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InvoTech system has recently been put in the luxury Canouan Resort for its UHF-RFID system to manage the resort's uniforms, linens, and laundry operations. And InvoTech is one of the top provider for the RFID technology, this can increase profitability for hospitality and tourism business. It is not only reducing not only the labor cost but also increasing the tracking system for all the valuable designers linens of more than 9,000 items with automatic system without sorting or hand couting.  All new technology has been put in this automated system including touch screen, remote access, reading stations. All of this system has been installed prior to the grand opening of the resort, and until now InvoTech has helped the Canouan Resort saving its cost and protect its valuable uniforms and linens efficiently and effectively and become one of a great example in the industry.

This article in USATODAY published in 2011 talks about the cost benefit analysis of RFID tags and hotel linens. Hotels are using this technology to keep an accurate count of all their linens: bathrobes, bed sheets, towels, bathmats, pool towels, etc. The benefit of having an accurate count is especially significant today with the rising price of oil which in turn raises everything including cotton. By investing an additional dollar per towel the Hotel can cut down on labor costs and improve housekeeping productivity. The initial investment is high which is why many hotels cannot afford the technology. I would recommend that high-end luxury hotels invest in the RFID tags however because of the higher prices of luxury linens. By preventing asset pilfering the Hotel will retain their initial investment in linens.

I saw that and I enjoyed your cruise ship article very much. However I am glad that cruise ships are still making RFID wrist bands optional because of privacy concerns, the last thing you want to worry about while on vacation.

In my opinion it's an ideal solution but a bit impratical. Is it worth spending that one extra dollar on all the linens in a hotel just to prevent 5% to 20% known loss? Intention of cutting losses might end with increasing cost. Don't forget the tracking RFID also requires maintenance, which also costs extra.

Hotels around the world are looking for way to cut unnecessary expenses and costs, and are increasingly turning to technology to find a solution to this problem. InvoTech Systems, Inc. has introduced RFID to the JW Marriott Hotel Santo Domingo (in the Dominican Republic) in order to keep track of linens and staff uniforms. RFID (radio-frequency identification) is a growing method in the hospitality industry to collect, store and manage data. All losses will now be accounted for and that will reduce the purchase of replacement uniforms and linens. It is a great way to increase revenue as the hotel will be able to allocate more funds to other pressing matters such as making guests' stay more enjoyable; funds that previously would have had to be disbursed to replace missing linens and uniforms. Also, thanks to handheld readers, this technology is portable and the software seems to be fairly user-friendly.

The use of RFID to track employee uniforms is a phenomenal idea! When people hear RFID they usually think of the ability to fill a shopping cart and walk out while having funds automatically withdrawn from an account or applied to a credit card, but this use is innovative and a sure-fire way to reduce costs associated with inventory loss. At my previous property, the uniform department found that uniforms not being returned was so rampant that they eventually just accepted it as a cost of doing business. The department didn't even attempt to have items returned and employees of the department were always shocked when someone returned an item, especially after leaving the company. Needless to say, this practice probably cost the department a very pretty penny.

"Hilden, supplier of linen products and related services, has launched a solution for the hotel industry, fitting laundry with ultra-frequency Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology, making it easier to track stock. "

In the United Kingdom, hotels are using ultra-frequency Radio Frequency Identification RFID Tags to help track linen demand and theft. Supplier of linen products and other related services have offered the hotel industry-fitting laundry with RFID technology. The idea here is for hotels to monitor and control linen demand and theft by allowing them to adjust and manage supplies accordingly. Keeping track of towels and linens has become for some hotels time consuming and costly. This technology gives full control of the rotation of stock removal and creates a platform that enables hoteliers to view stock on a real time basis. How is this done? Each tag is inserted into the product with a unique ID number, making it possible to monitor the number of washes and provide an accurate audit trail.

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,

The Four Seasons Vancouver has conquered the highest rating for Eco-friendly hotels. This title and rating is only given to 30 hotels nationwide and is extremely competitive in nature. Any hotel has the ability to qualify and is evaluated in several aspects consisting of the following: operational areas, sustainable practices and community outreach efforts. The Four Seasons Vancouver has switched over to a unique heating system that is reducing gas emissions, installed newly efficient LED lighting that will last for up to 40 years, participates in an Eco-friendly laundry system for par linen, offers sustainable dining options and donates to local organizations. Along with public recognition, going green has perks that not only benefit the environment but the hotel as well. The Four Seasons Vancouver has taken many drastic initiatives that will be in place for years to come. This says a lot about this individual property and Four Seasons as a hotel brand. It's exciting to see the opportunity for more hotels to go Green and be the change that we all would like to see.

InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta and Park Hyatt Chicago have upgraded their inventory tracking by implementing new technology, the RFID. This will provide cost saving benefits and more efficient operations by automating manual tasks. With RIFD technology, InterContinental Buckhead Altanta will be able to automatically track each piece when assigned to an employee and as it goes to and from the laundry company. They will be able to know how pieces are sent out and how many return. The system will also reduce labor costs and track daily movement of linen items. All linen items are equipped with UHF_RFID laundry tags. Allowing the new technology to monitor the location of each tagged linen to cut lost-item cost and minimize handling. If any item is not returned, the laundry company is held responsible for the replacement cost. Park Hyatt Chicago has invested in the RIFD Uniform System. This allows uniforms to be automatically tracked when staff members take delivery and when they are sent to the laundry company. They also have a U-Pick-It System in place to distribute uniforms to employees and make sure they are correctly monitor. This reduces garment handling labor expenses and increase the accountability of employees.

Hotel guests are now more interested in connectivity than they used to. With this technology age guests would like to have access "to all things digital that can enhance their experience." Hotels now are spending more time and resources on network technology as they do for other services. For hotels to gain competitive advantage they need to build rooms where everything is on a network.

This brings up a topic that we discussed in one of the earlier weeks in class. Being PCI compliant is a very critical role in guest satisfaction. It makes the guest feel secure and confident that their information is safe and not being shared through other channels.

Another topic that is mention, previously discussed in class, is how paper menus will be replaced and guests will now have access to order via touch screen devices. This does not eliminate servers, but increases efficiency of staff, and increases turnover of tables.

This article shares results from an environmental sustainability study of 100 US resorts and a separate survey of 120,000 hotel guests. It discusses a variety of sustainability initiatives such as water and energy conservation, recycling and waste reduction, LEED construction, and guest engagement. While guest engagement was significant, indicating 75% of guests surveyed actually participated in sustainability initiatives during their stay, the effect on guest satisfaction is modest at best. At best, only 0.6% of guests selected specific properties based on environmental sustainability. Guest participation in sustainability efforts were highest at extended stay locations, followed by luxury and upscale properties, with economy properties placing last. The most effective and commonly used aspect of sustainability efforts was towel and linen reuse, showing up in 91% of the survey responses. Overall, while the traditional drivers of guest satisfaction remain consistent across brands and property types (room, facilities, food and beverage quality), sustainability programs do not lower guest satisfaction, but are increasingly becoming a standard expectation of both guests and employees, and have significant cost-savings potential when implemented and managed effectively.

It's important to build sustainability facility in the hotel. It's a future trend to build a green hotel and sustain the eco-friendly environment. There are many ways to do physical plants. Water consumption Within guest rooms, laundries, kitchens, pools, and spas, hotels continue to phase inefficiencies that reduce water and, in many cases, chemicals that are used to treat water systems and clean facilities. Efforts include the linen and towel reuse programs that are now an industry standard to the installation of low-flow faucets, showerheads, and other fixtures. Hotel Recycling and Waste Reduction With the limited exception for domestic hotels, recycling programs for the basics such as newspapers and beverage containers are becoming a basic expectation. In combination with the recycling efforts, hotels are looking for opportunities to reduce the use of paper and other disposables. Hotels and resorts that can go beyond to implement food waste composting programs can demonstrate waste diverted from the landfill upwards of 40-50%. Hotel Bath Amenities Many hotels are making a statement by offering guests custom formulated amenities. Resort companies such as RockResorts have taken it one step further with an all-natural, essential oil-based custom formulated product made without preservatives and artificial ingredients that are packaged in recyclable containers. Other midrange hotel brands are experimenting with bulk dispenser presentations.

This article discusses that as time continues to progress, more and more hotels, as well as other hospitality/tourism places are starting to implement more "eco-friendly initiatives" into their businesses for the satisfaction of the customers. It is important for the hospitality to be able to adapt in the sense of increasing their "green initiatives." Some hotels have begun doing so by, linen and towel reuse programs, low-flow faucets and shower heads, recycling programs, and much more. Implementing these actions can only benefit the industry/businesses in the long run.

This is a great summary of what event planners are looking for in hotels - "Green Initiatives" that include energy use, water bottle reduction, menu planning, waste management, recycle programs, etc. Very easy to read and recommend for green topic areas for research papers.

I chose this article because it is an opinion article from the Huffington Post about the balance of luxury and being eco-friendly. Joanna Zelman shares her views on green hotels. She presents the question of whether living luxuriously during your hotel visit means sacrificing our planet. She also shares that hotels are indeed recognizing the major amounts of waste they have been producing. Zelman feels that hotels are trying to be green, but in the end they let the guests decide how green they want to be.

