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The future hits home By Susan Mitchell
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Author: x
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Publishing date: 24.03.2004 15:12
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The Sunday Business Post
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By Susan Mitchell
We've seen it in the movies - iris-scanning identity verification devices, microwave ovens that activate with a voice command, and a bewildering array of other high-tech gizmos and gadgets to bring homeowners into the 21st century.
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Billy Phelan
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The concept of the digital home first emerged in 1999, but five years on, builders and developers have still not embraced much of the readily available technology, even in luxury developments. However, that is set to change with the development of an innovative new scheme in Kilkenny.
Situated off the Castlecomer Road, Ardilea is a mixed development of apartments, townhouses and houses. It will be designed to an exceptional standard, with the internal specification in particular heralding the dawn of the `Microsoft Home' in Ireland.
Should the concept prove a success in Kilkenny, developers William Phelan and Son and Oliver Quinn plan to replicate it at other locations around Ireland.
Ardilea is situated behind a gated entrance just off the Castlecomer Road and beside Kilkenny College. The 6.75 acre site will be bordered by the natural wildlife haven, Newpark Fen. While most developers designate 10 per cent of a site to open space, 28 per cent of the site at Ardilea is to be setaside for this purpose.
The concept of a digital home first emerged in 1999, when Microsoft chairman and chief executive Bill Gates outlined plans to help consumers create the home of the future. Gates described how computers would work with wireless networks and intelligent devices and appliances to allow people to live the digital lifestyle at home and work.
"The dawn of the new century will see the birth of the 'PC-Plus' era, enabling millions of Americans to live the digital lifestyle at home with their families as well as at work,"Gates said. "The future has never been closer."
Through an ongoing exhibit - a fully-functioning house with futuristic gadgets at Redmond, Washington - Microsoft illustrates how technology could change your daily life.
A tour of the Microsoft home of the future starts at the front door with a doorbell that allows a visitor to leave a voice message which is then forwarded to the appropriate voice-mail or e-mail accounts of a variety of clients.
There is no keyhole and identity verification is done by either a smartcard slot or an iris scanner. Identity authenticated, the door opens.
While the developers of Ardilea are unlikely to rival anything produced by Microsoft, their close attention to detail and high-tech features are a step in the right direction for the Irish residential property market.
William Phelan believes that Irish building is dull and uninventive. "Builders here have become very lazy. Building is stuck in the 1970s and hasn't really moved on since then. Cheap materials are regularly used. I'm amazed that builders still list smoke alarms as a special feature, for example - they cost about €30 to wire up. It's a joke," said Phelan.
Ardilea will consist of 19 four and f ive-bedroom houses, seven townhouses and three blocks of low-rise apartments. Apartments will range between 65 and 87 square metres in size. Townhouses will measure between 49 and 111 square metres and houses will be between 160 and a sizeable 331 square metres.
All will contain a Techsmart alarm, a Home Control System and a Home Network System. They will also be pre-wired for a Digital CCTV System and a Russound Four-Room Source sound system.
Cutting edge technology available with the Home Control System includes a number of actions that can be carried out by pressing one button and sending a command text to the house. The heating system, for example, can be controlled by sending a text message from your mobile phone.
Buyers will also be able to turn on external, ground floor and first floor lights all at once, turn on external lights and ground floor heating simultaneously, or turn off lights and set the alarm with the simple press of a key on their mobile phone.
The control menu on buyer's phones will also enable them to pre-set times that the lights should come on or off, for example.
The Techsmart security alarm can be turned on and off via a mobile phone. The alarm will contain high-tech motion sensors in key locations and magnet sensors on doors and windows that provide additional protection and allow the perimeter of the house to be alarmed.
"The system will automatically send a text message to the owner if the alarm is triggered," said Phelan. "That message can be sent to as many as ten numbers and will also identify which device triggered the alarm."
The digital CCTV system could come in handy on such occasions. The picture and sound system can be ac-cessed via the internet while homeowners are out, or viewed from other parts of the house or from the PC.
"This will be really useful for people with children. They will be able to use it as a childminding service and will be able to hear any communication between children and their childminder," said Phelan.
The Home Network System will enable people who work from home the flexibility to work anywhere in the house. This will be done through the placement of a number of different network points around the house that will allow users to access the internet and printers.
All homes at Ardilea have also been pre-wired for a Russound Four-Room Source sound system. The system will be installed in four rooms and will allow for up to four sources, such as radio, CD, MP3 or a cassette player to play in the selected rooms. Different sources can be used in different rooms at the same time.
According to Phelan, a battery back-up supports the system in the event of a fault. A maintenance company will also be available continuously.
While the technology at Ardilea is likely to generate much interest, the developers have also paid great attention to the interior and building materials used.
All units have a brick and composite plaster exterior.
"We are using a composite plaster," said Phelan. "It contains no cement and has a white marble chip. It won't crack and will retain its colour for its lifetime. Builders usually use ordinary sand and cement, but it doesn't hold its colour.
You can imagine that if you were in an estate - and trying to sell your house - and there was one person not looking after his house, you would get the belt." Phelan is installing "high quality" marble bathroom and kitchen pods from Italy. "All homes will also have underfloor heating, a pressurised water system and above average ceiling heights.There will be oak internal doors," he said.
Buyers can choose from a contemporary or classic fitout and Ardilea's interior design consultant will be available to assist buyers i n making paint colour choices.
Additional features at Ardilea include a creche facility, designated car parking and visitor's car parking areas, as well as landscaped gardens with picnic areas, two play areas and gravel pathways.
At present, Ardilea is nothing more than a greenfield site. In order to give prospective buyers a real sense of the development, Phelan approached Windmill Lane Corporate Communications to produce a promotional DVD. This is believed to be the first time that an Irish developer has used such a sophisticated promotional tool, at such an early stage, in the residential market.
Windmill Lane designed and produced a series of video segments - some using live action, others a mixture of live action and computer graphics - to allow prospective buyers to get a virtual tour of the development.
Building at Ardilea is due to start in early April. Prices range from €240,000 for the two-bedroom apartments to €850,000 for the five-bedroom houses.
Phelan said that while he expects the innovative venture to appeal to investors, he expects most of the interest to come from local buyers.
"There is literally nothing available at the top of the market in Kilkenny at the moment, but there is a lot of money around," he said.
The developers recently held a private pre-launch viewing at which 15 units sold. A pre-launch is also due to be held at the end of April.
Further details are available online at www.ardilea.ie
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