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This article emphasizes the importance of HVAC for hotel properties. Hotels have to work diligently on replacing the climate controls in HVAC systems and to make sure HVAC systems work properly in order to be more efficient and provide hotel guests with comfortable environment, resulting in guests' overall satisfaction. Large and modern commercial HVACs can save a large amount of money on unnecessary power costs and constant maintenance with proper controls. However, there are many hotels that cannot afford the large machinery of an HVAC, so this article introduces PTAC, Packaged terminal air conditioner, which is a type of self-contained heating and air conditioning system, for small-sized hotel properties. Generally, PTAC generates negative sound and visual impact on a room. Randy Dawes, corporate director of facilities at Select Hotels, advices hotels with PTACs to use transcendental wheel technology over fan blades, which reduces noise. This article also urges hotels to upgrade or replace their old HVACs for state of the art HVACs now. Since there are state and local rebates available for upgrading to modern HVAC technology, it is a good time to do so.

Good facility management of a hotel can make the service indispensable and delight the customers. But it's not a easy work. It is related to almost every department of a hotel. Abaris came up with a facility management solution on cloud. The solution mainly focus on three parts, which are housekeeping service, security services and maintenance & engineering services. With its help, a hotel can change its way to operate the business and ensure integration between operations and back-office departments. As a result, it can provide perfect service to meet customer requirements.

Energy management systems provide a number of benefits to a hotel property: - better tracking and targeting of preventative maintenance programs - extend the life of equipment through better maintenance - auto-off climate controls - direct interface with the PMS system All these factors add up to provide cost savings in energy usage, improvement in engineer efficiency and effectiveness and increased equipment longevity. An energy management system brings value to the property and likely pays for itself over time through these benefits.

This article depicts how AR (augmented reality) is being implemented in the hospitality industry to improve the physical environment and experiences the hotels are offering to the consumer. It provides a real time data feed to customers at the right time and place giving great customer service in the end result. Some examples how it is being implemented is that with AR you are able to transport the customer directly to the room they want to explore in real-time and in real retrospective as if they were there. With the creating of AR apps like "Pokemon Go" hotels can create similar games in which it rewards the customers with discounts and other incentives. So with the rise of technology we can definitely look forward to how technology can hep us prior to our choice of booking experience the outcome of what to expect without leaving the comfort of our living room.

This is a very comprehensive article that talks about the web-based, Software as a Service systems (SaaS). It is different from the traditional PMS and it has advantages over the traditional one. The author gave us five advantages of SaaS. All of the five advantages are so good that after read this article, I think there will be a trend that it will be the SaaS world in the future and this trend will continue.  However, the author didn't write any disadvantages. Usually for a company to make a decision before the company knows not only the pros and but also the cons.

The advantages offered by SaaS systems are very similar to that of which property managers have to solve. It controls property's operations such as processing reservations, check-ins and check-outs. Saas stands for Software as a Service which drives the attention of new technology for property management which includes moving tenant services online, offering web site creation and integration, eliminating the need for extensive software training and maintenance, enhancing communication between the owners and managers and it helps improve record keeping and security.

With technology evolving the property management  software.  Most  vendors are now offering  web-based, Software as a Service  is being  adopted by most property managers are adopting it because  they the advantages of the SaaS model help them accomplished most of their goals.which are to move tenants services online,  offering website creation and integration, eliminate the need for software training and maintenance ,improve  record keeping and security as well as better record keeping.  Furthermore this service can be accessed on smartphone as well as tablets. And also one of the primary characteristics of SaaS property management vendors is that they've designed their systems specifically to be easy-to-use and to appeal to those who aren't especially tech savvy. This results in a faster learning curve for property managers who are not technically proficient. And also it offers  better record  keeping since it  back up the data.

This article talks about the benefits of adding technology to a preventative maintenance program, how it can save money and time for a building

This articles discusses the top 6 benefits of having PMS in your business and their importance.

This article share some pros and cons about utilizing a digital menu. It describes the convinces involved in using this device and also how cost for repairs and maintenance can be disheartening. All in all, digital menu's are becoming the new trend in this world but this shouldn't eliminate the need for waiters/waitresses.

