Feedback from The ET Acetech 2015 Bangalore

If you have been on Bangalore roads in the last couple of weeks you would not have missed the huge posters of Shahrukh Khan promoting ACE Tech 2015, in fact the newspapers have been ringing with full page ads of the exhibition as well. One wonders what has Sharukh got to do with the Construction and Interiors industry :-P, perhaps this came about via his wife who is a known Interior designer herself. A Google look up on “Gauri Khan Interior Design” throws up a 2012 Bloomberg video that says “Gauri Khan turns interior designer”… huh – how does one “turn into” an Interior Designer?? I got to go and watch that video now :-).

Enough pun on the Khan Khandaan for now, back to Acetech. It has been among the largest exhibitions in the Construction and Interior design space, professionally organized and at one of the better venues (BIEC) in Bangalore. This year they had invited almost the entire Architect & Interior Designer fraternity in Bangalore to stand jury for their awards to honour the best exhibitors at the event. As “eminent jury” yours truly got deep-er insight into the products/ concepts on display with detailed presentations from the exhibitors.

Apart from the regular stuff like tiles, countertops, hardware on display a few themes stood out this year and possibly are representative of how the market and demand around interiors is shaping up for the future

1. LED Lighting is now standard fitment: With LED’s now available in all shapes and designs with a drastic drop in prices they offer a competitive alternative to regular lighting. A number of vendors also had fuzed LED lighting with unique designs in Glass to create a stunning effect. I have mentioned this earlier – lighting if used tastefully can drastically alter the feel of a home be it that of positive energy or relaxing comfort. LED lighting along with its rendition in glass take that effect to the next level

2. Home Automation: While we are still some time away from the refrigerator ordering grocery replenishes on its own, home automation has already come a long way from offering remote controlled switches, curtains, blinds etc. to controlling devices via your smart phone or based on a set time schedule – imagine your sprinkler or water pump automatically switching on at the designated hour, controlling the lighting in your home from a remote location, or your home security system setting off the intrusion alarm on your cellphone and all the while being able to monitor your overall energy consumption via the app on your tablet.
With more than just a couple of vendors offering solutions along the lines above, and mind you – these are not imported, some are in fact being manufactured in our very own Bengalooru, it is evident that Home automation is here to stay. So get ready to install that smart phone controlled cuckoo bell for your home during your next renovation ( …heee)

3. Ready-made partitions and wall murals: Home makers and designers usually have had to manufacture those partitions and panels for your home to make it stand out, no more…
Vendors now offer readymade but built to size partitions for your home. These can also be customized for your specific wants and desires and are available in different material and finishes – from brass, steel or wood.
Additionally a number of vendors are nowadays importing extremely pleasing wall murals from across the world and making these available at your doorstep. With the demand growing for these our desi manufacturers have also picked up steam to make these in country. Check out some of the pics below

4. Skylights: Last but not the very least, with Villa living in vogue nowadays customers are looking for skylights for that classy look to their home and to help bring down energy costs. For lack of better options a number of my own customers have had to compromise with installing fabricated and flimsy skylights for their home during the construction phase. While this may still not be run of the mill, there was at least one vendor that had ready-made skylights (both fixed and retractable) on display at the exhibition. With prices starting from 3000 per square feet these still may not be for the mass market but it is good to know that the option exists.

Signing off for now, as always would welcome your feedback and inputs

Nandita

Ohhh….how can we sign off without due regards to the King…so here goes

** Image attribution – ABEC Events/ ACE Tech