It all begins with a twinkle in your eye. You have a vague idea of how you want it to be. It’s our job to ask the right questions, and more importantly, to really listen to your answers.

Our in-house architect contacts your architect and obtains up-to-date backgrounds and drawings. These are reviewed in preparation for an initial meeting with the client. This review is the first step toward project coordination; SIS will ensure throughout the development phase that our design matches up with the overall plans of the building. Our development team meets with the owner, the developer, the architect, the general contractor, the electrician, the interior designer, and even the residents if you want us to, so that all bases are covered. We will ask you things like:

• Which solutions go hand in hand with your type of building? Which ones might attract new residents or keep existing ones a bit happier than their neighbors across the street? Are you interested in becoming a green building?
• Are there any specific historical restrictions that may require unique design initiatives?
• What are your basic requirements and what’s on your wish list? Are you aware of the most recent advances in vertical technology, such as integrated solutions?

Audio / Visual

• Is sound reinforcement (distributed audio) required in all outdoor areas? What about indoor spaces?
• What common areas require lighting control? What about videoconferencing?
• Should iPads be used to operate the system in addition to permanent in-wall devices?
• Is there a need to accommodate outdoor live performances or events?

Security

• Will there be revenue-generating parking, and if so has a system been chosen?
• Are there any corporate mandates regarding manufacturers or capabilities pertaining to access control, hotel door locking systems, CCTV, low voltage, or currency exchange locations?
• Do you require facial recognition?
• What are your needs regarding elevator control, POS integration and Smart Cards?

Networking

• Do your architectural plans include a main computer room and IDF closets?
• Does your building riser meet all of your future IT needs?
• Do you need a distributed antenna system (DAS) to make your smart phones work properly and have five bars of signal strength?

This is when our development team starts to get excited, and the creative energy begins to sizzle, and we start asking ourselves how we can elevate the project to even higher standards at the best possible value, and before you know it your vision takes on a distinctive shape in everyone’s imagination.

But that’s just the beginning.