To briefly summarize, as mentioned in the section of the book, a physical plant of a hospitality operation compromises of the ground, exterior and interior finishes, building systems, FF&E, HVAC systems, and plumbing too. Protecting the physical plant ensures the hotel controls and minimizes energy. Maintenance cost is a big concern when overseeing the physical plant sense it is such a big portion of the hotel. Technical and managerial functions must be performed to ensure the hotel is running smoothly and all maintenance are being kept up and to check that energy is not being wasted.

Property management systems (PMS) were originally only for front desk needs like booking reservations, checking guest in and out, charging accounts, and managing room assignments. The newer PMS systems have enhanced the check in and check out process, maintenance and housekeeping management, and accounts receivable management. The check in and check out process has been enhanced by the newer cloud based PMS systems by giving the front desk the ability to provide service anywhere and anytime. It is more accessible and can update room statuses in real time. As housekeeping cleans rooms the room statuses are updated through their mobile cleaning device into the PMS system. Also, the PMS system allows the front desk to communicate with the maintenance and housekeeping staff for last minute guest request and complaints. The cloud based PMS system also allows the front desk to have access to revenue management. This way the front desk can have access to accounts receivable and update it as payments come in from previous guest. This enables faster and more accurate billing for guest. As technology advances it is important for the hospitality industry to stay updated so that guest and employees needs are met. Keeping up with the technological trends allows companies to remain competitive.

This article tell us what is PMS and what benefits it can brings to the hotels operation. Automating daily operations and administrative tasks is an important part of achieving customer satisfaction as it helps provide reliable and quality service time after time. A hotel is a complex system that encompasses the activities of many departments, and every operation must be tracked

More than a "platform that enabled a hotel or group of hotels to manage front-office capabilities", modern PMS is "a critical business operations system that enables hoteliers to deliver a seamless guest experience" by integrating many other systems. PMS offers many kinds of benefits to hoteliers, including improving housekeeping services and revenue management. The deployment of PMS is also a consideration. While most PMS systems were on-premise, there do have cloud-based ones that reduces cost in an innovative way. It also helps in enhancing customer lifetime value and increase RevPAR and ADR.

PMS are designed to create greater efficiency. Both on-premise and a cloud-based systems have similar core functions. The differences are on-premise software must be physically installed on all computers that will require access. The server holds all of the data, which is located on the property. The security of the data and the maintenance of the hardware is the properties responsibility. Cloud software's security is in the hands of the company who owns the software. When it comes to the big differences between the two, it comes down to deployment, technical requirements, cost, and accessibility.

Augmented reality has changed the way facilities management functions. AR technology has capabilities of tracking preventative maintenance check-ups and wearable technology to provide instructions to engineers. These systems also store and maintain work order statuses and relay communications to other team members and departments.

This article tells us how Augmented Reality (AR) is a major tool for the Hotel Industry. AR can be used for interactive hotel rooms, augmented hotel environments, and Beacon technology. AR is the key for providing information to guest before and once they arrive to improve their experience.

This article addresses a main point, "cloud computing is a growing sector". it further accents the economic factor in cloud computing and the need for capital for its maintenance and viability. The article specifically speaks to the limitation of providers due to the high cost required for its implementation. Specifically, where it says " given", the substantial upfront capital needed to be competitive in the field, addresses directly the point that only large developers with deep pockets will be able to not only enter this arena, but also sustain themselves in it. The article also makes a compelling point which is not contradictory , but thought provoking which is that although it is expensive and there is extensive competition, the market and the need is "huge". This means that potentially regardless of the resources it takes to start up, there will be a demand and need for cloud computing services in the future, particularly as more entities refrain and stay away from development and maintenance of their own in house services. The article focuses on the largest players in the sector which one expect are the tech giants; Amazon, Microsoft and Google and the fact that they have a two thirds of market share in the present day, which is a lions share of the market by any standards. The article further discusses this sector in foreign markets and the effect economies such as the Chinese economies will have on these sectors, and in fact addresses how instability in Asian markets directly affect the stability of cloud computing domestically. This is a key area to watch in the future.

