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At first, GDS’ were only meant for the air travel reservations but as years have passed, GDS systems became more and more evolved. As a direct consequence to this fact, GDS’ were also implemented for hospitality industry use.

At first, GDS’ were only meant for the air travel reservations but as years have passed, GDS systems became more and more evolved. As a direct consequence to this fact, GDS’ were also implemented for hospitality industry use.

At first, GDS’ were only meant for the air travel reservations but as years have passed, GDS systems became more and more evolved. As a direct consequence to this fact, GDS’ were also implemented for hospitality industry use.

At first, GDS’ were only meant for the air travel reservations but as years have passed, GDS systems became more and more evolved. As a direct consequence to this fact, GDS’ were also implemented for hospitality industry use.

However, due to the fact that GDS’ were originally created to distribute plane tickets, their database structure was specifically designed to store information about this product.

At first, GDS’ were only meant for the air travel reservations but as years have passed, GDS systems became more and more evolved.

At first, GDS’ were only meant for the air travel reservations but as years have passed, GDS systems became more and mor

At first, GDS’ were only meant for the air travel reservations but as years have passed, GDS systems became more and more evolved.

However, due to the fact that GDS’ were originally created to distribute plane tickets, their database structure was specifically designed to store information about this product.

The first major impact that GDS had on the travel market was that the number of flights was increased. This led to an increase of competition and therefore travel industry prices fell. Travel agencies were accustomed with receiving a fixed fee (usually 10%) from everything they managed to sell, so once the prices started to fall, they felt threatened with the loss of their earnings. In order to counter this, travel agencies began to offer complimentary products such as car rental, hotel and other related forms of accommodation, bus tickets, vacation packages, yacht rides and even flowers and champagne. This was the first major step towards GDS’ being used within the hospitality industry.

As mentioned before, one of the first products distributed by GDS was hotel accommodation. Hotels have loaded the information related to their different types of rooms, description and price categories within the airline reservation system database. When this information became available online, thousand of clients started making bookings all around the world. This fact was advantageous for each participant. Hotels benefited from distributing their products to a larger audience, travel agencies had the opportunity of booking more products through their computerized system and GDS benefited from a growth in booking volume, which helped them to lower operating costs.

The first major impact that GDS had on the travel market was that the number of flights was increased. This led to an increase of competition and therefore travel industry prices fell. Travel agencies were accustomed with receiving a fixed fee (usually 10%) from everything they managed to sell, so once the prices started to fall, they felt threatened with the loss of their earnings. In order to counter this, travel agencies began to offer complimentary products such as car rental, hotel and other related forms of accommodation, bus tickets, vacation packages, yacht rides and even flowers and champagne. This was the first major step towards GDS’ being used within the hospitality industry.

The first major impact that GDS had on the travel market was that the number of flights was increased. This led to an increase of competition and therefore travel industry prices fell. Travel agencies were accustomed with receiving a fixed fee (usually 10%) from everything they managed to sell, so once the prices started to fall, they felt threatened with the loss of their earnings. In order to counter this, travel agencies began to offer complimentary products such as car rental, hotel and other related forms of accommodation, bus tickets, vacation packages, yacht rides and even flowers and champagne. This was the first major step towards GDS’ being used within the hospitality industry.

The first major impact that GDS had on the travel market was that the number of flights was increased. This led to an increase of competition and therefore travel industry prices fell. Travel agencies were accustomed with receiving a fixed fee (usually 10%) from everything they managed to sell, so once the prices started to fall, they felt threatened with the loss of their earnings. In order to counter this, travel agencies began to offer complimentary products such as car rental, hotel and other related forms of accommodation, bus tickets, vacation packages, yacht rides and even flowers and champagne. This was the first major step towards GDS’ being used within the hospitality industry.

