From smart technology and creative process to business insights and emerging trends, the Connected Design Podcast explores the ideas, projects, and people pushing design forward—across residential, commercial, and everything in between.
Latest Episode
Forge CEO Talks Future of CEDIA Expo and More
Forge – the new name for the combined Emerald Expo-Questex venture – is barely a few weeks old, but CEO Paul Miller is already doing the rounds to check out portions of the new and much-expanded portfolio. That included a stop at CEDIA Expo in Denver, where we had the
Latest Episode
Forge CEO Talks Future of CEDIA Expo and More
Forge – the new name for the combined Emerald Expo-Questex venture – is barely a few weeks old, but CEO Paul Miller is already doing the rounds to check out portions of the new and much-expanded portfolio. That included a stop at CEDIA Expo in Denver, where we had the chance to sit down with Miller.
More Episodes
Jeremy Rasti on Building and Evolving Crescendo, and Protecting Client Trust
For Jeremy Rasti, the path into custom integration started long before Crescendo Automation Audio Video opened its doors in Baton Rouge. Rasti talks about building Crescendo into a maturing integration firm, expanding from AV into lighting design, shades, and networking, and using peer groups and training to keep the business moving forward. The conversation also turns to a recent viral delivery incident that underscored a more durable business lesson: the client experience depends on the integrator’s willingness to protect the trust that exists between a business and its clients.
SureBright Explores How Whole-System Coverage Improves the Integrator’s Offering
Warranty programs have their own connotations that they carry. But, traditionally, they’re seen as single-product programs that are there in the event of a product failure to protect the consumer. For custom integrators, who install products in myriad rooms and across a variety of categories and price points, the idea of attaching a warranty to all those products would be impossible. That’s where SureBright’s new offering comes in.
VP of Strategic Partnerships Keith Kranepool joins the Connected Design Podcast to discuss whole-system warranty protection, recurring revenue opportunities, AI-powered proposal workflows, and why project-level coverage can help integrators strengthen client relationships.
Loewe Brings Its Luxury Electronics Vision to the North American Market
Loewe North America General Manager Jeff Costello discusses the brand’s methodical launch in the U.S. market.
Chris Oram Leads Audio Advice Expansion Into Las Vegas
Chris is in the midst of a unique journey helping the Audio Advice team open its sixth showroom, and first this far West as the brand enters Las Vegas. As the General Manager of the location, he’s got his hands full planning and executing the build-out, while also introducing the brand to a new crop of clients.
AVPro Crafts a Complete Story for Commercial and Residential Dealers
Amid construction of the InfoComm trade show floor, we sat down with Tom Devine, VP of Marketing for AVPro Global, to talk about their presence here, as well as the new narrative the brand gets to tell to commercial and residential dealers alike. From their complete package of system solutions, to their ability to support a range of applications, AVPro Global’s entire suite simplifies things for their dealers.
Design-Centric Technology is the Prevailing Philosophy for Origin Acoustics
During our recent trip out to Las Vegas, we stopped by the Origin Acoustics headquarters to catch up with their team. And they certainly had a lot to show off, including a completely re-outfitted showroom that features their full line in a variety of applications.
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More Episodes
Forge CEO Talks Future of CEDIA Expo and More
Forge – the new name for the combined Emerald Expo-Questex venture – is barely a few weeks old, but CEO Paul Miller is already doing the rounds to check out portions of the new and much-expanded portfolio. That included a stop at CEDIA Expo in Denver, where we had the chance to sit down with Miller.
Kinetics Noise Control on Making Rooms Sound as Good as They Look
Jason Ehrlich, business development manager of room acoustics in the home market at Kinetics Noise Control, sits down with us for a conversation about why acoustics deserve a much earlier place in the design process.
Phoenix Marketing Group is Bringing Technology Further Upstream in Design Discussions
Bret Jacob at Phoenix Marketing Group discusses how the company is helping bridge the gap between integrators and the design-build community. The conversation explores why integrators need to be brought into projects earlier, how builders and designers can better understand technology’s role in luxury homes, and the tools Phoenix is building to support those relationships.
Why Builder-Integrator Relationships Matter in the Modern Custom Home
Jason Bourg, owner of Bourg Builders + Design in North Central Arkansas, sits down to discuss how technology has become a natural part of his custom homebuilding process.
Bourg shares his path from medicine to construction, how his lifelong interest in building shaped his company, and why home automation has become central to the way he thinks about custom homes. The conversation also explores his relationship with Brad’s Home Entertainment, the value of bringing an integrator into the process early, and how builders can use technology to improve security, convenience, aesthetics, and the overall client experience.
Bourg’s perspective offers a practical look at what collaboration can make possible when technology is treated as part of the home from the beginning.
Mitch Klein Looks Back on CEDIA, Design-Build Progress and the Channel’s Next Chapter
Mitch Klein joins the Connected Design Podcast to reflect on more than three decades in the custom integration industry and his long-running work with CEDIA.
The Death of the Touch Panel is Highly Overstated
The touchscreen has taken a few shots lately, as design and technology conversations swing back toward buttons, switches, and voice control. But for Crestron’s Giles Sutton and Michael Short, the question is not whether one interface wins. The real story is how the right mix of touch, tactile control, voice, sensing, and automation makes a connected home easier to live in.
On this episode of the Connected Design Podcast, Sutton and Short join Editor in Chief Rob Stott to discuss why the touchscreen remains an important part of the professional smart home, where tactile controls are the better answer, and why design-build conversations should focus less on screen count and more on the user experience each interface is meant to support.