"Some hotels now recognize the astronomical amount of waste they produce daily, and a green hotel movement is underway. The Hilton Americas-Houston generates a reported 675,000 pounds of dirty linens per month. With the purchase of an AquaRecycle water recycling system, they reduced their water usage by 75%, from 630,000 gallons to 157,500 gallons per month."

Some hotels now recognize the astronomical amount of waste they produce daily, and a green hotel movement is underway.Element Times Square West is Starwood's most recent endeavor, an "eco-chic" hotel located on W. 39th street in New York City. The hotel proudly touts recycling bins in every room, complimentary bikes, reusable laundry bags, silverware instead of plastic, dispensable bath products, and an organic on-site pantry.But right next to the reusable laundry bag is a plastic laundry bag, beside the ceramic mugs are paper cups, across from the dispensable soap is an individually wrapped bar, and after consuming your organic food, you can rest your guilt-free head on a bunch of down feather pillows. Someone suggests that guests unplug chargers when not in use, turn lights off, and take advantage of linen reuse policies.

Hotels going green is being appreaciated by the guests

go green is important not only for the industry but also for the whole earth, because pollution is one of the biggest issue for every countries' government. in this article, it also talk about the major concerns in hotel industry, AC system and water conservation. go green not only save hotels' money, but also increase profit margin. Go green is a important step for hotel to go, and it have to go green for the future step for hotels.

I realy like this article because it talks about hotels that are trying to go green and customers like it and contribute to this cause. The hotels are trying to reduce the use of water, energy and waste, and they give the option to the customer to do it or not. For example to "reuse your towel" or turn off the A/C when you are not in the room. This helps the hotels to save money and increased their profit margin. Some hotels beleive this is costly for them, but in the long-run it will help. People are more conscious now and like that hotels are more environmentally responsible.

this article is talking about the sustainability development in hotel industry. every year the waste of water and energy in washing machine is huge. this behavior violates the mind that builds a green industry. in the help of the Green Hotels Association the hotel companies make some measures to save the water and energy like putting a card which ask guests to consider not having sheets changed every day. it is simple word but really playing an important role in developing sustainable vision.

We all know that a lot of hotels leave little cards in the room claiming that they are environmental-friendly and initiate protection of the environment or reducing waste. They encourage customers reuse towels and linens, and so on. This article use Marriot and Four Seasons as examples to describe that this kind of behavior is indeed helpful. Water, waste and cost reduction is resulted. So hotels should keeping doing this and lead to green life-style and reduce waste.

This short article briefly discusses some of the ways in which hotels are taking more initiatives to be eco friendly and practice sustainability. This article also lists a number of statistics to support its claims. For example, according to the article, "150-room hotel can conserve 72,000 gallons of water and 480 gallons of laundry soap every year by placing the cards in its guest rooms". The cards that the article is referring to are the little "to save the planet" cards you may see when you check into a hotel in your bathroom, usually near your towels. In fact, the "green cards" are so important to hotels that some companies actually provide them for you so you don't have to make them yourself (for a small fee of course) such as the Green Hotels Association that the article discusses. One of my favorite parts of the article is the "10 Million Trees" initiative taken on by the Four Seasons. According to the article, "The hotel chain is celebrating its 50th anniversary by planting 10 million trees across the 34 countries in which it operates with the hope that the effort will help combat deforestation and global warming and attract more customers concerned about the state of the planet". This concept is truly amazing to me and it definitely should be an aid to help others in learning why "going green" is such a major deal and how seriously it effects not only our futures, but our everyday lives. The article wraps up talking about eco lodges in partnership with natives and why that is important when travelers are passing by.

Hotels are going beyond just encouraging guests to reuse linens and towels. The WTTC and Green Hotel Association are making an effort to implement green initiatives in the industry.

More than 52,000 surveys were completed by the American Hotel & Lodging Association regarding various concepts of hotels. As for this weeks theme: Hotels report that ecofriendly practices are still a top priority. According to the website, water saving programs are in use at 75% of properties and about the same about have a linen and towel reuse program. Although a short article, the results from the survey were able to be found. The numbers prove that the hospitality field is clearly moving towards a greener foundation; whether that is because of political pressure of because they actually care about the environment is till up for grabs.