The first major impact that GDS had on the travel market was that the number of flights was increased. This led to an increase of competition and therefore travel industry prices fell. Travel agencies were accustomed with receiving a fixed fee (usually 10%) from everything they managed to sell, so once the prices started to fall, they felt threatened with the loss of their earnings. In order to counter this, travel agencies began to offer complimentary products such as car rental, hotel and other related forms of accommodation, bus tickets, vacation packages, yacht rides and even flowers and champagne. This was the first major step towards GDS’ being used within the hospitality industry.

The first major impact that GDS had on the travel market was that the number of flights was increased. This led to an increase of competition and therefore travel industry prices fell. Travel agencies were accustomed with receiving a fixed fee (usually 10%) from everything they managed to sell, so once the prices started to fall, they felt threatened with the loss of their earnings. In order to counter this, travel agencies began to offer complimentary products such as car rental, hotel and other related forms of accommodation, bus tickets, vacation packages, yacht rides and even flowers and champagne. This was the first major step towards GDS’ being used within the hospitality industry.

Nowadays global distribution systems interconnect almost everything within the hospitality industry, from hotels to car rental companies and travel agencies. There are four major GDS available: Amadeus, Galileo, Sabre and WorldSpan. Some of the advantages provided by GDS are their availability (99,9% of the time), their response times (up to a fraction of a second), their multiple booking capability, as well as their top of the line architecture. On any given day, a GDS will be capable of accessing over 50000 hotels and approximately 1000 airlines. Through GDS systems, people are able to book various hotel rooms, tours, airline seats, cruises and even limousines.

The working idea behind a GDS is this: any GDS provides services to an electronic shop for all information related to travel and reservation-related needs. In other words, the GDS has become a very important distribution channel for any product sold through travel agencies. Basically, if a vendor wants to be sold through travel agents, he must be listed on a GDS

hospitality industry

energy savings

Philips’ 7 W master GU10 LED lamp with DimTone

improve the bottom line

enhance guests’ comfort

hospitality managers are under pressure to cut costs without compromising on their guests’ experience

42% of energy use comes from lighting, of which 70% is inefficien

cost of lighting this area has been reduced by 82% with a payback of one-and-a-half years based on 12 burning hours a day.

2. Tablet Restaurant ManagementBusy hosts may like the New York City-based app Breadcrumb, which was created by a team of restaurateurs turned software makers. This flexible iPad app provides real-time views of tables, catalogs the menu by a selection's name or ingredients, processes sales and delivery tickets and sends orders to the kitchen.

1. Touchscreen Food VendorsDigital boxes such as the MooBella Ice Creamery Machine can produce 96 variations of cool treats in 40 seconds. Another example is Coca-Cola's Freestyle soda fountain has the potential to dispense more than 100 distinct beverages from one touchscreen device.

Connected devices could turn out to be a game-changer in this area. Almost every electronic can be replaced with its ‘connected’ counterpart – from lighting to HVAC systems. With each of these devices being assigned an independent IP address, they will be capable of communicating and interacting with one another. A single device detecting any form of human interaction – or the lack of it – can immediately prompt a multitude of other devices into taking an action, triggering a preordained chain of events.

Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) provide companies with the opportunity to minimize their carbon footprint by meeting more of their demands using clean energy.

“Technology companies want to know how much energy they use when they stay with us, and it does play a role in their decision,”

The biggest problem managers have faced has been managing electricity in unoccupied rooms, but with connected devices soon to come to every hotel room, properties will be able to control their power usage effectively for the first time.

initiatives such as installing dual-flush attachments and rain-water harvesting systems, managers can save this precious resource and lower their costs doing it.

Branding and packaging is another area where hotels can be more thrifty – using biodegradable or reusable shampoo and soap dispensers are eco-friendly alternatives to distributing individual sachets.

today, going green is no longer about forging an emotional connection with the audience, it’s the only logical option left for companies that want to secure their long term interests.

operational areas and sustainable practices, including community outreach efforts.

