19 Oct 2026 By: Faizan Khan
How much energy could your building save with smarter ventilation management?
With rising energy costs and increasing pressure on businesses to meet sustainability targets, improving building efficiency has never been more important. But what if significant energy savings could be achieved without replacing existing infrastructure?
This is exactly what Envelo demonstrated at 3 Pancras Square, a 10-storey commercial office building in London's King's Cross Estate, occupied by Havas UK.
By introducing IoT-enabled monitoring and intelligent building controls, Envelo helped reduce ventilation energy consumption by 31%, with a reported payback period of just 13 months.
Let's explore how IoT made an already smart building even smarter.
3 Pancras Square was already equipped with an advanced Building Management System (BMS), incorporating 70% heat recovery and CO2-based ventilation optimisation.
Despite these existing efficiencies, there was still an opportunity to improve how the building managed its energy consumption.
Traditional ventilation systems can operate for longer than necessary or provide more airflow than a space requires, even when occupancy levels are low.
For building operators, this presents a challenge: how can ventilation energy consumption be reduced without compromising indoor air quality and occupant comfort?
Rather than investing in costly replacements to the building's existing HVAC infrastructure, Envelo identified an opportunity to use IoT technology to optimise the system already in place.
Envelo introduced its intelligent Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform, which integrates with the building's existing BMS to optimise ventilation based on real-time environmental conditions.
Using data collected from IoT sensors positioned throughout the building, the platform continuously monitors key indoor environmental factors, including:
By combining this information, Envelo's platform determines when ventilation is required and communicates instructions directly to the existing BMS.
This allows the building's ventilation system to respond more intelligently to actual demand, rather than relying solely on predetermined operating schedules.
For example, during periods of low occupancy, ventilation can be reduced or temporarily switched off when indoor environmental conditions permit.
The result? Less unnecessary energy consumption, without compromising the comfort of those using the building.
The results demonstrate how IoT can deliver measurable improvements, even in buildings that already have advanced management systems.
Independent analysis conducted by engineering consultancy Hoare Lea confirmed a 31% reduction in ventilation energy consumption across the validated area of the building.
One particularly interesting result was the reduction in ventilation operating hours.
On average, ventilation was switched off for 21 hours per week per floor, equivalent to 42% of the system's operating hours.
Importantly, these energy savings were achieved alongside improvements in indoor environmental quality.
Havas UK also reported no complaints relating to stuffiness or discomfort throughout the project.
This highlights an important benefit of intelligent building management: reducing energy consumption doesn't necessarily mean compromising indoor air quality.
Based on the results achieved, Envelo estimates that implementing the same approach throughout 3 Pancras Square could generate significant annual savings.
These figures are Envelo's estimates for applying the results across the entire building. They are projections rather than independently validated whole-building savings.
For facilities managers, building owners and organisations operating large commercial estates, these figures highlight the potential return on investment from intelligent building optimisation.
Rather than investing in entirely new HVAC systems, businesses may be able to unlock further efficiencies from their existing infrastructure by introducing additional monitoring and intelligent controls.
This project demonstrates that even buildings equipped with sophisticated management systems can benefit from greater visibility and more intelligent decision-making.
By integrating IoT sensors with existing infrastructure, businesses can move towards a more proactive approach to building management.
Instead of operating equipment according to fixed schedules, building systems can respond to real-time environmental conditions and actual demand.
The benefits go beyond reducing energy bills.
Improved indoor environmental monitoring can help organisations maintain healthier working environments, reduce unnecessary equipment operation and make more informed decisions about building performance.
For businesses managing multiple buildings or large commercial estates, these efficiencies have the potential to deliver considerable long-term savings.
The Envelo project at 3 Pancras Square is a great example of how IoT can deliver tangible business benefits without the need for major infrastructure replacement.
With independently validated ventilation energy savings of 31% and a reported payback period of just 13 months, the results demonstrate the value of combining real-time sensor data with intelligent building controls.
As organisations continue to look for ways to reduce operational costs and improve sustainability, solutions like Envelo provide an opportunity to make existing buildings work smarter.
At Alliot Technologies, we work with leading IoT technology partners to help businesses identify and deploy solutions that deliver real-world value.
Get in touch with our team to discover how IoT can support smarter, more efficient building management.
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