The need for a new generation of computers, data centers and security equipment
for the nation’s hotels is driving up the expense of technology in the
hospitality industry,
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New Hotel Technology Likely to Bring Sticker Shock - 3 views
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The average [technology] cost for a 400-room hotel has been about $50,000 a year. That cost is going to go up as the brands start implementing new technology to take the place of systems that have been in place for quite some time,” says Shah. “That cost could be significant. It could be several hundred thousand dollars in additional costs over the next three, four or five years.“
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“The average [technology] cost for a 400-room hotel has been about $50,000 a year. That cost is going to go up as the brands start implementing new technology to take the place of systems that have been in place for quite some time,” says Shah. “That cost could be significant. It could be several hundred thousand dollars in additional costs over the next three, four or five years.“
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cost is going to go up as the brands start implementing new technology to take the place of systems that have been in place for quite some time,” says Shah.
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significant. It could be several hundred thousand dollars in additional costs over the next three, four or five years.“
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The need for a new generation of computers, data centers and security equipment for the nation’s hotels is driving up the expense of technology in the hospitality industry, says Mitesh Shah, chief executive officer at
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The average [technology] cost for a 400-room hotel has been about $50,000 a year. That cost is going to go up as the brands start implementing new technology to take the place of systems that have been in place for quite some time,” says Shah. “That cost could be significant. It could be several hundred thousand dollars in additional costs over the next three, four or five years.“
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The upgrades involve both communications that make life more convenient for travelers, and the unseen hardware that makes hotels function more smoothly.
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Hackers are more aggressive than ever, and the cost of protecting hotel systems has risen accordingly
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The hotel industry hasn’t kept up with the state of the art to the degree other industries have, says Shah, particularly with regard to pricing and customer convenience.
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Traditionally, too many hotel managers focus on the condition of the carpets and walls — whether they need painting or new pictures, or fresh plants in the lobby, rather than scrutinizing their technological infrastructure.
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Examining how people buy and use media shows that bandwidths are growing more sophisticated, and the trend in a hotel experience is to become more connected,
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Costly upgrades don’t always translate into higher rates, however. “The question really is, can you charge more for it? Or is it part of the experience?”
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high-speed Internet, for instance, it’s an amenity that customers demand, but they’re not necessarily willing to pay extra for it.
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Another expense involves business intelligence technology — the detailed analysis and tracking of a hotel’s daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly performance.
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Operating teams then analyze the results and plan their financial strategy on a day-to-day basis, says Shah.
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When it comes to creature comforts, travelers don’t want to compromise, says Shah. They want the same comforts on the road that are available at home
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The Hotel Industry has not kept up with the state of the art technology to the degree other industries have. It's at a point where a great investment is needed to upgrade technology they use both in communications as well as the unseen hardware that make hotels function on a day to day basis. The cost of replacement and and expansion of business data centers and security is very large. But who bears the cost?, since guests have come to expect ammenities such as high speed internet, but aren't necessarily willing to pay for it. This is an inevitable cost hotel corporations are going to have work in to their budgets in order to stay relevant and competitive
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Advantages Of Cloud Computing For Hotel Industry - 5 views
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This article is discussing the benefits of using cloud computing in the hospitality industry, specifically, in hotels. With all cloud computing, the biggest overall benefit is that users no longer have to stress over attempting to maintain their data on their own. This article also goes into detail on how cloud computing can cut costs, improve guest experiences, promote direct booking, and allow industry professionals to work remotely.
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Now, businesses don’t have to burden themselves by storing data in traditional in-house servers; rather, they can opt for a cloud service that would store their data in secured data centres.
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By making use of cloud computing, as a hotelier, you pay only for what you demand. It specifies that your upfront costs are kept low as you are only paying for the computing power and cloud storage which your hotel actually needs.
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The need for hardware overload in your hotel is brought down, because of which your electricity bills are also reduced by a huge margin.
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An added advantage of cloud computing is that it frees your staff from their otherwise fixed terminals and lets them work independently and even more efficiently.
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increased in the speed at which the guests access the products and services, thus only creating seamless hotel experiences for them.
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Also, one of the major benefits is the real-time update — it makes the process much smoother and cheaper, and saves a lot of time.
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However, when you put your hotel process and management on the cloud, it provides you with the flexibility to access it and work on it from any part of the world — all you need is a steady internet connection and a smart device (a laptop, or a computer, or mobile phone or tablet.)
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When it comes to the benefits of cloud computing in the hospitality industry, the list includes enhanced guest experiences, massive reduction in costs, faster services and their seamless access, software and service security, and more flexibility.
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increasing inclination towards the use of cloud computing in the hospitality industry, they don’t need to always rely on travel agents all the time
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cloud-based services are now replacing the old and traditional systems at all levels. Infrastructure as a service (IaaS), Software as a service (SaaS), and platform as a service (PaaS) have all become the first choice of cloud computing services for many hospitality businesses. And they are all charged up with the amazing benefits of cloud computing.
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Over the past few years, cloud computing has transformed businesses from across the world, irrespective of their industry. Today, the demand anytime, anywhere access has skyrocketed, and cloud computing is delivering just that — all you need is an internet connection with good bandwidth.
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businesses don’t have to burden themselves by storing data in traditional in-house servers; rather, they can opt for a cloud service that would store their data in secured data centres.
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There are several benefits of using the cloud and they have helped several hotels across the world to strengthen up their business — from increasing operational efficiency to lowering the management costs.
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In the hospitality industry, Cloud Computing is a mixture of PaaS, SaaS and IaaS. It operates on the model of Use, Builds, and Migrate.
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By making use of cloud computing, as a hotelier, you pay only for what you demand. It specifies that your upfront costs are kept low as you are only paying for the computing power and cloud storage which your hotel actually needs.
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cloud computing can benefit hoteliers by bringing down costs like energy, hardware and operations. The need for hardware overload in your hotel is brought down, because of which your electricity bills are also reduced by a huge margin. Cloud computing in the hospitality industry also shortens the project time resulting in costs cutting and higher productivity. Hence, if you shift your software services to the cloud, your hotel business would witness a significant number of opportunities.
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The two main purposes of an efficient and effective hotel PMS are: offer the hotel staff the best set of management tools assist you to ensure the top-notch guest experience
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An added advantage of cloud computing is that it frees your staff from their otherwise fixed terminals and lets them work independently and even more efficiently.
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Being on the cloud also means that hotel check-ins can be done from smartphones or tablets and not only through the hotel front desk.
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There was a time when hotels used to payout huge commissions for bookings to the online as well as offline travel agencies. However, with the increasing inclination towards the use of cloud computing in the hospitality industry, they don’t need to always rely on travel agents all the time. Hotels can upgrade their hotel website with cloud-powered services such as web booking engine that can be integrated to the hotel PMS. Also, one of the major benefits is the real-time update — it makes the process much smoother and cheaper, and saves a lot of time.
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Cloud Computing In Hospitality Industry Makes Working Remotely Possible When you as a hotelier is not present in the property, managing the operations gets a little tougher. However, when you put your hotel process and management on the cloud, it provides you with the flexibility to access it and work on it from any part of the world — all you need is a steady internet connection and a smart device (a laptop, or a computer, or mobile phone or tablet.)
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Cloud computing makes sense to work business in a cloud setting. The article states that Cloud computing has "transformed businesses" throughout the world. We learned that a disadvantage of Cloud is the dependence of Internet connection. With Cloud computing, you can share and store data. This can be a better way to run business. We have learned that Cloud computing is more scalable, secure, and reliable. Cloud computing cost less, and you can pay for what you need. Cloud you can customize what you need, to your specific needs. The article even mentions it "lowers management costs." Unlike unintended PMS, which can require maintenance, and be highly costly. We discussed in our video lecture from this past week, how hotel check-ins are being done from smart phones- as this article includes. This is beneficial for enhancing guest experience, and increasing the speed of check-ins. Travel agents have their own way of how they conduct themselves, their business, and the services he or she provides. However, the article shows how with Cloud computing, you would not need to depend on travel agents. Furthermore, Cloud computing can increase sales and revenue for a hotel property. Cloud computing is replacing traditional PMS system's and have a multitude of benefits.
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Hoteliers today are joining in on the trend of the use of cloud computing. Some benefits of cloud computing include the increase of operational efficiency, lowering management costs since the hotelier only pays for what they demand. Energy costs and hardware operation costs are also decreased. It allows for hotel check ins to be done via smart phones and tablets and not just at the front desk upon arrival, and it also allows for hotels to not have to rely on travel agents all the time for bookings which saves them having to pay commission to travel companies.