1-5 Green Key rating based on a comprehensive evaluation

Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver is one of only 30 distinguished hotels worldwide to be recognized as a Five Green Key Hotel.

Sempa Hybrid Heating System, which reduces the hotel's green house gas emissions by 20% to 50% per month

comprehensive recycling program and by newly installing energy-efficient, LED lighting sources designed to last up to 40 years.

Eco-Luxury program, which allows them to choose how often their bed linens and towels are refresh

sustainable dining options, from catered group functions to private dining in YEW restaurant + bar.

donates food, shampoos, soaps, bedding and linens to local social assistance organizations and charities.

Switching to the cloud from a client server platform pays off with a big drop in both the initial capital outlay and the ongoing operating costs for the property management and other systems.

pects of a franchisee’s business, from guest check-ins and housekeeping services to billing and finances. Over time new features have been rolled into the software platform making it more robust and useful for hotel owners—it’s currently distributed in eight countries and available in four languages. And while plenty of cloud-based PMS packages are now available from third-party vendors like Micros, Maestro, and RoomKey, Choice’s internal solution has garnered its fair share of attention. “We had been getting knocks on the door from IT vendors at other hotel companies and individual Choice franchisees that own other brands, saying they were interested in our product,” says Pacious, “So we set up a new division so we could take a look at other opportunities we could develop.” This led the company to launch SkyTouch last year, a new division that develops and markets cloud-based software solutions to hotels inside and outside the Choice system. Pages: 1 2 3 4 2013-06-18 Sean Downey !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs"); (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk')); (function() { var po = document.createElement('script'); po.type = 'text/javascript'; po.async = true; po.src = 'https://apis.google.com/js/plusone.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(po, s); })(); (function() { var li = document.createElement('script'); li.type = 'text/javascript'; li.async = true; li.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https:' : 'http:') + '//platform.stumbleupon.com/1/widgets.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(li, s); })(); inShare0 Related Articles attachment-3

his led the company to launch SkyTouch last year, a new division that develops and markets cloud-based software solutions to hotels inside and outside the Choice system. Pages: 1 2 3 4 2013-06-18 Sean Downey !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs"); (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk')); (function() { var po = document.createElement('script'); po.type = 'text/javascript'; po.async = true; po.src = 'https://apis.google.com/js/plusone.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(po, s); })(); (function() { var li = document.createElement('script'); li.type = 'text/javascript'; li.async = true; li.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https:' : 'http:') + '//platform.stumbleupon.com/1/widgets.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(li, s); })(); inShare0 Related Articles Hotel Market Insight: Cleveland a

This led the company to launch SkyTouch last year, a new division that develops and markets cloud-based software solutions to hotels inside and outside the Choice system.

After doing some thorough research, we decided to invest in Sage Intacct, a cloud-based financial ERP, because we felt its features – particularly automation – could take on our day-to-day tasks, and give our finance department the time in their day to provide trusted strategic advice, rather than mostly crunch numbers.

Our finance team was able to shorten our consolidations process from more than a week to less than four hours per month, cut our monthly close in half – from twenty to fewer than ten days – and regained 24 hours a week – previously spent on cash analysis.

Most importantly, a cloud-based financial ERP changed our culture. The finance team saw productivity gains that made us better business partners across the organization. We could provide advice on strategic business decisions

Despite the rise in demand for contactless payments, many states and cities in the U.S. have passed laws banning cashless stores.

Millennials are the ones leading the charge toward a cashless future.

Nearly a third of U.S. adults said they typically make no purchase using cash during a week, according to a study by Pew Research Center.

Those within the industry maintain that the future of contactless payments remains promising.

Know the total cost of all facility work done both directly and indirectly. “To the untrained eye, the facilities maintenance arm of a business appears to be a black hole of cost. The costs of these FM services add up, and unless discrepancies arise, that is where most of the business analysis ends. However, facilities maintenance managers, who are privy to all of the nuances that make up eac

h work order, understand the complexities and overhead involved in this sector of business.