In the United States, hotels represent more than 5 billion square feet of space, nealry 5 million guest rooms and approxiamtely $4 billion in annual energy use. As of January 2010, there were only 40 hotels that were LEED certified. The acronym LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. LEED is a voluntary, third party green building certification program that awards points to buildings depending on their sustainable practice being implemented which includes building improvements, environemntal footprint and water and energy use. LEED was developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, a nonprofit organization. Its main purpose is to provide building owners and operators with a basic framework for developing and implementing sustainable practices. The first hotel to ever be certified according to LEED criteria was the Proximity Hotel in Greensboro, NC. This hote received Platnium status for being able to recycle 87% of its construction debris, purchasing 40% of the building materials and 90% of its furniture locally. Installation of 100 solar panels, use of geothermal energy for the restaurant's refrigeration equipment and instllation of a Regenerative Drive model for its elevators made the Proximity Hotel a benchmark hotel. There are several practices that can make a hotel conserve energy and make it sustainable such as using flourescent lightbulbs, offering linen and towel reuse programs, paving parkig lots with highly reflective materials or open grid pavers, installing high-efficiency plumbing fixtures, landscaping with native plants and using local materials and goods. These will not necessarily lead to LEED certification but will definitely earn points towards obtaining that accredidation. The use of sustainable practices not only helps conserve the environment but also saves money in the long run. Through water conservation techniques, recycling and linen and towel reuse programs, the hospitality industry wins two-fold,

This article expounds how Monscierge, a hospitality technology company, continues to exceed expectations for new mobile-based services in the hospitality industry.The article also highlights the fact that this company has achieved this by specializing in mobile and wearables, computer software and lobby devices throughout the world. Monscierge has received the award of its' second patent for mobile services provided to hospitality customers. This allows hotels to receive a request for additional towels from guests using mobile devices, the request reaches a staff member who would then acknowledge the request, provide an estimated time of delivery and complete this delivery. Whereas in the past such requests via mobile devices were only made for services such as food & beverage, maintenance issues, additional room items, valet return and even customized guest requirements. All in all, this company's ultimate goal is to make technology "easy to use, easy to scale, and affordable for hospitality".

This article indicates that there are three majors shaping our world between now and 2020. Those are the cloud, mobility, and Cellular Offload. We should determine the major trends, and then invest in solutions that align with those trends. Interestingly, it is mentioned some insights provide clues as which investments will be future proof to and witch will be risks. From hospitality perspective, equipment and maintenance performed by on-site or locally based staff, which is great for all owners. Also, It can be seen that the cloud allows investors to make big investments in its service.

This article introduced three major trends that we think will shape our world between now and 2020. The author thought one of the biggest challenges for any technology executive is predicting the landscape of toolsets and IT infrastructure that will be available in the future. The correct choice can last at least 10 years and there are three major trends, cloud, mobility and cellular offload. For cloud, the author thought it is good for hospitality. It holds the promise of relieving the hotel owner of responsibility for managing the operation and integration of premise-based systems, with associated costs for deployment, equipment and maintenance performed by on-site or locally based staff. Also, the author thought the mobility creates both opportunity and challenge. It can be used to both define new service models and revenue streams, and to improve existing ones. Today's challenge is that mobility requires massive investment in wireless infrastructure and bandwidth .Finally, the author thought as it is far cheaper for a cellular carrier to build or fund a Wi-Fi network, than to install an additional cell tower and/or buy additional spectrum, it is good news for hotels. It means that cellular companies have an economic reason to help fund hotel Wi-Fi networks.

Article speaks about hotel automation systems by vendors, that allow hotels to reduce energy and utility costs that impact the bottom line. The EPA estimated that in 2004 the hotel industry spent more than $5 billion on energy and that the number was likely to increase. Items such as occupancy based thermostats communicate over wireless networks and allow hotel staff to perform maintenance tasks such as detect issues with in-room HVAC systems before guests call in to report the items. Other systems use energy monitoring systems that allow for the hotel to detect room temperatures. This is significant as those rooms temperature and lighting systems can know whether the occupant is in the room and adjust lighting and temperature settings accordingly. Energy waste in hotels is an issue that affects the bottom line so the potential for ROI is great. Implementation of many of these systems is flexible as many are built on wireless networks that do not require heavy physical installation of wiring. Interested in the groups thoughts on this?