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No matter the industry, cloud computing has changed organizations all around the world in recent years. Today's need for access at any time and from any location has soared, and cloud computing is supplying it. All you want is a reliable internet connection. Businesses might choose a cloud service that would store their data in safe data centers rather than burdening themselves with traditional in-house servers to store data. At all levels, cloud-based services are now taking the place of outdated and conventional technologies. Many hospitality firms now use cloud computing services offered by infrastructure as a service (IaaS), software as a service (SaaS), and platform as a service (PaaS). And they are all fired up with the incredible benefits of cloud computing. Cloud computing can benefit hoteliers by driving down costs like energy, hardware, and operations. Your hotel's requirement for hardware overload is decreased, which significantly lowers your electricity costs. The hotel sector uses cloud computing to speed up projects, which reduces costs and increases efficiency. An efficient and effective hotel PMS will help you to ensure that your guests receive a first-rate experience and will provide the hotel employees with the best set of management capabilities. Another benefit of cloud computing is that it frees your personnel from stationary terminals, allowing them to work more independently and productively. Due to the cloud, guests may now check in at hotels using their smartphones or tablets as well as the front desk. Working remotely is possible thanks to cloud computing in the hospitality sector. Managing the business becomes a little more challenging when you, the hotelier, are not on the premises. However, putting your hotel management and operations in the cloud gives you the flexibility to access and operate on them from any location in the world.
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Green IT | Green Hotelier - 1 views
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With the world becoming ever more reliant on IT, from computers and laptops to smartphones, the issue of how you make it more sustainable, in terms of reducing energy requirements and electronic waste, becomes ever more pressing.
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In 2010, it was estimated that 360 million computers were manufactured. A computer is one of the most resource-intensive pieces of equipment, requiring over 10 times its weight in fossil fuels to make
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The production of a computer requires 22kg of toxic chemicals, 240kg of fossil fuels and 1,500 kg of water. 80% of life-cycle energy use is accounted for before we even switch a PC on for the first time. Computer Aid International About 2% of the world’s total energy is consumed by building and running computer equipment. BBC Office equipment is the fastest growing energy user in the business world, consuming 15% of the total electricity used in offices. This is expected to rise to 30% by 2020. In the UK, the cost of running this equipment is estimated to be around £300 million annually and rising each year. Carbon Trust 200 million computers and 550 million mobile phones reached the end of their life in 2008. Computer Aid International 50 million tons of e-waste was generated worldwide, but only 13% was recycled. US Environmental Protection Agency Reusing working computers is up to 20 times more energy-efficient than recycling them. Computer Aid International
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A data centre is a facility used to house computer systems and their components, and it can be far and away the biggest contributor to an organisation’s carbon footprint. A data centre’s life expectancy is relatively long so it is imperative it is built to the highest standards in terms of efficiency as any excess energy use will lead to significant cost implications over the years.
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1. Build the most energy-efficient data centre possible. This will save energy and costs over its lifespan. 2. Only get the data storage capacity that is currently required and forecast for the lifespan. Many data centres have excess capacity that burns energy (and therefore costs) unnecessarily. Don’t have servers or equipment that will not be used. 3. Cooling data centres. Traditionally cooling has been done by air circulation, which is very inefficient. Larger data centres already use other technologies to cool more efficiently, such as water cooling. 4. Virtualisation technology. Improve your system’s resource utilisation through virtualisation technology. Virtualisation is the creation of a virtual (rather than actual) version of something, such as an operating system, server, network, etc. and allows a single user to access several physical devices on one terminal. A computing device dedicated to an individual member of staff or allocated for one software application is highly inefficient and expensive. Virtualisation consolidates resources, requiring less power and cooling. 5. Consider cloud computing. This is a location-independent IT service, typically available over the internet, where shared servers provide resources, software and data to computers and other devices on demand, increasing IT capacity and capabilities without an organisation having to invest in new infrastructure. Keeping data virtually, or “in the clouds”, means less information stored on IT systems and therefore less energy being used to run the systems. Systems such as BT’s Virtual Data Centre, a hosted data centre that enables businesses to create, deploy, monitor and manage their own service through a self-service portal, claim to offer savings of up to 40% of the total cost of running one’s own data centre as well as reducing the space required, the level of emissions produced and the power consumed.
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6. Measure and monitor power usage. Once you know what’s using the power, focus on why and whether it’s possible to reduce consumption.
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1. Upgrade. Before buying new, investigate options to upgrade with the latest energy-efficient components to extend appliances’ working life and efficiency. 2. Green labels. Look out for the certification labels denoting more energy-efficient equipment, from Blue Angel in Germany to TCO in Sweden and Energy Star in the US (see below). 3. Screens. Opt for flat screen monitors, which reduce energy use by over two-thirds. 4. Get the right equipment. Consider your information technology needs against the tasks required. For example, laptops may be a better option in some circumstances because they have been developed to be energy-efficient and generally match the computer to the task required. Remember: not all staff have the same needs. 5. Consider running costs. Look at the life cycle costs, not just the purchase cost. Take note of running and standby costs of equipment. These can vary enormously.
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Top 10 Tips to reduce running costs of office equipment (source: Carbon Trust) 1. Computers. Activate energy-saving features. In fact, most office equipment will have these features, so make sure they’re activated. 2. Standby features. Introduce a policy to activate standby features, don’t assume employees will do it. 3. Turn it off. Buy seven-day timers. These can save up to 70% on energy costs. 4. Monitor and manage the equipment that is peripheral to computers, such as speakers, printers, etc. and consider installing intelligent switch-off solutions. Printers can consume 30%-40% of their peak power demand when idling between printing and standby modes, so minimising this can produce cost savings, reduce heat output and increase its operating life. 5. Educate your staff. Consider a screen saver with an energy-saving message. 6. Rationalise your equipment via networking to reduce the number of printers (for example) in any office area. 7. Printers Use only black and white for internal documents and colour only when absolutely necessary. Consider the benefits of inkjet printers v laser printers. Inkjet energy use is much lower than that of a laser printer. Encourage staff to use print preview functions. Set default printing mode to double-sided. Use lower-specification printers, such as inkjets, for internal documents and encourage staff to use these for day-to-day use.
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8. Photocopiers High volume copiers use more energy so should be used sparingly. Use low melting point inks (available from stationery suppliers). Encourage staff to copy in batches to increase standby time. Stick to black and white copiers and only use colour when absolutely necessary. Set default copying to double-sided. 9. Invest to save and purchase only what you need. 10. Don’t forget to motivate staff. Keep repeating the message of the importance of energy saving in ways that they can understand (for example, a computer monitor switched off overnight saves enough energy to microwave six dinners).
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WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment), or e-waste, is the term used for old or disposed electronic equipment. It covers both the toxic and valuable materials found in appliances. The most important lesson is to reuse, not recycle. With so much e-waste, and electrical devices such as computers and flat screens often being replaced well before the end of their shelf life and ending up in landfill, it’s imperative that the most is made of these materials by reusing them productively.
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Options to investigate when trying to reduce e-waste are: 1. Can you upgrade your equipment with new energy efficient components? 2. Can it be used by someone else in the company? 3. Can it be given to a charity? (Note: charities must be registered to take WEEE.) 4. Will the manufacturer take back the old equipment and reuse parts in new products?
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Developments on the horizon include: 1. Smaller, more efficient processors. The continuing development of microprocessors means a mobile phone can have around the same computational power as the average desktop computer back in 2000. 2. Memristors. Electronics giant HP is in the process of developing “memristors” (see photo above), which have greater memory storage capacity while requiring less energy and space. They are due to be on the shelf in about three years. 3. Specialist data centre design. Siemens recently launched its transformational Data Centre Solution, a groundbreaking strategy in data centre energy-efficient design and operation. It claims the system, which uses virtualization and efficient power and cooling, offers many benefits for businesses, including up to 50% energy savings through ground water cooling and IT costs reduced by 30%. 4. Outsourcing. Hotels of all sizes are starting to view IT outsourcing as a viable option to gain flexibility and reduce short-term costs and increase transparency of cost structures and processes. 5. Optimisation of resources. This will become a necessity either through virtualisation, networking or cloud computing. 6. Water cooling. IBM is currently working on a supercomputer that is cooled by water (a given volume of water can hold 4,000 times more waste than air), which claims to be 50% more energy efficient than the world’s leading systems. The Aquasar stacks many computer processors on top of each other with cooling water flowing between each one. IBM’s Dr Bruno Michel told the BBC in November 2010: “We plan that 10 to 15 years from now, we can collapse such a system into one sugar cube — we’re going to have a supercomputer in a sugar cube.”
