Hogar Controls was founded by Vishnu Malkireddy in US, in 2015. The company has now set up a subsidiary in India that offers a wide array of home and building automation products. T&D India caught with Vishnu Malkireddy to understand the intricacies of the relatively new building automation industry in India. While Malkireddy expounds on his company’s operations, he also shares keen insights on the rapidly-changing consumer mindset. Smart home devices are today more accessible than ever before, asserts Malkireddy.
Let us start by understanding the Indian operations of Hogar Controls. When did local operations start and where are your production facilities located?
Hogar Controls was founded by me in Virginia, US, in 2015. We subsequently set up a wholly owned subsidiary in India named Hogar Controls India Pvt Ltd, through which we are manufacturing and marketing home and building automation products.
Hogar Controls crafts a wide variety of innovative, intuitive, and stylish products for homeowners, retailers, and professional integrators. We combine modern technology with design thinking to stay at the forefront of technological development. Our automated solutions are perfect for any number of settings, including smart cities, communities, hospitality, commercial, residential, and working spaces.
In 2019, we have established a large manufacturing facility in Uppal, Hyderabad, covering an area of 10,000 sqft. It features cutting-edge electronic manufacturing equipment and can produce over 600,000 units annually. The facility will cater to not just the Indian market but also entire Asia, the Middle East, the US, Canada, South America, Europe, and Australia.
Furthermore, we have recently inaugurated a multi-functional facility in Raidurg, Hyderabad. This state-of-the-art establishment will serve as our research and development center, testing area, and assembly site.
Hogar Controls is presently the only Indian brand providing a comprehensive range of smart home solutions that operate entirely wirelessly and comply with connectivity protocols such as Z-Wave, Zigbee, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth.
We broadly understand Hogar Controls provides user-friendly control solutions to automate buildings. Apart from homes, do you also cater to commercial establishments?
Yes, Hogar Controls offers user-friendly IoT solutions to automate both residential and commercial buildings. Our wide range of Wi-Fi-enabled smart touch panels, smart controllers, video doorbells, digital door locks, curtain motors, smart home hubs, security cameras, and retrofit series for smart lighting is designed to provide seamless control and monitoring of various aspects of a building, whether a home or a commercial establishment. Our products are versatile and can be customized to suit the unique needs of our clients, making them an ideal choice for residential and commercial use.
When we speak of home automation, do you see the concept gaining currency in India? The common perception is that home automation is largely associated with luxury dwellings. What is your view?
As a key player in the industry, we have observed a surge in demand for home automation solutions in India. It is certainly booming in recent years. Although the early adoption was primarily restricted to luxury dwellings, we are currently witnessing an upward trend of customers across classes in metros as well as tier-1 and tier-2 cities. While comfort, convenience, and lifestyle quality can be termed as the basic driving factors behind this revolution, the advancements in technology and the rise of the Internet of Things (IoT) has made smart home devices more accessible than ever before.
Moreover, as people have spent the most time at home during the pandemic, there has been a growing need for the above-mentioned comfort, convenience, and additional security, which home automation devices have delivered. We firmly believe this smart concept will continue to gain currency in India as more people become aware of the benefits it offers.
At Hogar, we are committed to making smart home solutions accessible, and our product range is attentively designed to cater to varying budgets and requirements
We understand that Hogar Controls actively started its Indian operations with the Prima+ panel series. Tell us more.
Hogar Controls has made significant strides in the space of connected living with the introduction of Prima+ smart touch panels. The product leverages home automation technology to transform standard lights, fans, and appliances into smart fittings, thereby upgrading an ordinary home into a smart home. While its wide range offers the flexibility of choosing from multiple designs and combinations, the portfolio comes with six, eight and twelve-modular British Standard gang-box options which include a light dimmer, fan controller, and motion sensor, and can be customized as well.
The advanced smart home hub helps manage multiple devices including fans, lights, curtains, shades, blinds, and dimmers with just a touch of a button or through a mobile app, Google Assistant, or Alexa. Meanwhile, the touch panels are resistant to heat, humidity, and shocks, and they operate on low-power radio waves that effortlessly flow through walls and floors, consuming less than 0.5W power. All models in Prima+ series are designed with a completely retrofit layout, allowing for hassle-free installation into any existing traditional switchboard without wiring or remodeling.
Furthermore, our products are designed with your safety in mind, utilizing the most secure encryption technologies to protect your data and secure your home. Additionally, our products are energy efficient, helping you on reducing your carbon footprint
As Hogar Controls Founder CEO, tell us more about your new range of products where you moved from Z-Wave technology to Wi-Fi.
Hogar Controls prefers a design-first approach and offers a range of holistic smart home solutions, including touch panels under the Prima and Prima+ series. The company, which so far focused on catering to the HNI community and hospitality sector with high-end smart touch panels that work on Z-Wave technology, has now introduced a new Wi-Fi-enabled product variant under the Prima series. Retaining the premium look and build quality of the product, we have launched the new Wi-Fi variant, primarily targeting builders and the upper/middle-class segments.