Consider less obvious improvements that impact facility energy use. “Some energy-related projects will be more or less hidden from the users and primarily pursued to reduce energy demand, such as chiller and fan-unit upgrades. Such projects may end up providing the building users with better temperature control, but this is not the primary goal of the upgrade

Operational changes such as reducing the hours of HVAC and lighting operation, and changing setback temperatures, which require very little expenditure (if any at all) do not directly affect user experience, but can produce large reductions in electricity loads. In general, working with the building operations team to reduce energy use can produce impressive reductions in loa

his allows building and facility management professionals to determine whether the cost to improve a particular element of a building or a system in it against the cost savings over the same period. If the cost of an upgrade over its lifetime offers an advantage over the building operational costs it will save, then it’s generally considered a good investmen

“Finding the right suppliers to maintain your facilities can be difficult and time-consuming. From janitorial services, to groundskeeping and maintenance supplies, ensuring suppliers are providing apples-to-apples quotes, developing contracts with clear service levels, and validating that supplier quality

“Boilers today can reach efficiencies of up to 96 percent using condensing technology; however, a typical building, including new buildings, uses atmospheric type boilers which, for all intents and purposes, are only slightly more advanced than a science lab Bunsen burner. This technology is reliable and it works, but it is expensive to operate

An energy audit systematically identifies and develops opportunities to help reduce energy use in an institutional or commercial facility and, as a result, decrease building operating costs. Focusing the audit is imperative for maintenance and engineering managers.

“Commercial kitchens are high energy users, consuming roughly 2.5 times more energy per square foot than any other commercial space, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  Of that, as little as 40% is used in the preparation and storage of food, says the UK’s Carbon Trust; much of the wasted energy is dispersed into the kitchen.

All commercial buildings are insulated; building codes make it mandatory to insulate up to  a certain level. Unfortunately, because most buildings are put up under strict guidance to budgets, they are usually put up with only the minimal amount of insulation

Develop performance measures for your PM process with an emphasis on measuring the amount of PM that is work completed compared to all other work. Total PM hours should be the highest percentage of all the department’s maintenance work. This goal might seem impossible, but over time, it is very achievable

“Preventative maintenance is all about planning, plain and simple. Every piece of equipment or machinery at your disposal or under your care should have a schedule of what type of maintenance it requires and when it requires that check-up.

“Failure modes are defined as “how something fails.” Let’s use a flat/membrane roof to show an example of what a failure mode is. On a flat/membrane roof, one failure mode may be “penetration of roof membrane,” and the causes of this failure mode could be many. Knowing the failure mode(s) of a specific maintainable item such as a membrane roof and its causes can be key to early detection of roof failure (not meeting the intent of the end user) so the repair can be made before it affects an operatio

“Catch small problems now before they become big ones. Addressing small details can add up to huge improvements in appearance and functionality. Ask your facilities services provider, janitorial company

You may schedule preventive maintenance based on meter readings on an equipment. However, equipment meters usually do not differentiate between work time and idle time

Greasing the rack and pinion of a beam saw, for instance, can cause grease and saw dust to solidify inside the gears over time, eventually preventing them from moving. If you’re unsure which tasks are beneficial to each piece of equipment, ask your equipment representative.”

Having spare parts and supplies around the time of a major preventive maintenance schedule is absolutely critical. Asset management software allows you to check the availability of the spare parts for dates when the work orders are due. This report can help you identify parts that are insufficient for the required work orders in the future. If you know which parts you are falling short on, you can order them in advance from suppliers rather than waiting till re-order limits are reached

“Appropriate repetition and reinforcement are necessary. The average person is bombarded with more than 300 messages while at work, and multiples of that outside of work, Finney says. Getting a message to land with an audience might take as many as 12 repetitions, in some cases, he says

Let’s get together: when you’re designing your facilities, design social spaces for your employees. These might be lunch or break rooms, games rooms, gyms, or even community gardens.