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This is a great article that provides tips on how to use green practices within the IT realm. It starts by giving statistics on how much energy can be consumed by equipment, and also how much electronic waste can be done when not reusing or recycling such equipment. There is tips on how to increase efficiency with your technology and also providing tips on how to properly purchase needed equipment. Another set of tips covers reducing the running costs of office equipment and reducing e-waste by the 'reduce, reuse, and recycle'. Lastly, developments for green technology and equipment are provided for us. My opinion is that this article is very informative and should be read by all hoteliers to look into and apply the tips given. Showing the statistics paints a great picture for the reasons why we should be going green with technology.
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The Role of Green Technology in the Sustainability of Hotels Essay - Free Argumentative... - 2 views
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Throughout the life of hotels— from building construction, operation, maintenance and evolution—the environmental issue is the wasteful consumption of vast amount of resources such as water and energy and accumulation of air, soil and water pollution in a built environment. The unique service function and operations of hotel result to a stronger ecological impact when compared to other buildings used for commercial purposes. (Bohdanowicz, Simanic & Martinac, 2004)
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It is imperative for hotels to construct buildings, design their facilities, operate, and refurbish structures in a way that causes the least possible harm to the environment. (Straus & Gale, 2006)
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Protection of the environment through eco-friendly practices by hotels involves a radical change in operations and a long-term impact, which makes this a sustainability-driven strategy
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The growing concern over sustainability in the business sector led to developments in innovative environment friendly processes and tools collectively called green technology
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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).
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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.
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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.
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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)
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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)
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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).
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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)
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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.
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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).
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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
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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)
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dopting waste management processes and tools accrues financial, economic, and environmental benefits for hotels.
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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)
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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
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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)
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Environmental benefits include reduced accumulation of waste and lesser risk of soil, water and air contamination of toxic production. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)
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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)
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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.
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The technological development of product enhancement innovations is escalating and promise greater functions for business establishments. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)
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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).
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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.
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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.
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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)
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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).
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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
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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).
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The water conserving technologies provide the process and tools for hotels to achieve this benchmark.
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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.
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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).
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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.
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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.
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It is a sound strategy for hotels to consider green technology as a process and a collection of tools in support of sustainability goals.
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Hotel technology trends that are changing how hotels do business - 1 views
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Choice created the software in 2003 as an inexpensive solution for franchisees of its economy brands.
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The PMS had a lot of growing pains at first, but eventually it became more and more cloud enabled and was adopted across the company.
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“A lot of companies had outsourced their IT and now they’re bringing it back in house because they can do almost everything they need on the cloud or through software as a service.
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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
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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.
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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
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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.
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Choice Hotels has been a industry leader in the cloud PMS movement. They identified the opportunity to create their own platform 10 years ago when cloud was barely on the radar and have now successfully distributed it to 5,500 of their properties. Unique functionality built into the system is internet redundancy via cellular data plan, company-wide campaign pop-up messages to staff, interface to Pegasus and revenue management through predictive analytics. The platform has been so successful that, in response to inquiries from other companies who wanted to use Choice's proprietary system themselves, they created an additional revenue stream by establishing a separate company that sells and creates custom cloud PMS systems. One advantage pointed out is that managers no longer need to be on property to access and make changes to their PMS. While this is hugely beneficial to the majority of the industry (who already work long hours and visit the property on their day off), there may be some who take advantage of the situation. If this becomes the case, less oversight at the property means that operations has the potential to slip. It doesn't seem that this is a concern for Choice Hotels but it should be considered.
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Evaluating Hotel and Hospitality Management Software | By Ahmed Mahmoud - 0 views
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The growth in the world economy and the hospitality industry has resulted in a clutter of new Hotel Management software companies vying to increase their footprint around the market. This has not only started a price and promise war amongst the new entrants, but has also been creating immense doubt and confusion in the minds of the IT Managers and decision makers in order to differentiate between many. Besides this, the assumption that the value of a Hotel Management Software is obvious and can be rarely defined either in abstract or practical terms fuels the confusion further.
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For all hotels, resort or Inn and in order not to get confused when deciding to purchase any management software please consider the below 12 steps:- Select the Project Manager. Determine the budget and get sign off. Select the Evaluation Team. Define the property type and identify who the guests are. Identify business needs and identify guest needs. Drill down and identify specific needs in relation to the property management system. Research property management system vendors that offer the majority of features that match the needs assessment. Create a potential vendor list. From the potential Vendor list, break it down to a short list of 5 or less PMS Vendors. Arrange and participate in system demonstrations by Vendors from the short list. Make the decision. Ask for references and contact them.
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Once you have a good business case with regard to ROI, conducting a TCO analysis helps to conclude the analysis. A thorough TCO analysis will pinpoint where the differences are in solution costs, over a multi-year timeframe. This two-pronged approach ensures that you will not only get a good return, but that you ultimately will work with the most cost-effective solution.
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In this rapidly changing industry, hoteliers should always look for property management tools that will ease operations, automate procedures, reduce the risk of human errors and give hoteliers enough time to attend to guests.
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When evaluating the TCO of software, one should not restrict the calculation to the initial cost of purchase, but should also calculate the cost of managing the software to its complete life and should incorporate the following points in their calculations. Cost of initial deployment and employee training. On-going fees for maintenance, software updates and upgrades as well as help-desk support. Costs associated with downtime Cost associated with the business process re-engineering.
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As technologies advance, the old clears a path for the new. Some individuals may be inclined to hang on to what they are comfortable with, but they won't advance if they don't make room for the best and brightest
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This article talks about how important software is in the hospitality management industry and the different types of software that particularly businesses may use to best serve their needs. Property Management Systems provide a whole host of functions for hotels, including keeping track of guests checking in and out, monitoring room charges, and supervising the housekeeping of rooms. Because this software is so vital to the hospitality industry, there has been an upsurge by software companies trying to make their mark in the industry, which has led to a market fragmentation due to the numerous options available. This also puts a strain on managers, as there is much confusion about which software is best and the most cost-effective. There is a system to determining which management software best suits any particular company. Two key features in this process are the ROI, Return on Investment, and TCO, Total Cost of Ownership. ROI provides a cost-benefit analysis of a particular software with regards to the speed with which a company will make the money back that they invested in it, as well as the numerous features that a company would need from the software. TCO is an analysis that companies use to accurately ascertain the costs of the software. Companies should seek a lower TCO and a higher ROI when making any software purchase decisions. Because the technology market is ever changing, companies must stay up-to-date with the newest software in order to provide the best service for, and to keep up with the demands of, their guests. This can be exemplified with the recent trend in cloud-based PMS.
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CBRE: How hoteliers are controlling communications costs | Hotel Management - 0 views
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A new report from CBRE analyzed the costs of phone and internet service within the information and telecommunications systems department of nearly 3,000 hotels
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The report, which examines data from 2015 through 2019, found a significant upward trend in telecom-related expenditures.
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the data also revealed a steep decline in revenue generation from charges for phone calls and internet access
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From 2015 through 2019, total operating expenses increased at a compound average annual growth rate of 2.2 percent at the properties in the study
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The 9.7 percent combined CAGR for telecommunications cost is more than three times the CAGR for any other individual hotel department cost during the same five-year period
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Telecom costs increased the most in the upper-midscale (CAGR 21.5 percent) and upscale (CAGR 13.9 percent) chain scales
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Owners may be able to upgrade a Dedicated Internet Access to current market pricing—saving 20 percent in the process—while improving the speed capabilities by 200 to 300 percent
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A report from CBRE analyzed the costs of phone and internet services within the information and telecommunications systems department of nearly 3000 hotels. There is an upward trend in telecom-related expenditures with a decline in revenue generation from phone call charges and internet access. Three ways to control these costs are undergoing IT audits, consolidating vendors across portfolios, and upgrading technologies.
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Hospitality Accounting - Article Blast! Free Articles And Content For Reprint On Your W... - 0 views
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A hospitality accounting system must allow an independent evaluation of each operating department and its operating divisions. Costs directly traceable to a department or division are identified as direct Costs.
