From Fashion to Function: How Bold Home Solutions Balance Style, Simplicity, and Sustainability

By Raimondo Salandra, Business Line Leader for Home Solutions, ABB’s Smart Buildings Division

Today marks Day 4 of World Green Building Week – a moment to reflect on what it truly means to be bold in building design. For me, the story begins where it matters most: at home. Because while offices and city grids shape skylines, homes shape our daily lives.

I’ve seen this across very different markets – from Europe to South America to the Middle East. Everywhere, people want the same three things: comfort, control, and convenience. But how these needs are met depends on culture, climate, and lifestyle.

One lesson stands out: home technology fails when it’s overcomplicated or poorly integrated. The solutions that succeed are the ones that look right, feel right, and work seamlessly from day one.

Bridging Two Worlds: Design Meets Automation

In our business, I often talk about ‘two worlds.’ On one side, the traditional wiring accessories market, where design and durability are everything. On the other hand, the fast-growing world of home automation, where simplicity, affordability, and adaptability determine success.

Both are evolving fast. Global smart home revenues are projected to hit $174 billion this year, with adoption reaching 77 percent of households¹. In the Middle East, the market is expected to nearly double by 2033², driven by smart city developments.

The demand is clear: homes that are bold enough to be both beautiful and intelligent.

Simplicity as a Bold Choice

Consumers don’t want more apps – they want fewer. They don’t want to feel like IT managers in their own homes. Ease of use remains the number one factor in adoption. Advanced devices that are difficult to install or operate often end up abandoned.

That’s why, at ABB, we focus on simplicity. From ABB-free@home® to integrations with Samsung SmartThings and Eve Systems, our goal is to provide a single, intuitive way to control lighting, heating, electric vehicle (EV) charging, and security, while optimizing energy consumption through energy monitoring tools like ABB’s SmartEMS. No friction. No clutter. Just solutions that operate quietly, reliably, and seamlessly in the background.

Learning from Global Markets

Different markets teach different lessons. In Europe, retrofitting historic housing stock with energy-saving solutions is key. In the Middle East, mega-developments are redefining scale, with integrated automation and EV readiness built in from the start.

Wherever you look, the impact is real. Smart home technologies can reduce household energy use by up to 30 percent³. And when applied across communities – like Brobyholm in Sweden, where our ABB-free@home® and Samsung’s SmartThings integrate with shared solar – homes can even become carbon-and cost-neutral.

So, what does it mean to be bolder on buildings when it comes to our homes? For me, it’s about three things: simplicity that encourages adoption, design people love to live with, and sustainability that’s built in, not bolted on. When we get that balance right, smart homes stop being gadgets and start becoming game-changers.

Earning Trust Through Privacy and Security

Boldness isn’t just about saving energy – it’s about protecting people. Privacy and data security are rising fast as consumer concerns. Studies show 40 percent of households in the UK view them as a main barrier to adoption⁴.

That’s why our systems are secure by design, with local data storage and strict standards. Homes that are smart must also be trusted.

Bold Home Innovation Adapts to People

Whether it’s preventing lights from being left on, giving parents peace of mind with remote monitoring, or designing switches that look as good as they perform, the principle is the same: the smartest home is the one that works effortlessly.

If there’s one lesson from this week, it’s this: bold doesn’t have to mean complex. In homes, boldness means technology that is simple enough to be loved, smart enough to save energy, and secure enough to be trusted. That’s how we build for people – and for the planet.

Tomorrow, my colleague Aldo Sciacca, Portfolio and R&D Leader at ABB Smart Buildings, will close our World Green Building Week series by exploring the technologies set to transform not just our homes, but every building we live and work in.

About the author

Raimondo Salandra is the Business Line Leader for Home Solutions within ABB’s Smart Buildings division. The business provides integrated smart home solutions designed to enhance energy efficiency, comfort, and safety in the residential sector. In this role, Raimondo holds profit and loss (P&L) responsibility, overseeing all operations from R&D to sales, globally, and he is based in Italy.

Raimondo joined ABB’s Electrification business in 1996 and brings extensive expertise gained in a global environment across multiple industries, divisions, and cultures. Over his career, he has held leadership roles in supply chain management, logistics, engineering, and operations within large-scale manufacturing facilities in Italy, China, and the U.S. Beyond operational leadership, Raimondo has managed regional end-to-end business operations in Egypt & Central Africa and India, integrating sales and operations to drive performance and growth.

He also played a pivotal role in establishing Global Commercial Operations for ABB’s Electrification Business Area, leading a team of more than 2,000 employees while based in the United Arab Emirates. With a proven track record in strategic execution, cross-functional leadership, and global business management, Raimondo continues to shape the future of Home Solutions through innovation, operational excellence, and a customer-centric approach. Raimondo holds a bachelor's degree in industrial technology engineering from Politecnico di Milano and an MBA from SDA Bocconi School of Management in Milan.