Hospitality Technology

This is an interesting article mentioning how airline industry goes green. Air France and Airbus combined the latest Bio-fuel and air traffic management technologies and reduced CO2 emissions in half. Furthermore, Continuous Descent Approach (CDA) is becoming more widespread as a way to reduce fuel burn. It requires significantly less engine thrust and less fuel burn. These green bio-fuel and CDA strategies might make airline companies as sustainable and valuable chains.

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

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

All about  Mobile Wireless Cell Phone Recycling This articles states how  people know everything about using their cell phone, such as taking picture, recording and dialing but when it  comes time to dispose of the cell phone they are clueless of what to do . Knowing how to dispose of one's cellphone is very important  for our health because improper disposal of one's cell phone  can lead to the intoxication of the ecosystems due to all the  toxins that our cell phones contains such as lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, beryllium,  antimony and nickel. Taking in consideration that most used cell phones can be refurbished, it is important that we use proper disposal process so the cell phones can  be fixed to be given at a better price in third world countries or even if they cannot be fixed, manufacturers can  use the materials that are still good  to make a new cell phone instead of working with raw material to make new cell phones. If  one doesn't know how to dispose of their cell phones properly  they can always give the  to a " Recycling for charity" because these programs  dispose properly of used cell phone and therefore reduce  the toxicity of our landfill.

It is true that most used cell phone can be refurbished for future use. We should aim to go green and make most cell phones restored to full function faster and economically.

The growth and development of mobile technology has had positive effects on society. There are many advantages that are experienced from the implementation and use of mobile technology. It is obvious that mobile devices are intended to play and gradually more important role in the distribution and sale of travel services in years ahead. Hotel companies should capitalize on this technology and make the process of booking travel using smartphone. It will be a more intuitive process for guests. Mobile technology enables you to get real time hotel information and enable you to make speedy and informed decisions. With a big number of people using mobile technology growing each day, businesses are adopting the use of commerce to reach a larger pool of possible clients. By doing so, hotel businesses are able to increase their revenues and client base.

Along with green initiatives in hotels and airlines, cruise lines and ports have been making efforts on "Going green" for years. This article, particularly introduces The Port of Los Angeles that can provide plug-in power system, a.k.a. Alternative Maritime Power system (AMP) to two cruise ships simultaneously. Basically, cruise ships consume the huge amount of fuel just like hundreds of cars do while they are in port. With the AMP that cruise ships gain electrical power from, cruise ships can turn off their engines while being at berth like an electric car. As a result, cruise ships can reduce their fuel cost and eliminate significant ship exhaust. More and more cruise ports have installed the AMP system and cruise ships have tried to be fitted to the power system. Obviously, the AMP is not the ultimate solution to pollution, however this can prevent the environment from being more polluted. The AMP system will advance, and we might see cruise ships sailing with only electrical power or other alternative power sources, such as solar power, power generated by cruise ships in the future.

INNCOM is the global hospitality-industry leader in advanced energy-management and Integrated Room Automation Systems (IRAS) for hotels and resorts. Furthermore, INNCOM is considered to be a pioneer in wireless environment installation with extensive experience in networking guestroom equipment and 25 years of tradition. INNCOM invented a Deep Mesh Network which uses advanced radio frequency technology to provide better control and monitoring over a hotel's HVAC, lighting and other equipment with the goals of reducing energy consumption and simultaneously improving the guest experience. In case of the Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort & Spa, it had upgraded its guestroom temperature control system to a networked energy management system utilizing the Deep Mesh Network (DMN) architecture from INNCOM, and since the 1,310-room property converted to this robust wireless environment (nearly eight months ago), energy consumption has dropped by 21 percent without requiring the 40-year-old facility to undergo an extensive or costly installation effort. After all, energy conservation is not just a question of saving money, but saving something that is home to us all: the earth.

This article indicated a kind of building structure and material for reducing the energy usage. Green building includes employing responsible, energy-efficient means in creating living, working and storage structures. Green building reduced energy usage by installing insulation. And this article introduced GREENGUARD certification to enhance the green movement. GREENGUARD Certification guarantees that the insulation is tested to ensure that chemical and particle emissions meet stringent indoor air quality pollutant standards. Considering the green hotel, this can be reducing the energy usage of hotel operation, the owner could be save cost, also save the environment.

This article addresses the differences between how CIOs in mid-sized companies and those in large companies behave towards IT investing in times of economic hardship. Specifically, it points out the mid-sized companies are quicker to jump on board with IT investments in hard economic times based on the premise that the cost benefits will be greater if they invest sooner. They were more likely to overspend in IT to try and get a step ahead. The larger companies were more likely to take a wait and see approach and to cut back on their IT budget in hard economic times. These larger companies tend to wait longer to make sure that the IT investment will pay off. When the economy is more stable, the spending between the two becomes more closely aligned. It appears that the mid-sized companies scramble to find any IT tech angle available in hard times to try and get ahead. In slower times, the mid-sized companies behave more like the large companies.