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Hospitality business operations, as well as others, are generally identified as having a number of different cyclical sales revenue cycles.
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In manufacturing operations, all costs are generally assigned to products or product lines and identified as direct costs and indirect costs.
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This article discusses four cyclical sales revenue cycles. First, the daily sales revenue that depends on meal periods in restaurants, second, weekly cycle where business travelers mostly uses hotels during the week, third, seasonal cycle, during vacation months and fourth, generalized business cycle. There is direct costs which refers to all materials and labor costs that are traced to the product and then there is indirect cost which refers to utilities, overhead,salaries etc. Managers review operating results to ensure that all departments provide sufficient income to cover total indirect costs for the overall hospitality operation and provide excess funds to meet the desired level of profit.
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shared by khadija2050 on 23 Nov 20
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50 Facilities Management Tips and Best Practices - Camcode - 0 views
www.camcode.com/...gement-tips-and-best-practices
facilities management tips best practices practices
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Cut night site lighting. “Depending upon how your site lighting is operated and circuited, you can create an ‘economize mode’ for overnight when the site is at its lowest occupancy. Keep perimeter site lighting on around your property and all entrances and main drives lit.
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Replace older lighting with LEDs. “Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center chose LEDs to replace existing lighting in a parking garage open 24/7, halving the garage’s power consumption. Meanwhile, Mediapolis Community Schools in Mediapolis, IA, also embarked on a retrofit of LED exterior lighting.
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Implement a sustainable facility design plan. “Sustainable design is more attainable and affordable than it’s ever been, especially when you think in terms of years instead of days and weeks. It’s also worth noting that sustainable design is very well favored among the public, which is an extra incentive for companies interested in reinforcing their reputation as socially responsible and environmentally concerned
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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
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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
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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
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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
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“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
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“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
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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.
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“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.
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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
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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
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“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.
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“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
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“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
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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
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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.”
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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
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“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
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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.
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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
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“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
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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
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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,
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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
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This directly leads to the client receiving a more fit-for-purpose solution and ultimately receiving greater value which grows a greater relationship.
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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
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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
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“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.
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uch smart sensors, operating costs are dramatically reduced, productivity is enhanced, and occupants’ comfort is improved.
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“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
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“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.
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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
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“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
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“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
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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.
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“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 –
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. 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,
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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
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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
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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
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“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
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After collecting data and developing a maintenance schedule for your assets, you need to plan for the long-term maintenance of your asset inventory
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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.
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“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
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Maximize your use of vertical cubic footage by placing seasonal products or those that move less frequently in harder-to-reach vertical storage areas
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shared by ldevaul on 16 Sep 19
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Making the Move to a Cloud-Based Restaurant POS - 0 views
upserve.com/...cloud-based-restaurant-pos
POS hospitality cloud-based restaurants technology business decision-making mobile Software solution Tech
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The beauty of the cloud-based POS format is how scalable and customizable it is—it can work for single-location full service and quick service restaurants, multi-location restaurants, and restaurant groups alike.
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Most cloud-based POS systems also update with new features as technology improves across the industry—something you’re unlikely to get with a legacy POS system.
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Cloud solutions facilitate faster, easier, and more extensive business insights, which can help you make strategic decisions. By connecting what’s happening in the back of the house to the front, restaurant operators get a holistic picture of how the business is running
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If you anticipate growth or change, a cloud-based POS system is better enabled to grow with you.
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Instead of printing out lengthy reports for every shift, now you can access your insights from any smart device—such as your computer, phone, or tablet—and get updated sales, inventory, customer feedback, and more, no matter where you are.
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Legacy systems only allow on-premise access to data, which means you have to be in your restaurant in order to access the information on your POS system.
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Real-time data means real-time solutions to situations before they become problems. Just think of the time and money you’ll save by identifying issues before they blow out of proportion
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While buying up all of the necessary technology to get a cloud-based POS system off the ground may seem expensive, they tend to have cheaper operating costs in the long run and some, like Upserve, offer free support 24/7/365.
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With a cloud-based restaurant POS, you have the ability to add on a mobile POS unit that provides a number of benefits.
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That decrease in time spent waiting for their check or credit card to return to the table also increases guest satisfaction, boosting your reputation. A mobile restaurant POS also provides contactless payments with a built-in EMV reader, minimizing the exchange between servers and guests – something that is particularly important in this moment.
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Cloud-based POS systems update automatically and for free, just like the apps on your mobile device, while traditional POS systems require manual updates that can be labor intensive and costly.
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The beauty of the cloud-based POS format is how scalable and customizable it is—it can work for single-location full service and quick service restaurants, multi-location restaurants, and restaurant groups alike.
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Thanks to the cloud and its encrypted online storage, there’s no risk of hardware or software incompatibility or failure, no viruses or driver hiccups, and no risk of a hard drive accidentally deleting a weekend’s worth of sales reports. It’s all backed up, automatically.
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If the internet ever goes down, the system that your legacy POS relies on will be offline and non-functional. Luckily, on a cloud-based restaurant POS system you have the option of switching to offline mode as a back-up. You’ll stay up and running until the internet is able to connect again.
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Whether it’s updating your menu on the regular, launching new or improved loyalty programs, or requiring more precise inventory tracking, the more your needs will shift over time, the more sense it makes to opt for cloud-based.
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Plus, younger generations of workers—think millennials and Gen Zs—will be able to get right on board with a cloud-based POS solution with little-to-no training.
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Customers will feel good knowing their credit card information is secure and encrypted with the most up-to-date technology.
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No matter what type of establishment, your cloud-based POS can track every last drop of product, allowing you to spot discrepancies in an instant and fix gaps before they become problematic.
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Hardware costs are separate from service, and maintenance and support services often come with a hefty fee.
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While traditional POS systems certainly have lower start-up costs, they tend to come with plenty of hidden costs that reveal themselves over time.
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Best of all, instant free upgrades mean no lost revenue from downtime or inconvenient hardware upgrades as your business grows. Instead, plans can be upgraded or downgraded at will, and most providers don’t even charge a fee for the trouble.
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If you have existing setups in place, many third-party vendors have upgraded apps for cloud POS systems to help you maintain your current rewards and promotions planning.
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Most studies are showing that those who switched are sticking with a cloud-based solution, and that legacy POS systems will only decline moving forward.
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After over three decades with a legacy POS system that only slowed them down, they made the move to a cloud-based POS to bring their restaurants into the future.
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“Our restaurants are chef-driven, so we have specials that change every day. We need to add buttons every day. We change pricing every day. Having to stop and reset all the terminals because it’s not instantaneous was a headache.”
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Not only did constant resets of the system create roadblocks for the team at Homegrown Hospitality, but service was also less than stellar and cost more than what it was worth.
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We went through a lot of pain—our system would crash all the time, credit cards wouldn’t spool, and data would be lost. Our IT department would spend numerous hours a week just trying to recover data,” Simon explained.
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“That was pretty much the breaking point: we were at the point where we needed to upgrade, but it would have cost us several hundred thousand dollars. So we decided to source something new. The functionality and capability of Upserve won us over.”
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This article takes you through why your restaurant may want to switch to a Cloud-Based POS. There are many positive attributes associated with making the switch, such as; data accessibility, cheaper operating costs, easier upgrades, less frequent downtimes, increased security, and adaptability. If you are a growing business, the Cloud would grow with you.
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Cloud based POS systems can be apprehensive at first, but we are always satisfied once we are able to se the technology work to keep the business safe, effiecient and also more profitable. Cloud based POS systems are speedy and saves a lot of time which frees up staff to do other things in the establishment.
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This article discussed the benefits of switching from a localized POS system to a cloud-based restaurant POS. The article touched on how cloud-based systems provide real-time data and how that instant data could provide a management team real-time solutions. You can save so much time and money by identifying issues before they even arrive. I found it very interesting that with cloud-based systems you have the "ability to add on a mobile POS unit that provides a number of benefits." With this option, your servers do not have to run back and forth to a POS station. They simply have the option in the palm of their hands. It also decreases the time spent waiting for a check or credit card to return to the table. This not only increases guest satisfaction, but helps with table turnover. The article also touched on how cloud-based POS systems are "better enabled to grow with you." They are super adaptable and the article mentioned that restaurants can update their menu whenever, launch new loyalty programs, and help with more precise inventory tracking. This article also touched on setup, increased security, staff accountability, and the ability to make better business decisions due to the cloud software being able to provide extensive business insights. Finally, the article touched on POS cost and how " upfront costs are kept to a minimum and monthly subscription fees are lower." It also ended with a case study about Homegrown Hospitality Group and their switch from Aloha to Upserve Cloud-based POS. It was very interesting and I'd recommend everyone read the brief two paragraphs about how the switch changed their business trajectory.
