I am re-examining the market for lighting control systems. I've installed over $2m in product from Lutron in the past but haven't installed any of their QS system. Is their QS system actually reliable or is there something better for a medium sized job (30 KP's and 100 loads).
I don't see great innovation from any company out there. It seems like there is very much possible with today's technology, but not being utilized.
When will we see an IP addressable device that works and makes sen$e?

QS is every bit as good as all previous generations of Homeworks.

It has been around for awhile now, have you not done much lighting recently?
Seems odd if your a Lutron dealer and you haven't worked with QS by now.

As for other things out there, there have always been lower cost systems and there still are. But, Lutron still is at the top of the heap.

You can always look at Crestron, Vantage, Savant or go into the UPB, zigbee, zeewave products out there, but if your a Lutron dealer and your clients are not price sensitive, why would you?

I think we will see some cool things coming, but there will also be a lot of firmware / software updates for these new things too. Making them not really ready for our clients yet.

Thanks for the response. We were hit hard by the recession and embezzlement. We didn't sell enough Lutron for a couple of years and now that we have recovered, we are looking whether to become dealers again or pursue another brand. According to their website, Lutron added 10 more dealers in our area, several trunk slammers. Makes me think they have changed their requirements.

There are plenty of headaches in this business and Lutron is not one of them.

As for other dealers most are probably Electricians who did a RA2 blast training and have no idea how to turn a laptop on, much less design a lighting control system.

I suspect lighting innovation won't occur until someone figures out a way to install 12V LED systems where you don't see a hundred little blast points of light, and that's dimmable down to one or two percent. 120V LED retrofits are ridiculous, like the buggy whip holder that Stan Freberg talked about on the Ford Model T: it's something left over from a previous technology.



(Stan Freberg, A History of America)

It's not IP addressable, but look at Lutron EcoSystem technology.  This works with Homeworks QS and provides individually addressible LED fixtures.

This maybe a little off topic, but still pertains to Lutron or other companies.

Is there a device, now or announced for a future date, that will allow a user to have an app on their phone. In which it will allow them to turn off the lights a few minutes after they leave the house. And then have the lights turn back on when they are a mile away from the house. It doesn't necessary have to be an app on the phone, but a device that is integrated into the car's power. So that the user doesn't have to do anything except for set up.

KOT

Well, you can trigger it by setting your alarm that is tied into a control system. And you can trigger the lights to go on by a garage door opener and a contact closure. No need for any app.

I think Alarm.com has some sort of Geofencing that is either available or they're working on, and they now integrate with Lutron (never done it myself), and they have some "rules" logic you can enter, so I'd think that could be a possible way to do it.

What Jim sez - GeoFencing is coming

Still? I didn't know it was ever the best.

Trolling? There's a reason why nearly all the other major lighting control players pay patent licensing royalties to Lutron. I've worked on Original Homeworks systems that have run non-stop without issue for nearly 20 years. Curious as to your opinion.

That doesn't make them the best. It just makes them the first at certain things. Between their business practices, there efforts to not warranty items, and several other issues, I don't see how they could be ranked as the best.

You have obviously run into uncommon issues that many others haven't.

I have never had problems with them replacing items under warranty.

Yes they have a depreciated value after a time with regards to how much they will replace before some replacement costs get added to the bill, but it still seems pretty fair/good compared to what we are used to in the consumer electronics business.

As for business practices, never had issues up here. I have read the occasional story from your side of the border and yes, I guess depending on where you are and who your rep might have been, there have been some odd ideas on how to do business.
But... overall as a product to use and support in our projects, Lutron lighting and shading have given us the least (barely any) issues with regards to installation, set up and service. Making it the most reliable part of any of our projects. Considering it gets used more than anything else we install, that's a good thing.

Are you suggesting that patent litigation is a measure of how great a company is? Because that is what I felt the first line of your post implied.

Lutron makes good product but they are a bunch of D Tards, IMO.