The Wi-Fi series smart touch panels are compatible with any smartphone and are voice-controlled via Alexa or Google Assistant on supported devices. They are heat, humidity, and shockproof and are available in Three and Six-button variants, which have options including a light dimmer, fan controller, and curtain control and can further be customized as per the user’s needs.
Wi-Fi technology offers noteworthy advantages such as increased connectivity and flexibility, which allows our devices to connect seamlessly to a home network. This effortless and user-friendly experience makes it super easy for consumers to control and monitor their homes/buildings from anywhere with an internet connection.
Introducing home automation as a retrofit solution can be a tricky business, generally speaking. How does Hogar Controls work around the situation?
As a well-established brand in the home IoT landscape, we have recognized the growing significance of retrofit homes long back, and we anticipate them to be equally popular as greenfield projects in the near future. For this reason, we have made it hassle-free for homeowners to upgrade their existing homes with our home IoT devices. All our products are 100% retrofitted and wireless, requiring no physical modifications, and they make the transition to a smart home effortless for our consumers.
Our approach involves a thorough assessment of the existing infrastructure to determine the best way to integrate our devices seamlessly. Hogar’s expert team holds extensive experience in retrofitting smart home devices, and they work closely with clients to understand their preferences and requirements. We also provide after-sales support and maintenance services to guarantee the flawless operation of our products and keep our customers informed about updates or new features that are available.
Hogar Controls has opened experience centres in key cities like Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai, etc. How has been the overall response? What are your plans of expanding your chain of such centres?
While our first-in-class, fully automated Smart Home Experience Centre was launched in New Delhi in 2022, we have recently inaugurated our flagship showroom at Build HQ in Chennai. Housing over 70 luxury brands in a massive area of 1 lakh sqft, Build HQ is India’s biggest building material and interior design superstore.
By visiting these state-of-the-art centers, our clients, including interior designers, architects, and end-users, can explore and experience the futuristic technology of our products firsthand. Along with live interactive demonstrations, a run-through of our home automation product range will be delivered by our trained, knowledgeable staff. As we aim to expand operations across India, we will soon launch more centers in Hyderabad, Mumbai, Bangalore, and Kolkata.
Coming to response, our experience centers have been receiving overwhelmingly positive feedback from all quarters. The opportunity to witness and experience our products in action before making a purchase decision is greatly appreciated by our consumers.
Building automation is largely achieved through IoT, supported by apps. Given this, every automated home becomes “available” on the Internet. How is then the dimension of Internet security addressed?
Internet security is a critical consideration for building automation systems that rely on the Internet of Things (IoT) and applications (apps). As smart homes become more connected, they can get vulnerable to cyber attacks, which can jeopardize the security and privacy of homeowners. Therefore, vendors must prioritize installing upgraded security features in their automation devices, and whenever vulnerabilities are detected, security patch updates should be promptly applied.
From a user’s perspective, taking precautions such as using strong passwords, keeping software up-to-date, restricting access, installing firewalls and antivirus, and implementing network security measures can ameliorate potential risks and guarantee the safety of automated living setups.
At Hogar Controls, robust encryption algorithms are employed in the systems to protect passwords. The one-way hashing algorithm makes it extremely challenging for attackers to retrieve the original password, even if they gain access to the stored ones. We follow a rigorous and transparent approach to firmware updates, ensuring they undergo thorough testing, staging, communication, and backing up to minimize any possible risks or disruptions to users.
How do you see the acceptance of IoT-based building automation growing in India, and therefore the prospects for Hogar Controls in the subcontinent?
The popularity of IoT-based building automation is certainly on the rise in India due to its ability to increase energy efficiency and lower operational expenses. This is further fueled by the soaring trend of smart cities and the growing emphasis on sustainability. As a result, businesses and property owners in the country now prefer building automation solutions to advance their operations and minimize their ecological footprint. Also, the pandemic has accelerated this adoption as more people spent time in their homes and explored ways to uplift the comfort and convenience levels in their living spaces.
One of the major benefits of IoT-enabled smart buildings is their capability to monitor and control various systems such as lighting, HVAC, and security, from a centralized platform. This control empowers maintenance managers to optimize energy consumption and reduce wastage, resulting in substantial cost savings. In addition, they can boost the overall occupant experience by offering personalized control over their environment, such as temperature and lighting, and strengthen building security through real-time monitoring and alerts.
Hogar Controls has excellent prospects in the Indian subcontinent given the rapidly growing demand for smart home technology. Courtesy of our diverse product portfolio, innovation, and customer-centric approach, we can provide a comprehensive range of IoT-based building automation solutions to meet the evolving needs of the market. With the government focusing on developing sustainable and technology-driven cities, Hogar can tap into the massive opportunities arising from this initiative.