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Hospitality industry to benefit from LED technology - 1 views
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Philips’ 7 W GU10 master LED lamp with DimTone has been developed to meet these requirements, mindful of the need to provide a solution for spaces with high daily light burning hours, while also retaining an inviting and intimate atmosphere for guests.
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DimTone has a significantly longer life span than traditional lighting solutions, lasting 40 000 hours, compared with a halogen lamp’s 2 000-hour life span,
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hospitality managers are under pressure to cut costs without compromising on their guests’ experience
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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.
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The goal of any business is increasing and exceeding the bottom line; in other words, profit. Those companies especially within the hospitality industry that have the ability to seek and implement new/ innovative methods to cut costs tend to be the most successful. One way hoteliers, restaurant owners, cruise lines, and other 24/7 operations within the hospitality industry will be able to cut costs is a simple new advancement created by Phillips- The 7 W master GU10 LED lamp with DimTone. This article discusses the the DimTone light, its features and the potential amount of savings it offers users in the hospitality industry. Many hotels, bars, restaurants, cruise lines and other hospitality businesses incur a huge expense from energy use due to the volume and demand of business. The article points out that this new lighting feature will save those within the hospitality industry a large percentage of money each month while still providing an inviting ambiance. The life span of the DimTone light is twenty times more than traditional halogen lights. One hotel that completed a full replacement of all lighting with the new DimTone light has seen costs reduced by 82% and an investment payback of making this change within only two years. If this is true for all hotels that have the ability to invest in this cost efficient change, the only question I have to ask is why aren't we seeing this more frequently? The opportunities for an increase in profit from year to year appear to surpass the amount it would costs to enhance all hospitality businesses and help the environment as well.
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Restaurants adopt mobile apps for ordering, payment | Technology content from Nation's ... - 0 views
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With the growing number of smartphone mobile ordering and payment applications, restaurant information technology divisions have gone from a cost center serving brands’ operations to a crucial part of the revenue stream.
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With the growing number of smartphone mobile ordering and payment applications, restaurant information technology divisions have gone from a cost center serving brands’ operations to a crucial part of the revenue stream.
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With the growing number of smartphone mobile ordering and payment applications, restaurant information technology divisions have gone from a cost center serving brands’ operations to a crucial part of the revenue stream.
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With the growing number of smartphone mobile ordering and payment applications, restaurant information technology divisions have gone from a cost center serving brands’ operations to a crucial part of the revenue stream.
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With the growing number of smartphone mobile ordering and payment applications, restaurant information technology divisions have gone from a cost center serving brands’ operations to a crucial part of the revenue stream.
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With the growing number of smartphone mobile ordering and payment applications, restaurant information technology divisions have gone from a cost center serving brands’ operations to a crucial part of the revenue stream.
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With the growing number of smartphone mobile ordering and payment applications, restaurant information technology divisions have gone from a cost center serving brands’ operations to a crucial part of the revenue stream.
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With the growing number of smartphone mobile ordering and payment applications, restaurant information technology divisions have gone from a cost center serving brands’ operations to a crucial part of the revenue stream.
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With the growing number of smartphone mobile ordering and payment applications, restaurant information technology divisions have gone from a cost center serving brands’ operations to a crucial part of the revenue stream.
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With the growing number of smartphone mobile ordering and payment applications, restaurant information technology divisions have gone from a cost center serving brands’ operations to a crucial part of the revenue stream.
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With the growing number of smartphone mobile ordering and payment applications, restaurant information technology divisions have gone from a cost center serving brands’ operations to a crucial part of the revenue stream.
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With the growing number of smartphone mobile ordering and payment applications, restaurant information technology divisions have gone from a cost center serving brands’ operations to a crucial part of the revenue stream.
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Customers are more frequently demanding a connection to a brand on their smartphones, and restaurants are considering an increasing number of technology options to meet those demands
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Information technology serves a big party in keeping up with the latest trends especially in the restaurant sector of the hospitality industry. Restaurants owners have seen an increase in revenue from partnering with application developers to create online ordering applications for mobile devices. Consumer data collected from these mobile applications for online ordering most be processed properly especially if employees are in the mix. Companies must ensure that their property management system integrates efficiently and properly with the application that is being developed to ensure proper completion of orders.
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shared by kdibe001 on 23 Jul 17
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New HVAC Hotel and Apartment Technology Obtains Large EPAct Tax Incentives - Energy Tax... - 1 views
www.energytaxsavers.com/...VAC-Hotel-Apartment-Technology
Technology Hospitality hvac hotels cost saving tax deductions
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New HVAC technology called VRV (Variable Refrigerant Volume system), also known as VRF (Variable Refrigerant Flow), is substantially reducing hotel and apartment building energy expenses. This new technology began to mainstream into the U.S. market after the enactment of the Energy Policy Act and is now being widely recommended by the architecture, engineering, and HVAC industries.
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there are tax deductions of up to $0.60 per square foot for each of the three major building subsystems: lighting, HVAC (heating, ventilating, and air conditioning), and the building envelope.
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VRF/VRV is an air conditioning system most efficient for commercial buildings because of the ability to individualize control for different zones/rooms, whereas conventional systems condition a building as a whole. The system is very beneficial for buildings with varying cooling needs and different zones.
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Often hotel investment groups own multiple properties so if they are pleased with VRF/VRV technology incentives, they will replicate it across their hotel portfolio.
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For both hotels and apartments building HVAC is the largest energy cost item. VRF/VRV’s will annually reduce total energy costs for these two markets by at least 20% and may reduce current building energy cost by as much as 40%
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The obvious initial measure hotels take to reduce energy cost and become more "green" are by replacing lights bulbs with LED, switching to paperless options, and other small tasks. The most cost efficient though is the conversion of their central air conditioner and heater, as this makes up a large percentage of costs for the hotel, which is also a burden on the environment due to the excess use of gas and electric to power the system. The new Energy Policy Act that was put into effect helps hotel not only save on long-term costs in the HVAC department, but also get a tax credit. This credit can range from $0.60 to $1.80 per square footage of the hotel. This is helping to encourage hotels to make the switch. This type of technology allows the air to be controlled by different zones in the hotel, which can be each individual room, floor, or however the hotel sets it up. This also prevents the air constantly running in the hotel room when it is unoccupied by hotel guests.
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Event Planning - Conferences - 5 Corporate Event Trends to Watch in 2013 - Successful M... - 1 views
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Automation will help event planners reduce expenses: As event budgets are subjected to greater scrutiny, strategic meeting management (SMM) technology can help event planners identify new methods to streamline event-related functions and reduce costs.
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Event organizers will engage audiences with smartphones: Smartphones are increasingly used to conduct business and stay in touch. Gartner predicts that mobile devices will surpass PCs as the tool of choice to access the web in 2013. Forward-thinking event planners will provide attendees with all-in-one apps they can use to track activities, connect with business contacts and share their experiences via social networks. These apps will also empower organizers to engage with users before, during and after an event.
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Meeting planners will leverage technology to gather in-depth attendee information: Finding out what makes attendees tick is a crucial part of a successful event management strategy. Now event organizers can use technology to gather and compile information in real time, which enables them to adjust their meeting strategies on the fly and demonstrate ROI.
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Using technology tools to gauge attendee needs, get real-time data on event effectiveness and streamline planner workloads makes sense, as does a one-stop solution that leverages the ever-present smartphone.
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choose smart event technology to help them operate more efficiently, better manage attendee engagement, and grow their businesses.
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This article is about technology trends in the event industry. It talks about what event planners are doing to implement more technology in their events; it gives examples such as audience using smartphones to interact during the meeting, events, conference, etc. Now event planners use technology to collect information in real time, which helps them to adjust their event at the moment, this is a very smart strategy.
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Because event planning is a stressful and demanding career, automation of application helps efficiently in its own way. It also states how technology helps planners to save abundantly because of how practical it is to use an application where all your information are stored in. Many applications are rising to help with the planning. They help with organizing with all the details and all data are stored and save. Smart phones are a major part, in that it is a major tool that helps the planner pull up their activities and they can also use it as business contacts and work with all the vendors. These applications are the best ways to help cut cost and a good solution to improve new strategies in the event planning workplace.
