The smart home of tomorrow brought to you today

A few decades back, Arthur C. Clarke envisioned a future with amazing technology invented by man. With the advances in science and technology, we even see some innovative devices that remind us strongly of his fantastic sci-fi novels. Among the many futuristic predictions that have tempted man is the idea of a ‘smart home’ or home automation. 

Movinta Future Tech (Pvt.) Ltd – a subsidiary of the Movinta group – offers you a glimpse into the future with Wi-Fi Home automation. We spoke with Enoj Lalinka Muthukumarana, a Global Futurist and the person Responsible for introducing Wi-Fi smart home automation and many other futuristic technologies into the country.

He is also the COO/Head of Strategy for Movinta Future Tech (Pvt.) Ltd.
Muthukumarana was a student at Royal College and got graduated in Australia. He is the founder of Sri Lanka’s first no-frills advertising agency and is the only Sri Lankan to be listed as a global futurist. He has also been the first to bring in international wildlife celebrity the late Steve Irwin, also known as ‘The Crocodile Hunter’, to Sri Lanka for a one hour special documentary produced by Animal Planet.
 

Muthukumarana, you have brought down the late Steve Irwin to Sri Lanka and also introduced the Red Digital Epic camera to the country. Can you speak about this before we move on to smart home technology?

As a wildlife enthusiast, I decided to turn my personal love of the wildlife to something more and invited Irwin to come down and make a documentary about our wildlife. The one-hour special was aired around the globe through Animal Planet. It was the first award-winning wildlife documentary about Sri Lankan wildlife to be aired in a worldwide channel.
The Red Epic camera was introduced for the sheer importance of turning conventional cinema into digital. The founder of Red came to Sri Lanka on invitation by me and today I am proud to say that 95 percent movies in Sri Lanka are shot on Red Epic.
 

Would you like to speak about Movinta and Broadlink?

Movinta Future Tech is the first Sri Lankan company to operate as a future technology service provider. Broadlink is the global leader in Wi-Fi Home Automation technology. The technology was introduced two years ago to the world and Movinta, as the exclusive agents for Broadlink in Sri Lanka and the Maldives, launched this technology as a pilot project in Sri Lanka exactly one year after the introduction.
With the success of the test, we have launched Broadlink in the country sooner than anywhere else in the region. Today we have converted as much as 100 conventional homes into smart homes around the country. We are also the exclusive IOT- smart home automation device provider for the biggest cellular company in the Maldives.
 

What is Wi-Fi home automation?
Home automation means that you have access to control the devices in your home remotely from anywhere in the world through a mobile device or a tablet. You can turn off lights, switch on the a/c, turn on the heating or a number of things at your house while you’re at work or even from the other side of the world. Devices and appliances can be connected to a standard Wi-Fi router and by downloading the free app to your Apple or android device, you can set up the process within 15 minutes. 
Smart home is going to be the next biggest thing in the world. It’s already predicted that the home automation market will be worth over US $ 20 billion by 2020. It began in the US, but because Asia didn’t have reliable 4G and other necessary technology, home automation didn’t spread to the region at that time. 
 

What are the advantages to the customer?
The set up time is only 15 minutes and Broadlink is the only reliable Wi-Fi smart home solution in the world. It is totally wireless and supported by Amazon Cloud Service. You also don’t need to break walls to fix in wires. Further, you don’t need to buy expensive IOT-enabled appliances, as our technology will convert your existing appliances into smart ones. So even if your house is 30 years or so old, you can easily convert it into a smart home.
 

In your opinion, what is the future of smart home?
As I have predicted in the past, technology will become part of your life; it’s up to the humans to know how to use it for their betterment. Soon you will come to a home to see that your a/c is already on as you walk in, your TV is programmed to your favourite channel, the lights will come on without you having to go to where the switch is located. When you come out of the house, all these devices will go into sleep mode, saving energy, so you can forget about the house.
IOT is going to be the biggest evolution in another five years. 
 

Why is it significant in Sri Lanka?
Sri Lankans work very hard daily spending a lot of time and energy. As a result, the tiredness and stress leads to other things like forgetfulness, which in turn leads to accidents and mishaps.
Automation is a technology that can take over your stress levels by taking over the care of your house so you can move freely. 
Another issue is security. In Sri Lanka, security is a big concern. You can protect your house 24/7 with this technology. Sri Lankans are early adapters of technology. I believe that Sri Lankans are very much tech savvy and they like to test things. 
 

What are the other technologies that are in store for Sri Lankans in the future?
We are going to introduce the same IOT of health, so that you can look after the health of your loved ones better through technology. We are also working on home robotic technology with our overseas partners. We are also currently the only company in Sri Lanka capable of converting your existing glass or mirror into a full HD screen taking home entertainment into a next Level.