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University of Reading: Energy Savings with Cheetah
The University of Reading was introduced to Cheetah demand-controlled kitchen ventilation in 2020 following an engineering doctoral thesis on "Energy Reduction in Commercial Food Preparation" undertaken at the university. This case study demonstrates the impact of installing Cheetah across six restaurants at the Whiteknights campus, contributing to the university's commitment to the Net Zero on Campus: From Principles to Action initiative - a collaborative effort between SDSN, the Climateworks Centre, and Monash University aimed at accelerating campus decarbonisation worldwide.
The Challenge
The university's hospitality teams wanted to achieve significant energy reductions across their catering facilities, particularly in fan energy consumption and the heating of supply air. Like many educational institutions, they needed measurable carbon savings with attractive payback periods to justify investment while maintaining kitchen comfort and operational performance.
The Solution
Cheetah demand-controlled ventilation was installed across six campus restaurants. The system works by controlling fan speeds to match extract rates with actual cooking demands. Fans run at minimum speed by default, then automatically increase extraction when sensors detect smoke, high temperatures, low airflow, or elevated COâ‚‚ levels in the kitchen. Initial trial monitoring compared the system's performance against traditional constant-speed operation to verify energy savings before campus-wide rollout.
The Results
The trial period delivered compelling results, with average daily energy savings of 97.79 kWh from fans at a single site. Following successful trials, Cheetah was rolled out across all six restaurants. Campus-wide performance monitoring showed an average 57% energy reduction from supply and extract fans, plus a 30% reduction in energy required for battery-heating of supply air - a crucial achievement for the university's sustainability goals.
The financial case proved equally strong, with simple payback periods ranging from 0.71 to 1.43 years. The carbon impact equated to the energy consumption of over 45 average UK homes - significant progress toward the university's Net Zero commitments. The university is now exploring innovative heat recovery systems from its catering facilities to build on this success.
Key Benefits
The installation represented a successful collaboration between industry developers, estates teams, hospitality staff, maintenance crews, sustainability leaders, and the university's own doctoral graduate. The project demonstrates that demand-controlled ventilation can deliver substantial energy savings, attractive payback periods, and meaningful carbon reductions while maintaining kitchen comfort and operational performance.