Haas Entertainment Systems

Haas HTA Certified!

Haas Entertainment is now an HTA certified company. But what exactly does “HTA certified” mean? It means Haas Entertainment has met all of the rigorous standards set forth by dozens of tech industry experts plus the Home Technology Association’s esteemed Board of Advisors. The goal of the HTA is to empower people with the best information possible so that they may research and hire the best firms for their project. There is so much emerging technology that is either incompatible or untested and the stakes are too high to have the integration done wrong.

In the past a general contractor or architect would have to take a chance every time they brought on a new AV company, custom integrator or smarthome automation programmer. There was always a risk that the project wouldn’t be completed, would be over-budget or worse, not be designed and installed correctly. The real burden of risk ultimately fell upon the homeowner who paid too much for something that didn’t work correctly from the start. Now, savvy homeowners, G Cs, builders & designers can require that sub-contractors be HTA certified. Requiring HTA certification from your sub-contractor all but eliminates the headaches associated with “trunk-slammers”.

Trunk-slammer is a term used in the industry to describe an amateur technician working out of the trunk of their car. This person is generally untrained and got into AV and/or IT because it looked like fast, easy money.

HTA Certified companies must meet the following criteria:

• Ownership and management team must have 3+ years of successful business performance
• A stellar reputation in the marketplace
• A demonstrated history of technical competence
• A demonstrated history of providing high-quality aftercare service
• No significant litigation history
• Do not have tax liens
• At least $1M of liability insurance
• Have not filed bankruptcy in at least the past 5 years
• Must perform background checks on all new employees
• Agree to provide a copy of control system programming code to client
• The ability to deliver high-performance enterprise-grade computer networks
• Endorsements from at least three manufacturers
• Endorsements from at least three local industry professionals
• Endorsements from at least three design/build professionals
• Have Worker’s Compensation insurance if required by state
• The ability to deliver engineering documentation and as-built drawings (Estate & Luxury tiers only)
• The ability to deliver high-performance theater acoustical design
• A demonstrated history of delivering a high-quality home automation experience

What is “Luxury Certified”?

Haas Entertainment is “Luxury Certified”. HTA Certified Luxury companies typically specialize in the following:

• Luxury homes between 5,000 – 10,000 square feet
• Homes with more advanced technology needs
• Homes with high-end interior design and architecture
• Deploy professional-grade smart home / home automation systems
• High-performance home theater and home audio systems
• Homeowners who expect a luxury-brand customer service experience
• Homeowners who believe that technology is an important feature of their home
• Projects that take weeks or months to complete
• Typically collaborate with luxury home architects, builders, and interior designers
• Can document all your home’s technology systems through an engineering plan set
• Projects with technology budgets generally in the $50,000 – $250,000 range