Home
Lighting, heating, media, voice control and network filtering that all work locally, without a cloud account for every lightbulb.
01 Custom hardware & software · Devon, UK
Automation built around your problem, not a product catalogue.
I’m Sam. I design and build custom hardware, servers, networks and software for homes, workshops, factories and offices. One person, start to finish, and affordable wherever I can make it.
- Works without the internet
- No cloud lock-in
- Documented & yours to keep
- Affordable by design
- Non-intrusive design
- Works with what you already have
- Microcontrollers to full servers
- Wired or wireless
- Written scope and price up front
02 Who I work with
Built for the place it runs in.
Every site is different. I design around what’s already there, how it’s used, and the people who rely on it every day.
Workshop & factory
Machine monitoring, utilisation tracking, sensors and PoE (Power over Ethernet) cameras, with a dashboard the team actually uses.
Office
Environment and energy monitoring, screens and signage, and the glue between systems that don’t talk to each other.
03 Services
Hardware, firmware and software: whatever the job needs.
Most problems are standard parts plus one piece nobody sells. I use affordable off-the-shelf kit wherever it does the job, build only the piece that’s missing, and make the whole thing work together.
- 01
Control & automation systems
Central servers and controllers that tie lighting, heating, media, sensors and third-party kit together into one system, and keep working when the internet doesn’t.
- 02
Custom hardware nodes
Microcontroller-based relays, dimmers, sensors and PoE cameras, designed around your installation.
- 03
Monitoring & dashboards
Live views of what’s running, what’s idle and what’s wrong, on a wall screen, a laptop or a phone.
- 04
Bespoke software & web
Web servers, integrations, internal tools and websites, written to fit how you work.
- 05
Networking, servers & Docker
Networks set up or sorted out, servers specified and supplied to fit the job and the budget, and services run on your own hardware in Docker rather than rented from the cloud.
04 Process
Straightforward, start to finish.
Tell me the problem
A few lines through the inquiry form is enough to start.
Scope & quote
We talk it through, then you get a written scope and a clear price before anything is built. I’ll always include the most affordable option that does the job.
Build & test
Prototype first, then the real thing. You see it working before it’s installed.
Install & hand over
Installed and documented, with the source code included. Support and updates if you want them.
05 What I’ve built
Real systems, running every day.
Anonymised, but all real.
Home · Control server
Whole-home control server
A custom dashboard running the house: lighting and heating, TV and media control, a voice assistant that works fully offline, and network-level ad and tracker filtering for every device.
- Linux server
- Docker
- Custom web UI
- Offline voice control
Hardware · Firmware
Wi-Fi relay and dimmer nodes
Wi-Fi switching and dimming modules that all share one firmware, so every unit behaves the same and adding another one is quick.
- Microcontrollers
- C++
- HTTP API
Workshop · Monitoring
Machine tracking for a workshop
PoE cameras and a custom web server showing which machines are in use and for how long, without touching the machines’ own electronics.
- PoE cameras
- Custom web server
- Live dashboard
Web · Software
Website for a £1M+ business
I’m part of the team that builds and runs the public website of an established business, keeping a site that customers rely on fast, up to date and online.
- Web development
- Live production site
06 Coming soon
Off-the-shelf, later.
Some of what I build is heading towards small, ready-made products you can just buy and install. They’ll ship when they’re ready, not before.
Got something that needs building?
Tell me what you’re trying to do. I’ll reply with honest next steps. No pitch, no obligation.