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Every year technology plays a more significant role in the hospitality industry, including the event planning sector counting for direct spending of $263 billion in the U.S. market alone. According to the article, there are 5 trends that companies will focus on in order to demonstrate return on investment. Smart event will be taking center stage in 2013 therefore operators need to choose smart technology that will allow them to operate more efficiently and grow their business. Automation and streamline will help reduce costs and will allow for more transparency. The next trend is for planner to achieve greater efficiency through solution consolidation that will free up planning s time allowing them to focus on their creativity. Meeting planners will also leverage technology to gather in depth information about their attendees to find out what their preferences are so they can adjust their strategies. Lastly, event organizers will engage audience with smartphones. This trend I think is very crucial and will make events appealing to attendees who will be able to use app for the conference prior during and after the event allowing them to be connected to all the information and recourses at all times.
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This article contains information about the expected event trends this year that will possibly increase ROI. The list of expected trends all surrounded the technological advancements that are enhancing event planning. The advancements include the increased use of smartphones to conduct business. This technological increase will also reduce company costs. It is also expected to improve company value. I agree with technology improving company value. Technology is advancing majorly throughout the world. It is also making it easier for companies and consumers to interact. Smartphones, alone, are very popular in today's economy and are a great example of technological advancement. Being that people already use their smartphones to check emails, save event dates and contact other people (whether over the phone or by video), conducting business will be somewhat simple to adapt to. Increasing company technology to reduce costs is a good move. However, the companies should keep in mind that losing one cost will only open the door for another one. When dealing with technology, there are always risks (usually malfunction risks). So, companies should keep in mind that there is a possibility that expenses will incur for the technological maintenance that will be needed to keep the technology operating.
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The Great Recession has been come to end point; therefore, expected corporate and event spend will begin to rise from 9 to 20 percents in next two years. The author has scooped out 5 major trends that will rapidly increase Return on Investment (ROI) for 2013 and future. 1. Smart Events will take center stage: in 2011, 205 million people attended 1.8 million events cost more than $263 billion in direct spending in the U.S alone. But only 25 percent of organizations see its effective, in 2013 organizations will choose smart event technology to help them operate more effectively 2. Automation will help event planners reduce expenses: Strategic meeting management ( SMM) technology can help event planners adapt to new methods to identify event-related functions and reduce costs. 3. Planners will achieve greater efficiency through solution consolidation: In the future, organizers will lay out their workloads by choosing consolidated solution, saving time and freeing up event planners to focus on making event better and well organized. 4. Event organizers will engage audiences with smartphones: New all-in one apps will help organizer to provide all the information needed for attendee about the event. 5. Meeting planners will leverage technology to gather in-dept attendee information: focusing on the need of attendee is a crucial part of event planner, to be able to get requirement of attendee in real time will help organizer to adjust their plan, strategies on the fly and increase ROI. Increasing the need for events in 2013 and future requires event planner to be able to get familiarize with new event trend and technology to minimize the cost and maximize the ROI for an organization.
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How Technology Can Help Hotel Facility Managers Reduce Maintenance Costs | - 0 views
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From the time a guest makes a reservation, to the time they checkout and leave the facility, hotel executives want to ensure the experience is five-star. There are many factors in making a guest’s stay exemplary which the guest doesn’t even see: the HVAC system working to ensure optimal temperature, the plumber checking to make sure water pressure in each shower is just right, the cleaning staff ensuring each room is spotless.
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Keeping facilities in top shape for guests takes careful planning, plenty of time and considerable funds. To cut operational costs, hotel facility managers can make some changes to increase sustainability, streamline processes and alleviate headaches for maintenance staff members.
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However, there are other services that may be better suited for an outside partner than regular staffers.
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Oftentimes, when facility managers and on-staff technicians are busy doing things like lighting updates, furniture assembly or remodeling of any kind, they’re doing so on borrowed time.
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By outsourcing more services – like construction services, HVAC services, electrical services, plumbing services and exterior services – overhead costs can be kept down, while more specialized service contractors provide quick, reliable care in both emergency situations and preventative, at a low rate.
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While hotel management staff may be utilizing the latest technology to streamline services related to guest reservations and checkout, facility management staff may be missing out on opportunities to save with the use of technology.
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Computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS), for example, can assist with task scheduling, inventory management and work order management.
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Some solutions also offer a help desk, space planning, scheduling assistance and other features that can be used to manage nearly all aspects of facility management.
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When looking to technology to reduce costs, facility managers will want to select software solutions which fit their specific needs.
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The right software depends on the size of the hotel and number of facilities and staffers. Consider purchasing software that can scale with the hotel if it grows.
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Some money-saving initiatives require an up-front cost, and sustainable hotel features is one of them.
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By taking aim at reducing facility management costs, hotel facility managers are showcasing their eagerness to make changes that will result in happier guests and a more satisfied staff.
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The article discusses how facility managers can reduce operational costs by outsourcing help, promoting sustainability, and using facility management technology. When outsourcing work and emergencies of HVAC, electrical, plumbing, or waste, a hotel can reduce overhead costs and free time for on-staff technicians to keep up with their scheduled up-keep activities. Investing in green products like occupancy sensors and LED lights and policies like linen reuse, helps hotels save money by including guests in their commitment of protecting the earth while reducing costs. Computerized maintenance management systems can greatly help with streamlining the scheduling, purchasing, inventory, and order management, which helps protect the hotel's assets and image.
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Author, Susan Daywitt, discusses the benefits of using computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS). Along with computer aided facility management systems (CAFM), to improve customer satisfaction and to reduce overhead costs. Daywitt also asserts CMMS and CAFM systems improve facilities managers' ability to manage inventory and work orders with greater efficiency.
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Hardware subsidies for POS systems? - 0 views
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Subsidizing a product to get a long-term use commitment from a consumer base is nothing new; it existed before high tech hardware was made affordable by software or service agreements. Think about the razors you buy, assuming of course that you're not a fully bearded male. The initial cost of the razor isn't all that expensive, but replacing the razors for a month costs upwards of twice the razor itself. And if you've shopped for a printer lately, you know the same strategy applies here. The printer itself isn't the greatest expense over the life of the asset; the ink, which is required and usually specific to the device itself, is where you will spend the most money. The most well known form of subsidization, or at least most glaring, comes from the coupling of cell phones and cell service providers. An iPhone, for example, costs a lot more than most people actually pay for it. The new iPhone 5, the basic version with 16GB will run you $649. Not to mention the cost of new adapters, chargers, cases, etc. However, if you commit to (or renew) a two-year service contract with AT&T, Verizon, or Sprint, the phone itself costs $199. How does this work? The same way the printers and printer ink work. The service providers (i.e. AT&T) subsidize the majority of the cost of the phone in order to lock customers into a contract that ends up costing much more in usage and data charges over the life of the contract. The idea is to make the cost of entry relatively cheap. Then, the cost the company loses at the initial purchase is recouped through purchases, or service charges, over the long term. Unscrupulous? Not really, although some would say so after receiving their phone bill. But that has more to do with not being aware of the stipulations of the contract you sign to get the cheaper phone at the outset. Although I personally find it annoying, I try to look at as something akin to amortizing the asset, and remember that, at least for me, a monthly fee
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Hotel Telecommunications Strategies - 6 views
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No matter what telecommunications strategy a property takes, one thing is for certain, it needs to be a different one from the past.
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The guest now has a variety of choices for communicating including fax over the Internet, e-mail, cell phones, calling cards and now even Internet-based phones.
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Assuming that the wireless reception quality is acceptable, it is very difficult for the hotel to compete on a cost basis.
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Given the hotel’s advantage in quality over the guest’s portable devices, the proper packaging of services will lure even the most avid self-contained guest back to using the hotel’s telecom services.
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Hotels are unable to compete on price with devices that the guest has brought with him. What the hotel can do is offer a better experience at a reasonable price to entice guests to use the hotel’s telecom infrastructure.
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The guest now has a variety of choices for communicating including fax over the Internet, e-mail, cell phones, calling cards and now even Internet-based phones. All these alternatives offer a less expensive means of communicating than using the traditional hotel guestroom phone and other services such as fax.
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No matter what telecommunications strategy a property takes, one thing is for certain, it needs to be a different one from the past.
