Nippon Steel Kowa Real Estate, Asilla, and JDSC conduct a demonstration project on HVAC optimization using people-flow data to improve energy efficiency in office buildings

NIPPON STEEL KOWA REAL ESTATE, Asilla, and JDSC are conducting a demonstration project at Akasaka Intercity AIR to optimize air-conditioning using foot-traffic data. The aim is to optimize air-conditioning operations in the building's installed systems in response to movements of people and verify the effect of reducing energy consumption without compromising comfort.

The project measures foot traffic and congestion levels by area and time of day using asilla BIZ, identifies areas and time periods with low utilization, and operates multiple patterns with thresholds and temperature adjustment ranges configured accordingly. The winter demonstration is scheduled to run from 20 December 2025 to 28 February 2026, the summer demonstration from 4 July to 3 September 2026, and the shoulder-season demonstration from 10 October to 27 November 2026.

The results from the 3 companies' verification showed that air-conditioning energy consumption on the covered floors could be reduced by an average of 27%, with reductions of 42% on holidays and 17% on weekdays, indicating the effectiveness of control based on foot traffic. Reductions of more than 50% were also confirmed in some areas and time periods, with a maximum reduction of 54% observed during the summer demonstration. The annual reduction effect across the 3 shared-area floors was estimated at approximately ¥12 million. Going forward, the companies will consider expanding the verification to other properties and introducing automated control and system integration.

4) Going forward, the companies will expand the verification to other properties, including Shinagawa Intercity, and aim to provide the service from April 2027. JDSC will continue to support system design and data analysis, with the long-term aim of establishing data-driven smart-building solutions.