Tips From The Top

In our continuing series of “Meet our Team,” we’d like to introduce you to Jackson Hole A/V’s drafting engineer, Sandi Mexia.

Sandi prepares proposals and drawing sets so that your smart home dreams can become a reality.

A drawing set built by Sandi is presented to clients, contractors, and the architect. These sets are vital to the installation process, helping clients actually visualize how their concepts for ideal home will actually comes into reality.

“Clients are used to seeing their home and all that goes with it in a set of drawing plans,” says Sandi. “Adding our equipment to a set of architectural plans helps them envision where the speakers, TVs, Wi-Fi access points, door stations, window treatments, and other equipment will be located.”

Throughout installation, her drawing sets help with communication, keeping everyone on the same page. This is crucial, as the homes we work with typically require a great amount of careful detail, not to mention clean-cut looks. Sandi’s plans and elevations help determine space requirements, possible interferences, and the aesthetics of a wall or room. “For example,” she describes, “in-ceiling speakers need to be located for best sound quality, coordinated with lighting layout, and avoid interference with anything else in the ceiling.” In the same way, TVs recessed into a wall or coming out of the floor on a lift require details concerning dimensions, space requirements, and the overall look in the room. Sandi’s drawings sets lay an important foundation for ensuring the final product and installation work seamlessly.

Window treatment proposals are a large portion of what she creates. Most of the homes we work in have huge windows, so it’s very convenient to have motorized shades on a system. Sandi describes how most of the time, the shades are tucked into pockets, so you only see the shade when it’s down. A detailed drawing of the roller shades also helps determine the space required.

Sandi is especially fond of Lutron residential lighting products. “The motorized shades are awesome,” she says. “With a touch of a button, phone, or voice control, a room can be black-out, or you can limit the amount of sunlight coming in.”

She’s also a fan of the total home automation system Savant. “An app on your phone to control the whole office or home is pretty cool.”

And one of her personal favorites in her own home is sound forerunner Sonos. “The Sonos speakers work well since we can place them in any room and only need to connect to a power outlet and Wi-Fi.” During the summer, when they enjoy spending time out on their terrace, “It’s nice to have music playing on the terrace and inside the apartment as we move from one place to the other.”

To learn more about how we can make your dream home become a reality, call us at Jackson Hole AV. We’d love to discuss the possibilities.