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The guest now has a variety of choices for communicating including fax over the Internet, e-mail, cell phones, calling cards and now even Internet-based phones. All these alternatives offer a less expensive means of communicating than using the traditional hotel guestroom phone and other services such as fax
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No matter what telecommunications strategy a property takes, one thing is for certain, it needs to be a different one from the past.
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Attracting the Guests to Use the Hotel’s Telecommunication Services Hotels are unable to compete on price with devices that the guest has brought with him. What the hotel can do is offer a better experience at a reasonable price to entice guests to use the hotel’s telecom infrastructure. No matter what cell phone the guest may carry or what service provider is used, no wireless connection is as good as a land-line connection
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Assuming that the wireless reception quality is acceptable, it is very difficult for the hotel to compete on a cost basis .
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Assuming that the wireless reception quality is acceptable, it is very difficult for the hotel to compete on a cost basis
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Hotels are unable to compete on price with devices that the guest has brought with him. What the hotel can do is offer a better experience at a reasonable price to entice guests to use the hotel’s telecom infrastructure. No matter what cell phone the guest may carry or what service provider is used, no wireless connection is as good as a land-line connection
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The early 1980s marked the beginning of an era of profitable hotel telephone departments. The advent of call accounting systems (thanks to deregulation) enabled hoteliers to easily mark up calls to a profitable (some say too profitable) level. Guests had little choice back then but to use the guestroom phone and grumble about the cost. This era has come to an end. With few exceptions, most hotels have seen between a 15 percent and 25 percent drop in telephone revenues over the last five years. The main reason for this decrease is guest choice. The guest now has a variety of choices for communicating including fax over the Internet, e-mail, cell phones, calling cards and now even Internet-based phones. All these alternatives offer a less expensive means of communicating than using the traditional hotel guestroom phone and other services such as fax . A fax machine in the guestroom was considered a premium amenity for many years. With the Internet explosion, however, the machines have seen less use.
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No matter what telecommunications strategy a property takes, one thing is for certain, it needs to be a different one from the past. The early 1980s marked the beginning of an era of profitable hotel telephone departments. The advent of call accounting systems (thanks to deregulation) enabled hoteliers to easily mark up calls to a profitable (some say too profitable) level.
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Nowadays, people have many choices for communicating including fax over the Internet, e-mail, cell phones, calling cards and now even Internet-based phones. Hotel guests are restricted by the largest telecommunications service providers from making long distance collect and credit card calls to countries other than their home country. The guest is not able to complete his desired call from the guest room telephone. In addition to frustrated guests, this generates absolutely zero revenue to hotels. What the hotel can do is offer a better experience at a reasonable price to entice guests to use the hotel's telecom infrastructure. The hotel can use some systems to reach this goal, such as the BBG Communications. It can increase revenue for every international operator assisted call. It assumes all responsibility for billing and collection of all calls. It has over 500 multilingual, live operators servicing customers. The most important thing is there is no cost and risk to the hotel, because the BBG assumes all associated cost and responsibility.
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This article is talked about hotel telecommunications in the 21st Century. No matter what telecommunications strategy a property takes, one thing is for certain, it needs to be a different one from the past. The early 1980s marked the beginning of an area of profitable hotel telephone department. Few years later, this area has come to an end. The main reason for this decrease is guest choice. Later on, guests have a variety of choices for communicating including fax over the Internet, e-mail, cell-phones, calling cards and even Internet-based phones. All these alternatives offer a less expensive means of communicating than using the traditional hotel guestroom phone. With the time passed by, hotel telecommunications update and improve better and better. Nowadays, High-speed Internet access is fast becoming an expected amenity. This the revolution for hotel telecommunications in the 21st Century.
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This article that is written by Geoff Grisworld. Talks about how telecommications has changing in the 21st century. One of them being hotel. Hotel takes a big advantage in telecommication because there is always a change in the communication system. That is why hotel have to upgrade their system often. This is why hotelier organizes packaging deal when it comes to communication system from using the phone to HSIA. This is a few system that is always need to be change constantly, so the hotel can offer a better experience at a reasonable price while they are enjoying their stay.
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This article speaks about the growth and development of telecommunication within the hospitality industry in the 21st century. "No matter what telecommunications strategy a property takes, one thing is for certain, it needs to be a different one from the past," the article states. Since the 80s hotels utilized their telephone department to offer a service for a profit. Because there was little to no competition with communication, this was profitable as guest pretty much had no choice but to use the phone service provided at a set cost by the hotel. Today, however, we see a shift in technology now where everyone has communication at their disposal via smart phones, Internet and other communication tools. With this happening, "it is very difficult for the hotel to compete on a cost basis." (Griswold) It also explains how high-speed Internet access (HSIA) is almost seen as an amenity anticipated by the guest and has worked in the hotels' favor. The article goes on to describe the "self-contained guest" that carries a smart phone, small printer, notebook computer and technology of their own which allows them to virtually have no use in the hotel telecommunications services. So what does this article suggest for concerns as such? Hotels are to attract guests to use their telecommunication services. By offering packaged deals at affordable prices, Griswold believes hotels will be able to be the ideal option for telecommunications services. After viewing this article, I realize how hospitality industry workers think about those they serve all the time and should always display it. Even though the hotel is trying to make money by charging for Internet and phone services, they wish to market the service as the best option for the guest. The Internet connection would be faster provided by the hotel over a smart phone is one feature they wish to advertise. This type of mentality is smart yet should be withheld throughout the industry and always show that the
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The early 1980s marked the beginning of an era of profitable hotel telephone departments, because guests had little choice back then but to use the guestroom phone and grumble about the cost. Nowadays, guest has a variety of choices for communicating including fax over the Internet, e-mail, cell phones, calling cards and now even Internet-based phones. All these alternatives offer a less expensive means of communicating than using the traditional hotel guestroom phone and other services such as fax. And high-speed Internet access (HSIA) is fast becoming an expected amenity in 21st century. Today hotels are unable to compete on price with devices that the guest has brought with him. What the hotel can do is offer a better experience at a reasonable price to entice guests to use the hotel's telecom infrastructure.
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This article explains how much are creating incentives for hotel guest in an effort to get them to use the technology that the hotel provides.
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In modern society hotel need more attrahent thing increase revenue. The traditional way may lose competitiveness, like telephone services. Because almost everybody using personal cell phone and more and more people prefer to use internet to communicate such as email and skype. In my opinion if hotel build some telecommunications use internet such as physical skype phone and provide cheap service that may be attract more people to use that.
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With the emergence of "self-contained guest," hotel telecommunications departments must change its offerings because old strategies no longer apply. A self-contained guest is one that does not need the traditional amenities hotels would offer for telecommunications, such as fax machines and printers. Guests now look for a fast, free internet connection as an amenity. Some may not even need wifi, because they have a faster mobile service that they use. Even hotel telephones, guests no longer want to use the land line and pay hotel fees to make a call. Cell phones have eliminated that need (even for international calls). So hotels must not stay the same, and must change their strategies for producing revenue from their telecommunications department.
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Reduce Energy Costs and Drive Up Profits at Your Hotel With an Energy Management Solution - 0 views
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Energy cost is witnessing a sharp rise year-on-year in India. Like every other industry, the hotel industry is also deeply concerned and taking measures to introduce energy management solutions to keep energy cost under control.
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:Like every business establishment, hotel properties also need to keep a check on all expenses so that they can minimize costs and maximize profits. In a hotel, the energy cost can be high enough to be the second highest expense and heating ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) can make up to 50% of the total energy consumption. So, this is where the hotel needs to look in order to minimize energy consumption which would ultimately help them reduce energy bills. In simple words, when a hotel is able to control energy costs, they actually add to their bottom line.
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the Energex system is based on passive infra-red technology. Once installed, the sensor in the solution detects the presence of the guest in the room as it captures the thermo radiation emitted by the human body. When our system determines that there is a guest in the room, it gives him/herfull control over the HVAC system. This means, they can set the temperature as per their requirements. But, once the guest steps out of the room, our smart sensor detects the room as unoccupied and automatically sets-back the temperature in the room to a preset energy efficient mode. The solution also has a quick recovery method where-in the temperature returns to that set by the guest when they return to the room and this ensures guest comfort.
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When they enter their room, guests need a comfortable room. Our sensor is capable of detecting the presence of the guest in the room and automatically switching on. The sensor is also able to detect a guest sleeping and stays on. When the guest is not in the room the air conditioning comes on intermittently to ensure the temperature in the rooms stays pleasant when the guest returns. Energex also offers a web based interface which allows hotels to control the temperature in a room.
