Technology is changing the face of the workplace

into more energy-efficient and collaborative spaces. Jasmine Thompson visits its “smart office” in Derby to speak to technical director George Pritchard about how the company is enhancing productivity through connectivity.

Walking into Scenariio’s head office in Derby, visitors may be struck by the absence of the traditional reception desk welcoming them into the building. Instead, their presence is automatically registered by a dashboard as they open the door.

As they ascend the stairs, walk into the lounge area and enter meeting rooms, their movements within the building are being monitored and logged via a dashboard.

It’s a level of intelligence that has only recently become available in the building management space, and one that technical director George Pritchard explains is a result of interconnected sensor technology, known as the internet of things (IoT).

“The data is pulled from sensors that are attached to physical objects to detail everything from when an electric vehicle charger is in use to which desks people are sat at,” he says, holding up an example of a lighting sensor that is just shy of an inch long.

The boardroom alone comprises eight sensors that collect data from the lighting, conference meeting system, carbon dioxide monitor and windows.

These are transmitted via a wireless network to a local server, which then feeds insights into an online dashboard.

“It helps a business to understand what’s happening in that room and make decisions based on these insights, whether it’s when to set a timer to automatically turn off the lights, closing windows to retain heat or on meeting room capacity,” says George.

The 5,000sq-ft office at The Chocolate Factory, in Siddals Road, serves as a testing ground for the technology Scenariio uses to make buildings and office spaces work smarter and more efficiently.

From here, his team has developed new systems used by major companies including Gymshark, Tarmac and Mondelez. Closer to home, it has worked with Derbion, Derby College Group and Bustler Market, while it was recently recognised as Severn Trent’s Supplier of the Year.

Scenariio is able to address a variety of customer needs, ranging from tackling energy costs to making workspaces more collaborative, which are key considerations for businesses during a time of escalating cost pressures and new ways of working.

End users benefit through a “two-pronged approach”, believes George. Not only can they contribute to a building’s energy consumption levels and sustainability, but the changes brought by the technology also “fundamentally improves the experience of people working in buildings”.

He adds: “From their homes, people are able to determine if it’s worth going in the office on a particular day as they can find out how many people are going to be there, and whether there is a free desk or enough quiet spaces to work in, which creates a smarter way of working.

“Over the past few years, people have spent a lot of time in the comfort of their own home, so it’s all about making the office a comfortable environment, where you can still take Teams meetings but, on the other hand, also has a system that ensures energy consumption remains at an affordable level.

“The technology we use integrates all these elements and we use it within our own building because if we can't use it ourselves, we're not going to sell it to somebody else.”

Incorporating Intelligent Technology

is a natural extension of the vision outlined by George’s father Rob Pritchard when he founded Scenariio 10 years ago.

Its roots are in data cabling infrastructure used to connect a variety of devices, such as IT and Wi-Fi networks, AV and CCTV systems, as well as communications and server room installations.

Managing director Rob’s 30-year insight into the technology industry, leveraging the relationships created in that time while following trends and developments, led to the company’s portfolio expanding into the intelligent systems found in Scenariio’s office and now many of its clients'.

“It’s his vision to be a smart technology company, so that is where the service evolution and growth area of the business lies,” says George.

When scoping out a smart building project, Scenariio works with a client to understand what the key challenges are and then considers how technology and infrastructure can best be used to solve these.

“Clients will come to us wanting a smart building, but if we explained all the solutions we offer and the technology that goes with it, it can be quite overwhelming and not necessarily of interest to what they want,” says George, who joined the company seven years ago.

“In fact, the questions really should be based around ‘what is it you want to do? What is it that

Importance Of Educating Businesses On The Benefits Of Smart Building Technology

Each day, George works on anything relating to Scenariio’s products, including proposals, technical design and evaluation of new software – but an important aspect of his role involves educating people on the technology he encounters every day.

He does this by targeting specific markets where businesses will reap the most opportunities by adopting smart technology, including fit-out companies, consultants and contractors, to give them new products to offer their clients.

George explains: “If they can offer their own clients sensor technology to monitor who is in the building or which areas are being used, when combined with booking systems and data reporting opportunities, it gives them an edge over competitors.

“It is new technology, so it’s all about educating businesses on what is possible, how they can talk to their clients about it and how they can promote it.”

Packaging technical offerings into an easy-to-understand format is also something the company has had to work on, investing in business development roles to “get the message across” in layman’s terms and guide customers on the best use of smart technology.

“We’ve had to strip back the way we talk about technology and instead we ask, ‘what is the endpoint that people want?’ and go from there,” adds George.

“Previously, businesses may have been hesitant to spend money on new technologies because they were unsure if it would work,” says George.

