New Construction Smart Home Technology for Luxury Builds

Bring in the Jewell family while your plans are still on paper. For five decades, we’ve been working with builders and contractors to coordinate luxury home technology planning, from Atherton and Hillsborough down to Carmel.

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Three generations of the Jewell family · Lutron Diamond Certified dealer

Why Bring Your Technology Partner In Early

You already know how a closing date slips when unexpected issues arise. One late decision can hold up insulation, pushing back every step that comes after it. This often happens when low-voltage wiring is added after rough-in, requiring you to halt drywall and re-open any closed walls.

When we're part of the conversation during design, those decisions get settled before anyone frames a wall.

	Brought In Early	Brought In After Framing
When wire locations get settled	During design, with every trade aware	On site, often after walls are framed
Rework and opened walls	Rare, because runs are planned	Common when a keypad or speaker moves
Change orders	Caught on paper, while they're inexpensive	Priced and scheduled mid-build
Schedule	Rough-in lands with electrical, so insulation stays on time	Insulation and drywall wait on low voltage
Clean sightlines and millwork	Keypads and speakers planned around cabinetry and trim	Devices fit into whatever space is left
Homeowner frustration	Handled by us, from planning through service	Lands on your phone

A change on paper takes minutes. A change after drywall takes a crew. Read more about how early technology planning builds better luxury homes.

How We Work With Your Build, Phase by Phase

You shouldn't have to guess when we'll show up or what we need from you. Here's what each stage looks like on a typical build.

1. Plans Review

What happens: We sit down with your project manager and go through the architectural and electrical plans, along with the lighting plan. We look for conflicts with framing and mechanical runs, then recommend where the technology should go. You and your client make the final calls.

What you get: A written low-voltage scope, so every trade knows what's coming before work starts.

2. Rough-In and Pre-Wire

What happens: We schedule our low-voltage pre-wire for new construction alongside your electrician, before insulation goes in.

What you get: Wire in the walls where it belongs, with no hold on insulation.

3. Trim-Out

What happens: Keypads, speakers, shades, and other devices go in after paint and finishes.

What you get: A crew that works around your finish trades instead of getting in their way.

4. Programming

What happens: We set up lighting scenes, shade schedules, audio zones, and the home network around how your clients plan to live in the house.

What you get: A home that works the way your clients expect on move-in day.

5. Handoff and Training

What happens: We walk the homeowners through their system and leave clear instructions on who to call.

What you get: Technology questions that come to us and stay off your phone.

What lighting control pre-wire covers

Pre-wire means running cable and setting backing during rough-in for devices that get installed later. On a typical build, that includes:

Keypad and dimming panel locations, coordinated with your electrician
Power and blocking for hardwired shade pockets
An equipment rack location with power and ventilation
Backing for speakers and wall-mounted displays
Network runs, including between the main house and a guest house, pool house, or detached garage

What We Plan In

A luxury build can carry a lot of technology. We plan all of it from the same set of drawings, so you have one point of contact instead of a handful of subs.

Open kitchen split between warm and cool Ketra tunable white lighting in a luxury home

Lighting Control and Lighting Design

We design Lutron RadioRA 3 whole-home lighting control, with refined Sunnata keypads on the walls. Ketra tunable lighting shifts color temperature through the day, matching your client’s routines and bringing out all the subtle hues of their artwork. We coordinate design decisions and lighting control pre-wire with your architect and interior designer, so the finished home is beautifully illuminated. Explore Lutron lighting design.

Motorized Shades

Hardwired Lutron shades look best when we incorporate framing pockets and power runs before drywall, so there’s no visible wires or fascias. We plan them into the build so the shades tuck out of sight when they're up. See our motorized shades.

Dedicated home theater with a large screen, star ceiling and tiered leather seating

Home Theater and Media Rooms

A theater sounds best when acoustics are considered before the walls are set in place. We plan the room layout with you and pre-wire for easy AV installation. Learn more about home theater.

Whole-Home Audio

We settle speaker locations during the design phase, so line up with the ceiling layout and land where they will sound best. Our pre-wire process is future-ready, so clients can add more speakers down the line without having to run more cables.

Ceiling-mounted wireless access point providing whole-home Wi-Fi coverage

Networking

Larger homes need Wi-Fi that reaches the far rooms and the outdoor living areas. In Portola Valley and Los Altos Hills, many properties also include a guest house or pool house, and the runs between buildings need planning before trenching and hardscape. We plan the rack and network infrastructure from day one.

Security

We plan Verkada cameras and access control into rough-in, so cameras cover the home’s vulnerable areas and the wiring stays hidden.

Service After the Sale

Once your clients move in, their technology questions come to us. A keypad scene that needs adjusting won't land on your punch list. The same family that planned the system comes back for the service call. When your clients are ready for more, like a theater or extra shading down the road, we add to the infrastructure already in place. Nobody has to start over.

What you get is a client who's still happy long after closing, and who remembers who built the house when a friend asks for a referral. For the longer version, read how the right technology partner keeps your custom build moving.

Three Generations of the Jewell Family

The Jewell name has been on custom home technology for three generations, and each one has built the company further. We're a certified Lutron Diamond dealer, bringing this industry-leading brand to clients across California.

We work across the Peninsula and South Bay, from Atherton and Hillsborough to Portola Valley and Los Altos Hills. Our builds also run down the California coast to Carmel and Pebble Beach, where we provide outdoor equipment to hold up in salt air. See how we work as a home technology integrator for builders.

Frequently Asked Questions

Call (800) 772-2292

When should a builder bring a technology integrator into a new construction project?

During design, before rough-in dates are set. That's when keypad locations and shade pockets can still be settled on paper, and changes are inexpensive.

What plans do you need to start a low-voltage scope?

Send us the architectural and electrical plans, the reflected ceiling plan and the lighting plan, plus interior elevations if you have them.

How do you work with the architect and lighting designer on a Lutron lighting control project?

We coordinate with them and support their design. The lighting designer chooses the fixtures and where they go, and the architect sets the look of each space. We handle the control side, from keypad locations to the lighting scenes we program.

How do you schedule low voltage rough-in around the electrician and other trades?

We schedule it alongside electrical, before insulation. If the schedule shifts, we adjust with your project manager so low voltage doesn't hold up the next trade.

What does lighting control pre-wire involve on a new build?

Lighting control pre-wire is the wiring and prep done during rough-in for a lighting system that gets installed later. It usually covers:

Keypad locations
Dimming panel locations
Power for motorized shades
Coordination with your electrician

Do you work on new construction in Atherton, Hillsborough and Portola Valley?

Yes. We work on luxury builds across the Peninsula, including Atherton, Hillsborough, Portola Valley and Los Altos Hills, and south to Carmel and Pebble Beach.

Talk Through Your Next Build

Have a job coming up, or one already underway? Call to talk it through, or send your plans for an early review. There's no cost to start the conversation for new construction smart home technology.

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