While other managers may work to manage clients or staff, your job is to manage facilities and all that occurs in them. Your corporation’s physical assets are just as important as your human resources, and you are the expert in this field. Whether it’s collating data or contributing to the organization’s bottom line, your input is a valuable part of corporate decision-making

 “Workplace inclusion has to be clearly defined before any initiatives can be pushed forward. One useful definition of an inclusive office is a workplace in which all staff are treated with respect and have equal access to resources and opportunities. Facility managers should build on this high-level description to create an idea of what concepts like equal access, diversity and fairness look like in their own facilities

Space costs money. Knowing that we are moving towards a working environment consisting of virtual or mobile workers, investing time in developing new workplace designs that can suit these new ways of working while increasing space utilization rates can result in impressive cost savings

Performing facility maintenance and engineering tasks is like sailing among icebergs. What technicians can’t see will sink them — or their facilities. Thermal imaging technology gives technicians the ability to see the unseen, making it easier to spot failing motors and electrical components,

This concept is broadly used to describe our attempt to formally identify in-house talent in many of our labor shops. We identify talent through a competitive selection process based on potential vs. skills and promote our selected personnel to the worker and helper level while training them to achieve appropriate full mechanic level with associated certifications/licenses

This directly leads to the client receiving a more fit-for-purpose solution and ultimately receiving greater value which grows a greater relationship.

In other words, there has to be a compelling reason based on our mission for why we would submit budgets for anything.” By presenting specific information on how and why you’ve chosen your budget numbers, you can help the C-suite see that your budget is well within reason

When you automate the work order process, you remove human error associated with it. Essentially, you’re taking the people out of the process and ensuring nothing gets missed or overlooked

“There are many different software options out there than can aid FMs in organizing and streamlining their everyday tasks. This ranges from software designed to help manage all maintenance activities to logging and tracking facility visitors for security purposes. 

uch smart sensors, operating costs are dramatically reduced, productivity is enhanced, and occupants’ comfort is improved.

“One of the most exciting features of Facilities Management software is the ability to manage heating and cooling remotely, or set a programmable thermostat to move set temperatures up or down throughout the day. Facilities planners love the ability to analyze and explore energy use from heating and cooling systems

“Maintenance and facilities administration systems must frequently abide by national and global regulatory requirements. All maintenance administrators face occasional random or audits inspections by regulatory authorities. Maintenance software enables you to prove regulatory conformity and decrease the amount of paperwork and preparation that is needed for an audit.

KPIs allude to opportunities and errors in your company. Paired with the Internet of Things (IoT) and energy management systems, KPIs can be used to highlight missed maintenance tasks, greater traffic area of your business or problems with machinery

“Closely monitoring energy and water use to reduce building-operating costs is another benefit. By allowing owners to monitor and analyze the performance of multiple systems—air-conditioning levels, lights on automatic dimmers, water usage

“A feature that’s gaining a lot of ground is using facial recognition technology to let people in and out of the building. It’s more secure than key fobs or cards, and unlike cards and fobs, you can’t forget your face at home. It’s like batting a triple, or killing three birds with one stone

You cannot do your job properly without the correct information. If you don’t have proper records on the state of your facilities, you can’t do your job as a facilities manager.