“But that’s not much of a problem anymore, as I’d like to think we can evidence what we can do over a sustained period of time – so that reluctance to adopt isn’t the same as it once was.” you care about? What is it for?’

“We'll pick products that match those requirements. We don't manufacture anything ourselves – we sell a product from somebody else and then install it – so it gives us an unbiased, trusted expertise within the industry, where we can pick and choose products that best fit a project’s requirements.”

Projects can vary from retrofitting an old building to make it more sustainable, to installing new audio-visual (AV) facilities to make it easier for employees to hold conference calls. But many smart solutions start with lighting.

“If a company is refurbishing a building or doing a new build, and they’re replacing lighting, they can look at intelligent lighting because they’re doing it anyway,” George adds.

“The reason for that is we can attach one of these little sensors to every single light fitting, and use it to do everything else around buildings – such as detecting occupancy, temperature and light levels, which can all be used to determine energy levels.

“In those buildings that don’t need their lighting replaced, we can look at wireless sensors – it can achieve the same goal, it’s just a different technology.”

One of Scenariio’s latest projects has involved implementing smart technology in the former Grade II-listed former Derby Midlands Carriage Works at the Derby College Roundhouse campus in Pride Park. It has transformed the function of the building, known as the Engine Room, from a restaurant to a meeting and training space.

Scenariio installed AV equipment; movementtracking sensors; temperature, CO2 and humidity sensors; an intelligent power-overethernet lighting system; and resource- booking software for desks and rooms that lets users book space on site or remotely.

The system will provide the college with an instant snapshot of which areas of the building are being used, the occupancy levels, how comfortable their experience is and what the energy usage is.

“Just because the building is more than 100 years old, this doesn’t mean it has to be uncomfortable for people to work in or can’t be energy-saving, and it’s a great example of what we can do,” adds George.

Meanwhile, at Gymshark’s headquarters in Solihull, Scenariio installed more than 400 smart lighting fixtures featuring sensors to monitor motion, temperature, brightness and power usage. It produced space utilisation reports for the sportwear company to showcase which areas of the 42,000 sq ft office are being underused.

George believes his company’s technology has helped to make it an “amazing and unique space” for one of Britain’s fastest-growing start-ups.

FROM PLAYGROUND SLIDES to beanbag seating arrangements, multinationals like Google and Innocent Smoothies have been challenging the idea of the “traditional office environment” to place the employee’s experience at the centre of workplace design.

Making Data More Accessible

The latest addition to Scenariio’s smart technology offering is its own dashboard, called Insiight, to present data in a more accessible format for its customers – after collaborating with academics.

Just under three years ago, the company began a knowledge transfer partnership (KTP) with Nottingham Trent University to create a software package that can display a building’s data in a dashboard format.

The software uses open-source technology that pulls data from a variety of sources, including sensors, and presents it in a digestible format via a variety of graphs, diagrams and tables.

The data can be accessed and displayed using a range of devices, including smartphones, computers and TV screens, and each dashboard is customisable to a company’s requirements.

George explains: “Thr ee years ago, there wasn't really a way in which our customers were able to view the data easily. They could sign up to third-party apps, but not everyone has the budget for those. What we wanted to achieve with the dashboard was for our customers to actually be able to get use out of the data.” households owning a piece of smart equipment.

As people can now use an app to remotely turn their heating on, dim lights or speak to delivery personnel, many of us are experiencing a more integrated and streamlined way of living.

“If people are using this technology at home, it’s likely they will expect to see it in their workplace,” says George.

George says the benefits reaped from smart buildings is intrinsically linked to employee welfare, and attributes it to the rise in demand for the technology he’s witnessed over the past few years.

“As much as businesses want people to practise hybrid working, we’ve also seen them wanting to entice people back into the offices as they are a key space to foster collaboration,” he adds.

“When you're in the office, you have more interactions with people, and potentially end up going down routes that you don't expect to go down, so you can get answers and solve problems a lot faster.

“By saying to people, ‘look what we can offer you’, and making the office a more positive space with easy-to-use systems, it turns the office environment into a collaboration hub, rather than just a row of desks, and can help with enticing them back.”

The demand for “the modern office” can also be attributed to the accessibility of this type of technology, with an increasing number of

“It’s probably one of the first times I’ve seen the household side of the market growing at a more rapid rate compared to the commercial side, which has taken a while to catch up.

“People are asking for those abilities in the offices now. We’ve been exploring this space for nine years, but now businesses are paying attention because it’s what their employees are looking for.”

OPERATIONAL COST SAVINGS have arguably never been more relevant for companies at a time when the cost of doing business has escalated amid a 40-year high in inflation.

Some firms have combatted this by focusing on energy savings – for example, replacing