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Energy management is a important part of physical plant of hospitality management. The most significant meaning of energy management is to reduce costs and drive up profits. Energex system is a kind of energy management software introduced in this article. It can adjust the using of the HVAC system automatically and save energy costs. It also can ensure the guests' comforts. The system can be used in both old and upcoming hotels. What the hotel need to do is to install a sensor along side the thermostat. I believe this is a good technology for this industry because it can not only benefit the hotels but also be environment-friendly.
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Three Ways to Overcome Hotel Accounting Challenges - 0 views
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Managing payroll is a constant challenge, so it’s critical for hoteliers to have a way to monitor daily labor costs, manage overtime, oversee daily payroll transactions, and have access to simple reporting functions.
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Adopting a cloud-based reporting system can offer seamless labor monitoring and management from clock-in to paycheck while giving hoteliers on-demand management of earnings to manage transactions in real time.
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Hoteliers may have a difficult time deciphering what story the data is telling and which levers to pull to remedy an issue or to replicate success. Business intelligence and analytics tool can point to where efficiencies can be improved and how to best reduce expenses.
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Adopting an operations management platform that allows hoteliers to import data into one centralized dashboard combines critical accounting and performance data to aid hoteliers in identifying trends and making more informed decisions.
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Hoteliers must expect the best but prepare for the worst and have a back-up accounting team in place ready to resume operations in the event of a disaster.
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While increased corporate travel demand and a healthy economy paint a rosy picture for the hotel industry, the report also warns that the lodging ecosystem is vulnerable to threats from multiple fronts.
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These unique challenges require hotels to be nimble, educated, and equipped with the latest technology to streamline processes and drive financial performance.
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Because the hotel industry has a very specific set of needs, it is imperative for hoteliers have the right tools to navigate today’s challenges. The global travel industry shows no signs of slowing down any time soon, so hotels must incorporate cutting-edge technology to streamline operations, optimize labor management, and access critical data while preparing for the next unexpected event.
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This particular article on hospitality and tourism accounting states that the global travel industry is expanding at an accelerated rate. Although there are high demands in corporate travel and high level of satisfaction in the economy, the ever growing industry is vulnerable to many risks given by its consumers. Just as much as the guests utilizing these hospitality services are becoming more pressing towards great prices and expressing concern in the quality of service they receive, hotel businesses are adamant about increasing awareness in cost and profit. To balance all these exclusive challenges, hotels are insisting on being educated and equipped with the most up-to-date technological advances to keep up with the ever demanding industry. With this in mind, the article states three methods to conquer the challenges faced today. The first method is to utilize a cloud based system to keep track of all the innumerous activities present to keep the business running. Due to the fact that a hotel is run by an overflowing amount of employees, all with different jobs and tasks, all using different systems respective to their departments, and require several types of pay (part-time, full-time, tipped employees) methods, it is a challenge to keep things efficient without a proper system. This is the reason why the article recommends using a cloud based system to keep track of the daily labor costs, overtime management, daily payroll transactions, and incorporate easy accessibility to reporting functions. The cloud based system will be beneficial in keeping everything in record beginning from the moment an employees clocks in to the end where they receive their paycheck, as well as, the ability to manage transactions. The second method is to centralize all the various sources of data. Hotels have a countless amount of data being stored. That can range from guest satisfaction satisfaction survey and comment reports, PMS data, to financial reports. With all these busy ac
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The hospitality industry today is said to be one of the fastest growing sectors in the world, as demands for travel accompanied by a healthy economy has pushed a flourishing industry. As the industry grows, businesses are having to become more cost/profit-conscious while maintaining an increased importance on price, quality, and level of service, all the while sustaining a profitable organization. The article states that business owners are relying more on financial data to ensure maximum efficiency and profitability out of each and every contract. The article goes on to discuss three new smart-technology accounting solutions for various industry challenges. Cloud-based reporting systems are beneficial as the hospitality industry has many different waged employees that make payroll challenging; cloud-based systems make monitoring and managing staff significantly easier. With all of the varying data that the hospitality industry finds necessary, it is often easy to be overwhelmed with data/numbers. Data from one source may indicate trends in one direction while data from another source may contradict. Operations management platforms can be put into play that can decipher through the data and find out the important details like what efficiencies can be improved and how to best reduce expenses. These platforms combine critical accounting and performance data to benefit business owners by identifying trends and aiding better informed decisions. Lastly, the article finishes with how the hospitality industry can be unpredictable and that back-up accounting teams may be necessary in times of distress.
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This article mentions way to overcome hotel accounting challenges. The article mentioned that technology has been helping the industry increase revenue, minimize cost, and maximize profit without affecting the quality of the service. One of the ways the author mentioned was to use cloud-based reporting for labor. Hotels have many employees working at all different times of the day and their pay rate varies, therefore it is much easier to monitor labor cost, have employees clock in electronically, and complete payroll having an electronic accounting system. Another way is to centralize multiple data sources. "Hoteliers may have a difficult time deciphering what story the data is telling and which levers to pull to remedy an issue or to replicate success. Business intelligence and analytics tool can point to where efficiencies can be improved and how to best reduce expenses." As a manager, its easier to monitor all your reports on one page making it easier to point out the areas that need improvement. Lately, having back-up accounting teams is a smart idea. Hotels are 24/7 hour establishments that host rooms for the needs of many people. In case of a natural disaster, the hotel must have a team ready to tackle the challenges on making room for those guests in need. "The global travel industry shows no signs of slowing down any time soon, so hotels must incorporate cutting-edge technology to streamline operations, optimize labor management, and access critical data while preparing for the next unexpected event."
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MOD 9: This article is about how hotels are able to overcome accounting challenges within their industry. According to the article, the travel industry on a global scale is one of the fastest growing industries. While this is great news for the hospitality industry, the lodging sector is prone to vulnerability from trying to stay competitive while being cost and profit conscious and providing customized service. With these challenges, this article discloses three ways hotels can attempt to overcome them and they include cloud-based reporting for labor, centralize multiple data sources, and back-up accounting teams. When managing hotel staff, there are some challenges in overseeing that employees are compliant to their schedule, managing payroll and monitoring labor costs for each department. Implementing a cloud-based labor reporting system could help alleviate those challenges. A similar example would be like ADP, my own property uses this system to monitor labor costs as well as manage payroll and scheduling issues. With implementing multiple centralized data sources, it helps hoteliers to easily identify trends and help make more informed decisions based on the data shown from their data sources. With any property, it is always in their best interest to prepare for worst case scenarios which could be a natural disaster as an example. By establishing a back-up accounting team, hoteliers will be able to make more informative decisions with their back-up accounting team to match the changes of the industry after events like a natural disaster.
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The article discusses how hotels can overcome accounting obstacles. Firstly managing payroll is cumbersome, so a cloud-based reporting system can provide an easy way to monitor labour and manage overtime, and daily payroll transactions. Secondly, hotels have a difficult time to read data as data can come from a huge variety of sources: STR reports, PMS data, satisfaction surveys, comments. Hotels need a centralized dashboard which combines all critical accounting and performance data to assist hotels in making better decisions. Lastly, the article talks about hotels needing a back-up accounting team in case of disasters. In-house accounting teams may not be able to tackle on one-time event disasters and there must be a back-up team in place in times of urgency. The author, Scott Watson, executive vice president of sales and marketing at a cloud-based financial platform, sees that hotels are becoming more "cost and profit conscious" and I agree with him. Technology solutions are what hotels are craving right now to increase revenue, minimize costs, and maximize profits without sacrificing service quality.
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This article helps guides hotels in how to overcome challenges when it comes to the accounting department in any situation that deals with staff tracking, how to decipher intricate data, and what to do in emergencies. The article details the usefulness of the Cloud and keeping track of staff members that are FOH and BOH that are both hourly and salary. That the accounting department could simply look them up in the cloud rather than searching through paperwork to understand exactly what their role is in the hotel and pay them accordingly. The article also goes over how having multiple centralized data sources can help accountants understand information from reports, guest satisfaction questionnaires, and other forms of reporting to pinpoint exactly what needs to be changed to become more efficient in the company. Lastly, the article covers how having back up accounting teams could be a definite positive just in case of emergencies (i.e. weather) so accounting can still be in progress no matter what situation occurs and the hotel can run smoothly.