“A surprising number of facilities managers have no true system in place for managing their space.  More than a quarter of everyone interviewed – 28 percent –

. It may help significantly with compliance with various industry standards, such as HIPAA in the healthcare industry and Sarbanes-Oxley in the financial field. It can help to document best practices for avoiding accidents, or in the worst case scenario,

This method identifies how critical a piece of equipment or maintenance task is to your business and will ultimately show you where it should land in your prioritization process

Smartsheet is a spreadsheet that you share with your co-workers, but its features go far beyond Excel. This tool combines the traditional spreadsheet with project management tools, templates, and forms and allows you and your colleagues to access spreadsheets on mobile devices and work on them collaboratively

The business world is increasingly embracing a larger remote workforce. Offices are used as areas to collaborate, develop, and design new ideas. The day-to-day work can be, and often is, done from home

“Another possibility for cutting costs, say experts, is not just moving staff around, but moving work around also. This means carefully examining all outsourcing contracts to see if they can be scaled back and the work completed by in-house staff

“Verify assets from a minimum of two data points, such as the barcode and the item’s serial number.

After collecting data and developing a maintenance schedule for your assets, you need to plan for the long-term maintenance of your asset inventory

However good asset management and maintenance planning is, there comes a time when an asset reaches the end of its useful life and should be disposed of.

“If you’re trying to get a handle of your documents, the first thing you should do is an asset assessment. Detail the condition of all the main equipment and systems, and document those conditions

Strategic asset management integrates key relationships between planning and delivery activities.

Maximize your use of vertical cubic footage by placing seasonal products or those that move less frequently in harder-to-reach vertical storage areas

The growing concern over sustainability in the business sector led to developments in innovative environment friendly processes and tools collectively called green technology

Green technology enables the eco-friendly practices of business firms.

The concept of sustainability emerged in the field of natural sciences in recognition of the scarcity of natural resources and the need to rationalize usage to secure sufficient resources for future generations (Kirk, 1995).

The concern of sustainability is ensuring the continuation of the well-being of people and protection of the environment from wasteful use or destructive activities.

The implementation of sustainability plans involves innovative methods and tools accessible to hotels and responsive to the multi-dimensional issues including impact of operations on the environment experienced by hotels. Green technology understood as eco-friendly tools and processes or environment friendly products support the successful implementation of sustainability plans in the hospitality industry.

1.      Minimized pollution and rational energy and water consumption. 2.      Respect for culture and tradition. 3.      Community involvement in the hospitality economy. 4.     Consideration of quality instead of quantity in terms of the visitors to tourist destinations. 5.      Economic benefits redound to the community. (Robertson, 2007)

In relation to environmental sustainability, there are also considerations for inclusion into the sustainability plan of hotels to ensure that they meet environmental compliance (Butler, 2008)

However, even if sustainability planning is a tedious task, the expected outcomes are long-term and compelling because this determines the continuity or viability of hotels, firms whose future survival depends on sustainability (Butler, 2008).

1.      Scale and distribution of operations in a given area. 2.      Hotel demand and means of alleviating the negative effects. 3.      Protection of key assets historic buildings, townscape or coastline. 4.     Contribution to other related areas such as economic development and cultural preservation. (Sharma, 2004)

Since the sustainability of hotels spans multidimensional aspects, the contribution of hotels to other areas such as employment or job creation also supports its sustainability.

Green technology received recognition as an aspect of human society and therefore part of sustainability. In a sustainability panel of representatives from the hospitality industry, sustainability as a strategy meant addressing today’s needs without adversely affecting tomorrow’s needs (Knowles, 2008).

Examples of product enhancement are energy saving appliances and fixtures such as fluorescent instead of incandescent lights or intelligent air conditioning systems that regulate room temperature depending on the presence of its occupant

The extent of reduction of waste varies since this could range from minimal to significant decrease in the volume of waste generated, capacity of landfills, and transportation needs. By benefiting the environment, economic benefits also accrue. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)

dopting waste management processes and tools accrues financial, economic, and environmental benefits for hotels.