In an effort to catch up with emerging technology and trends, it is expected more hotels will begin to "go green" this year with their linens and uniforms. I believe this is in part because hotels are being held to hirer expectations as we emerge from the recession. USA Today reports that American Laundry News surveyed several vendors about new products at the 2011 International Hotel, Motel and Restaurant Show in New York. Vendors including popular uniform maker, Cintas revealed more items like the washable tuxedo, made from recycled plastic bottles and the Eco-Cobra Jacket for front door staffers. Hospitality textile maker, Riegel is reportedly getting lots of attention from hoteliers for its recycled polyester tablecloths, also made from recycled bottles. The recycled fibers are expected to cut costs on hotel laundry bills. For example, Cintas estimates the washable tuxedos would save them nearly $1,000 each year. I had the opportunity to attend IHMRS this year, and visited the Cintas display. The recyclable material is no new idea. However, it is apparent that changes are being made to improve the durability of the products. I recall when the recycled fibers were initially used. The material seemed cheap and couldn't be ironed for risk of destroying it. Quality seems to be something hotels and restaurants are forgoing in order to "go green". To add, up front costs aren't necessarily saving companies much money. The USA Today article prompts reader responses by asking if hotel/ restaurant visitors even care whether or not a business has "green" products. I believe this is a fair question. Beyond attempts to save on long term costs, what other motivation do hotel operators have to "go green"?

I think it is important to hotel visitors, especially group & corporate, for hotels to go green. Maybe companies and organizations require their employees to book rooms at hotels that meet certain "green" standards. If I am a business owner, and promote the company as "green", then our actions and choices have to be "green" too. The uniforms made of recycled material sound very interesting! I wonder if they are comfotable and liked by employees.

While many U.S. hotels are moving from recession style cost cutting to updating their properties, it would appear that they have become interested in a more green approach, at least in one area, laundry. The American Laundry news explains that as many hotels seek to buy new tablecloths and uniforms for their staff, they are looking for green products that can help to trim their laundering costs. One of the things that caught the interest of hoteliers is the hotel industry's first look at machine washable tuxedos for the wait staff. Cintas partnered with Boardroom Eco Apparel to produce the tuxedo, which uses recycled plastic bottles transformed into polyester fibers. Cintas has stated that this green, machine washable tuxedo can save the hotel up to $1000 per employee annually. Cintas has also garnered interest in its recycled polyester bellman's jackets, as well. Another green product that hotels can use is the recycled polyester tablecloth. These tablecloths also come from recycled bottles and are also very eco-friendly. Riegel, the company behind these, has said that just using one of their table napkins can eliminate three plastic bottles from landfills. While these tablecloths may not save the hotel money in the short run, Riegel says that the hotel can save money in the long run by pitching itself as a "green" hotel. It is important to note that hotels have been slowly switching to greener products over the years, such as energy efficient light bulbs, to recycled plastic water bottles, and even sustainable organic ingredients in restaurant kitchens.

This hotel is a green initiative hotel, the furniture in this hotel are all recyclable. The linen detergents are also green initiative and does not harm the human body. All the garden and plant life / ecosystem enviroment does not use any ddt. They also use recyclable oil in their kitchen. The flooring bricks in this hotel also keeps the temperature constant using less energy to produce efficiency. So as the dual pane glass windows, keeping the guest room cool. The shower heads, faucets, toilets are all low flow water, guest also has the choice of reusing their towel and linens. Hotel Valley Ho participates in the Clean the World program; all soap, shampoo, and other in-room amenities are collected, cleaned, and recycled for use in developing countries.

It's very good that they recycle the oil that is used in the kitchen and all the unwanted food is composed and planted in the herbal garden!

This article is all about hotels going green and trying to get LEED certified. The one Boston hotel is doing things like having dual flush toilets, low flow showers, shampoo and conditioner in bulk dispensers, and a roofing material that reflects the sun to save energy costs. Another thing involved with getting LEED certified is getting energy from abouther source, this particular hotel is using the wind. It is expensive to do and doesnt appeal to everyone, hotel managers must figure out whats in the best interest for them and getting people in and out of their hotel.

To add onto Marilyns comment, not only are hotels doing the basics to go green, but a lot of hotels in california are taking the extra step, such as The Kimpton Hotels, and The orchard. They have changed the carpets and wallpaper for lower emission. They added recycle bins in every room in all 40 of their hotels across the country. Lastly, and one of the the additions I find most beneficial is their implementation of key card energy control, where a room key will be needed to activate the electricity in each room, and also shutting all electricity off when they leave.

This article is about how starwood hotels are trying to become fullscale eco-friendly but some are hotels are only greenwashing. This article is stating that it is not enough to use one green practice and call yourself an eco-friendly hotel.

This article from Trip Advisor is a simple research about green hotel alternatives available for travelers. The very interesting part is that there is a great percentage of travelers who questions the hotels green practives. Another important part of the article is the difficulty that hotels face due to travelers resisiting to shift paradigms. Many travelers believe that vacation is time to indulge instead of worring about green practices and initiatives. For that reason, they will do things that they wouldnt do at home. For example, not use the linen reuse program, leave the ac on when not in the room, TV and etc. The article also mentions the three least green cities.