AUSTIN, Texas — Screen Innovations is a leading motorized shading and screen manufacturer that not only listens to its worldwide team of integrators but uses their recommendations and suggestions as inspiration for the development of many of its new products and technologies. The most recent introduction to springboard from dealer input is SI’s Kratos power supply. The compact, all-metal, ultra-efficient, 250-watt, plenum-rated power supply provides integrators an affordable solution that leverages the installation ease, quiet operation, and compact footprint of SI’s new line of Zigbee 3.0-compliant low-voltage shade motors, as well as RTS systems. Dramatically less expensive than competing power supplies, Kratos carries a suggested retail price of $389, which for dealers ends up costing less than five Starbucks coffees to power each of eight motors powered by the unit. Bottom line: By utilizing Kratos, integrators can deploy low-voltage shading solutions at a lower cost than ever before.
Despite its attractive price tag, Kratos doesn’t sacrifice build-quality or operational performance. The durable steel chassis runs cool to the touch and is plenum-rated for in-wall, riser, and general plenum installations. Plus, each of Kratos’s eight ports is protected against electrical shorts and mis-wiring. As an ideal complement to SI’s Zigbee 3.0 low-voltage motors, Kratos gives integrators a complete, turnkey low-voltage shading solution as an alternative to hardwired 485-based shading designs.
“Kratos is an exceptionally well-designed and -engineered product for integrators looking to take advantage of the many benefits of Zigbee 3.0 low-voltage shading motors currently available in our Nano indoor shading cassettes,” says SI CTO Michael Braithwaite. “The motors run up to 6 decibels quieter than comparably sized 485 motors, are easily integrated with other Zigbee-based devices, and now that we have Kratos, lithium batteries, which take up a lot of space, can be removed from the shading cassette, resulting in an even smaller footprint that’s ideal for installation on narrow windows.”
For delivering power and control to large residential and commercial shading projects utilizing a hardwired 485-based infrastructure, SI offers its flagship power and control hub, Janus. Infinitely scalable and compatible with all communications topologies, it affords the flexibility and versatility expected from a product bearing a higher price tag.
“Janus is our more full-featured power supply and data hub that’s designed to work with any wired or wireless shading motor. But if an integrator is installing only low-voltage motors and needs nothing more than a reliable, stable power supply, Kratos fits the bill,” Braithwaite adds.
Available to integrators now, Kratos supports a variety of mounting configurations and includes all the necessary wiring and mounting accessories.
To see Kratos and SI’s other innovative shading and screen solutions, visit Booth 5212 at CEDIA Expo, taking place in Indianapolis, IN, Sept. 1-3, 2021. For more information about SI and its growing portfolio of products and technologies, go to https://www.screeninnovations.com/.