Key to these activities is the ability to harness the full functional value of materials and product components at the least possible additional processing cost for recovery and reuse. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)

First is design of recycling or the cost-effective manner of recovering and reusing materials. The design provides support during the disposal stage to ensure low added cost for recovery. Second is design for disassembly encompassing the methods enabling the minimization of cost in segregating reusable materials. This leads to savings that accumulate when design interventions are made during the stages of material selection and assembly that already separates reusable materials

Third is toxics management comprised of the activities of controlling and eliminating toxic materials that are innate components of products such as cadmium or lead. Excessive levels of these toxic materials are hazards to health and the environment. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)

Environmental benefits include reduced accumulation of waste and lesser risk of soil, water and air contamination of toxic production. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)

Pollution prevention involves the elimination of processes in manufacturing that cause pollution. This requires change by redesigning the production process in a manner that prevents the accumulation of harmful by-products or the redesign of the finished products so there would be no use for processes that result in hazardous by-products. The prevention of pollution in production design exacts capital investments but the cost of redesign is deemed less when compared to the cumulative cost of controlling pollution, which would likely increase with new regulations imposing more active methods of pollution control. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)

Green technology as a process and a collection of tools addresses four objectives, which are a) waste reduction, b) materials management, c) pollution prevention, and d) product enhancement (Billatos & Basaly, 1997). There are processes and tools specifically targeting any one, some or all of these objectives so that the appropriate choice depends on the priority of hotels.

The technological development of product enhancement innovations is escalating and promise greater functions for business establishments. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)

Utilizing product enhancement technologies influence the sustainability of hotels in terms of savings on operating cost, lesser pollution and waste in the built environment, and value creation for environmental conscious customers (Yaw, 2005).

Overall, green technology supports the sustainability of hotels by decreasing a wide range of economic and non-economic costs to support the financial viability of hotels in the long-term and conserving the natural environment on which the hospitality industry depends for the continuity of business. By adopting green technology, hotels gain processes and tools it can use to secure its sustainability.

A range of energy saving technologies is available to the hotel industry. These technologies could make hotels green buildings by targeting various areas for energy saving.

One is electric heating pumps as alternatives to conventional electric boilers or condensing/non-condensing boilers requiring gas to run. The use of this green technology by a hotel in Hong Kong with a rooftop swimming pool showed a reduction in energy consumption by 26.5-32.5 MWh and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 12,000 kg. When computed over a ten-year period, using this technology would save the hotel HK$226,400 in energy cost savings. The hotel can earn back the cost of adopting this technology in two years. (Chan & Lam, 2003)

Building designs able to harness alternative sources of energy comprise green technologies that support the sustainability of hotels. Solar panels continue to gain function in energy saving for hotels (“Building in a green edge,” 2008) although the payback period is longer than expected, the energy saving potential extends to the long-term. The use of building designs that harness natural light such as skylight atriums that do not use artificial lighting during the day are also green alternatives for hotels (Kirby, 2009).

Another direction of green technology for the kitchen is the reuse of exhaust heat from the kitchen by harnessing the heat from the exhaust or condensing hot air to produce steam for use in cooking. This is a means of recycling energy. However, this involves the integration of the design in the structure of the kitchen or the building itself, which means greater investment. (Higgins, 2008) Nevertheless, further innovations in this technology could enhance practical value for hotels.

In other areas of hotels such as rooms and bathrooms, e-sensor systems and LED lights comprise green technology options. E-sensor systems apply to different systems such as lighting and air conditioning. The e-sensors have the capability to change automatically the lighting or air conditioning settings depending on the area of the room where there are people or temperature changes in the room. LED lights offer greater energy savings than fluorescent lights so this represents the third generation in lighting technology. (Kirby, 2008) Systems thinking in energy management comprise a promising green technology in saving on energy costs (Sobieski, 2008).These technologies are widely available and accessible to different hotels. The energy saving is experienced in the short term and the payback period is shorted. The problem with this is hotel guests tampering with the system leading to added cost for repairs. This means that awareness and information dissemination are important for the effectiveness of these technologies.

Another green technology for rooms is the biodegradable key cards. These have the same life span as the conventional key cards except that these are biodegradable or recyclable. (Gale, 2009) These require little cost with high environmental impact.

