a business with additional attention needed for ordinarily trivial matters such as the level of noise and cleanliness of customer-occupied areas.

So when installer Electronic Living was commissioned to fit a substantial AV system around millions of dollars worth of sports cars in Ferrari’s EuroMarque showroom in Brisbane, you can be sure it had to assume the highest level of caution and professionalism while regular business was taking place.

The team had just eight days to install a solution in the showroom. The scope was to include a simple and practical solution with two Crestron touch screens – one for the boardroom and the other for the showroom, enabling both areas to be controlled as a shared entity or independent zones.

Electronic Living managing director Damian Cavanagh explains that the company was not approached by Ferrari – instead it was a casual visit to the showroom by Damian that inspired him to pitch a proposal directly to the company.

“I was browsing in the showroom (not buying – just dreaming!) and I noticed a distinct lack of ambience. I walked into a huge, sparse showroom with beautiful cars and people sitting at desks and felt intimidated. I suggested that the company needed AV solution to provide a level of subliminal comfort for potential buyers. I originally approached the sales manager who then introduced me to the director and owner of the business.

“Based on our initial conversations I created a brief explaining the potential benefits for the showroom and the company as a whole. We then had a meeting to discuss my ideas and allow further input on initial concepts.”

Damian says that a major reason for choosing a Crestron system was not just because of its high quality and reputation, but because there needed to be clear synergy between product selection and the prestigious Ferrari brand.

“We discussed the history and status behind Ferrari and determined that anything less than the best just wouldn’t suffice. Ferrari is top of the food chain when it comes to prestige sport vehicles so we thought we would go to the top end of control systems – that is why we went with Crestron.

“Also, using a Crestron system meant we were able to customise each touch screen to include Ferrari emblems and carbon fibre backgrounds and we could program certain buttons to reproduce engine noises and roars. All this helped tie everything together nicely.”

A Crestron TPSI6X touch panel was installed in both rooms as well as a Crestron Adagio AMS for surround sound in the boardroom and distributed audio in the showroom, with the integrated control processor automating all equipment.

The touch panels are regularly used by staff to browse music content from the Crestron CENI-iSERVER audio server and CEN-iDOCV iPod dock. For video, a Blu-ray player, Apple TV and TiVo are used. To project this content, the showroom features a Screen Technics 150″ Electricinema 2:35:1 anamorphic motorised projection screen that displays demonstration footage of the vehicles in action and is used for VIP events and private screenings of Formula 1 Grand Prix races.

To further provide the synergy that both companies desired, a Meridian F80 music/DVD system was incorporated to signify Ferrari’s recent collaboration with Meridian.

“We were looking for some sort of brand association with everything that we were providing,” Damian says.

“The F80 music system was a Meridian and Ferrari co-founded product so we positioned this on the vehicle calibration table, so when customers are configuring their new vehicle with a sales person they are presented with a sound system that has a Ferrari logo on it.”

It seems that the choice of system was a natural decision; however the installation itself was no easy feat. The limited timeframe was understandably a major hurdle, but having to fit out the showroom while working around regular business activity and expensive cars made the project even more complex.

“It was very challenging as we had to be mindful of the kind of product that was being sold at all times and the discerning clientele that was continually present while we were working. We tried to create minimal noise and make sure that we cleaned everything up as we went,” Damian says.

“My team was working among 8 million dollars worth of prestige vehicles while carrying ladders and tools and cutting holes in ceilings. We had absolutely no margin for error.

“This also caused us to be constantly aware of available time as we didn’t want to drag the project out for weeks inconveniencing Ferrari and its customers. In addition to normal trading hours the install team worked well into the night to ensure the project was handed over in a timely manner.”

Damian says that another major challenge came from the nature of installing a retrofit project. The company would normally retrofit in stages of pre-wire, trim, programming and calibration, but due to the limited time frame, all facets of the project were merged into one. Additionally, the team was faced with the common issue of providing an adequate cabling infrastructure to facilitate the equipment. This required a significant increase in both labour and materials.

“The vast majority of our work these days tends to be centred around new construction so we usually have the benefit of entering in stages – laying the cable at frame stage and then doing the fit off in due course around other tradespeople,” says Damian.

“As this was an existing structure we had to design a product that fitted around the current aesthetics of the building and then we had to place equipment where we would be able to get to cabling. Because of this significant planning was conducted before our team commenced onsite.”

The company received a glowing testimonial from Ferrari and Damian suggests that this was supported by the timing for his initial cold call.

“About two months after my initial proposal several Ferrari executives from Italy visited the showroom for the Australian launch of a new vehicle. Their feedback was great, they said that they had not seen a showroom anywhere in the world that used such customised technology and they even took several photos to report back to Ferrari headquarters in Italy.”