Ability.
Making smart climate control feel effortless.
Ability UK, a leading provider of fan coil units, has been at the forefront of high-tech climate control systems since 2001, with products used in luxury homes and commercial spaces including the Embassy Gardens development in London. When Ability teamed up with Delta to develop the Atmo app for its O3 controllers, it wanted a simple, stylish IoT solution that let both homeowners and property managers easily manage complex climate systems, and asked WMP to design an interface as polished as the luxury spaces it would serve.
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Expertise
Solutions
Background.
An interface that had to match the luxury spaces it controlled.
Ability wanted the Atmo app to make controlling climate zones, saving energy and setting schedules feel easy and natural.
Ability UK, a leading provider of fan coil units, has been at the forefront of high-tech climate control systems since 2001, now part of Glen Dimplex Heating & Ventilation. Its products are used in luxury homes and commercial spaces, including the Embassy Gardens development in London. When Ability teamed up with Delta to develop the Atmo app for its O3 controllers, it wanted a simple, stylish IoT solution catering to both homeowners and property managers, and we were tasked with designing an interface as polished as the luxury spaces it would serve.
The Solution.
A design tested and refined against real user behaviour.
Designing a clean, sophisticated interface around Ability's branding.
From the start, we focused on making the Atmo app both functional and elegant. Our UX research shaped every part of the design to ensure it looked great and worked seamlessly, using Ability's branding to create a clean, sophisticated interface with every feature easy to find and use.
Testing three design directions to remove the guesswork.
During testing, we ran a mix of task-based usability testing and multivariate ABC testing, where users explored three different options for the individual zone control screens and told us their preferences.
Their feedback gave Ability real certainty that the interface was intuitive and user-friendly, rather than just a matter of opinion.
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Fixing the one stage where users struggled most.
Testing also revealed onboarding difficulties, with the setup phase showing the lowest success rate, just 33%, among non-technical users. This highlighted the need for more accessible terminology and additional guidance, so we introduced in-app tips and automated parts of the setup process, making it smoother and more supportive for all users.
Building in one-tap control and smart automation.
One of the app's standout features is one-tap control, letting users turn on or off individual zones, or the whole property, directly from the main screen. Beyond this, Smart Zones simplifies managing heating and cooling across different areas by automatically adjusting to user preferences, and streamlined user management lets property owners add, remove or transfer access without resetting the whole system.
The impact.
A design trusted by some of the world's most prestigious buildings.
The Atmo app now fits into luxury developments including the JJ Mack building at 33 Charterhouse Street and 22 Bishopsgate, alongside Embassy Gardens. By blending Ability's engineering with an intuitive design, and refining it through real user testing, from a 33% onboarding success rate to a smoother, more supported setup, the app now makes managing advanced climate systems feel effortless.