This involves the placement of water treatment plants that recycle water used in baths for flushing in toilets. (Edwards, 2004) These comprise viable and accessible water conservation practices that would contribute savings on the cost of water to rationalize the consumption of water as a scarce resource.

One is the conscious involvement of hotels in the protection of the environment since the nature of the business of the hospitality industry and the closely connected industries such as tourism heavily rely on the soundness of the natural and socio-cultural environment for business

The other is the investment in environment protection in a manner that secures economic and financial as well as a range of non-monetary benefits for hotels in the long-term (Vermillion, 2008).

Energy consumption is also a benchmark of the eco-friendliness of hotels

The water conserving technologies provide the process and tools for hotels to achieve this benchmark.

Waste and pollution management are also benchmarks of the ecological involvement of hotels.

Green technology takes the role as an enabling process and tool for hotels to become sustainable.

With hotels competing to maintain its customer base and pull customers to shift to the hotel’s services, green technology could become an enabler for hotels to become competitive.

Investing in green technology enables hotels to significantly cutback on operating cost. This enables hotels a wider profitability margin and room to offer promotional prices to attract more customers (Jones, 2002).

Green technology has taken a central role in the sustainability of hotels. The concept of sustainability of hotels involves the aspects of environmental protection and business viability.

The use of green technology also contributes to the viability of business firms in terms of financial standing and non-financial competencies in the long-term. Going green attracts the niche market of environment enthusiasts that contribute to sales. Using the range of green technologies available would also result in savings from operating costs in the long-term, which increases the profit of hotels and gives them flexibility to invest in marketing activities.

It is a sound strategy for hotels to consider green technology as a process and a collection of tools in support of sustainability goals.

However, he said that because of their marketing dollars, OTAs had a huge impact that would affect consumer behavior—a belief that guests could get the best and cheapest price if they booked via third parties, helping to fuel OTAs’ market share and bringing the issue top of mind for hoteliers’ wallets.

Today’s consumer, thanks to online travel agencies and technology in general, are more sophisticated and educated than they were 20 years ago. That sophistication has touched many areas of the industry.

Enhanced consumer awareness has also led to niches within the industry, such as boutique hotels, extended-stay product and a focus on all guest types that has seen an emergence of new amenities, Rogers said.

“These demands have led to the prevalence of services such as high speed Wi-Fi, complimentary hot breakfast, expanded in-room technology and entertainment options, and fitness centers.”

Rogers said that some older hotels can’t keep up with the shift due to many select-service properties becoming higher end and providing all the amenities guests want.

He said select service will continue to be the industry’s preferred model moving forward because it contributes to higher profit margins and return on investment.

“As the technology and internet became more and more part of our society, it became more complicated to operate the hotels so there is a need for third-party operators and good franchisees,” Rogers said. “It impacted the smaller operators but delivered what the consumer was expecting.”

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Sabre Hospitality Solutions developed a proprietary Content Management Tool (CMT) based on the needs of our clients.

The CMT is developed in a secure environment and is extremely user friendly, empowering our clients to confidently and efficiently manage copy on their Websites. Sabre Hospitality Solutions designed and developed this application in-house, and the application is used in multiple hospitality Websites.

Our E-store solution includes a flexible, easy-to-use product catalog, pre-programmed shopping cart utility, secure checkouts, and automated order management and processing functionality.

Throughout the three-day program, a common theme within each discussion and panel surrounded the growth of the millennial generation within the luxury travel industry.

The art of personalized customer service and authentic experiences, play an increasingly integral role within the luxury market.

Like the Waldorf, tackling the issue of greenhouse gas emissions was already a priority for several of the properties before becoming a part of the NYC Carbon Challenge, but now they’re intensifying their efforts.

Conferences are another big contributor to the industry and more businesses are considering the role of technology such as mobile apps within venues.

In 2008, around 70% of travellers made their reservations online.