Today environment become green is more and more important. And advent technology is used in different industries in order to create a green environment. Hospitality industry also applies new technology. If the hotel becomes a green one, it will be a future value of your development. If the hotel becomes a green one, it will be welcome by the guests and increase the customers' loyalty. If the hotel becomes a green one, the staffs will very happy, because the environment is very good at their health and the hotel is very beautiful. It will reduce the turnover because the staffs feel comfortable. Except the feeling of people, another side is energy-saving measures. It is also a very important factor of hotel such as energy management systems, fluorescent bulbs, ceiling fans, linen cards, lights out cards, motion sensors for public rest rooms, meeting rooms, exercise rooms, etc., energy bills are much reduced. If the hotel is green, it means your hotel is responsibility for guests and staffs healthy. If they feel that you really care their health, they must give your some reward, which is benefit for your hotel. There's just no doubt that when odors, fumes, soot, droplets and residues of toxic, poisonous chemicals are not in the air, on our food or on anything we touch, we are not absorbing or breathing them. The green hotel will have a higher quality and price because it green theme which is good for guest and earn more profit because of lower cost which attributes to energy-saving measures.

I wonder how this will translate into widespread use by the hotel industry. It seems there were issues with some guests who didn't hold the phone properly to get in. Also seems as if just using a room card would be quicker as opposed to having to dial and wait for a tone. Be interesting to see how this idea evolves.

Grand Hyatt San Francisco has selected a package of VingCard Elsafe solutions for installation during renovation of its 659 guestrooms. The renovation features the addition of VingCard's Orion energy management system and Signature RFID locks powered by the VISIONLINE wireless online access management system.

Article discusses the recent large scale IT investment in green friendly security for the Grand Hyatt San Francisco. The hotel recently upgraded 659 of its hotel guestrooms to feature energy management software as well as RFID enable security features for guests. This represents a significant investment in green technology for the use of energy conservation which in the long run will lower energy costs for the hotel in addition to making the hotel a more secure atmosphere for the guests. Hotel staff can monitor all forms of these upgrades which all communicate and work together with each other one a room has been reserved.

I think it is important not to post just a message on your online marketing initiatives, but to post the right message. As highlighted, viral marketing is most effective when the message is passed along to other users. Its all about spreading the word.

This article illustrated that a creative way to produce electricity and at the same time to encourage guests to do sports. The Crowne Plaza Hotel in Copenhagen provides the guests with the equipments just like the bicycles. Guests will have to produce at least 10 watt hours of electricity - roughly 15 minutes of cycling for someone of average fitness. This is a new idea for the hotel to propagandize the green hotel concept and benefits of doing sports. The most important, the hotel uses the free meal to encourage guests to join this interesting activity. Actually, the hotel has already applied the solar panels to produce renewable energy. I think this is a fantastic idea. Firstly, in this environment friendly way, the hotel gets electricity. Secondly, it encourages the guests to do more sports and it is good for their health. As people nowadays do not pay enough attention to sports and this way can encourage them do some sports. Thirdly, it also put the "green hotel" concept into practice and in this way to encourage more and more hotels to generate new ideas to promote the environmentally friendly hotel development. Moreover, this new idea can help the hotel build a good image, as people pay more and more intention to the environment. The practice of the new idea is good opportunity for the hotel to advertise itself.

At the 2010 International Hotel, Motel and Restaurant Show (IHMRS) held in New York, Orion by VanCard cooped the green initiative for its in-room management system. This technology is very welcome as many hotels struggle with the astronomical cost of energy consumption, especially when they are experiencing low occupancy and rooms have to be maintained for longevity. How this system works is that though its wireless online locks, room temperature is controlled. This can also work for lights as well. Vacant rooms are set at a standard temperature, one a guest is checked in the front desk alerts the system and the room temp is adjusted for the arrival of the guest. Once the guest leaves the room the temperature is once again adjusted, This is a great initiative as, though many guest display social consciousness of energy conservation, they don't always have the habit and discipline to go along with this. So to have their movements tracked and adjust room temperature is great news for hoteliers. The only challenge or question I have regarding this system is if it has the capability to personalize room temperature setting. For example if my temperature preference is outside of the set zone, how can this be addressed. often times in hotels guest may asked about adjusting temp and are told that its a centralized system that cannot be adjusted. They in turn open windows and doors that is counter to this initiative. Nonetheless the cost saving that can be derived for this system is huge in terms of energy conservation and less negative impact of global warming.

This system really helps the hotels to save energy and costs. When I check-in in a hotel, the room temperature is top three things that I concern of a hotel. When I'm in the room, I like to adjust the temperature to a really low degree so that the room is cooled down really quickly.Then when I leave my room, I always forget to adjust it back. Therefore, there are a lot of energy being wasted before I come back to my room again. This system helps to control the room temperature and save energy and cut costs. There's one thing I need to mention is that this system must be maintained carefully and based on daily routine. Otherwise the repairing costs or even the replacing costs would be tremendous. The other good thing about the system also communicates with other in-room systems like the lock system which means they can be integrated and operated in the same online platform.

This is so true. This is defiantly a good system since it is difficult to control the habits of the guess. They are really not thinking about cost impact. I agree that maintenance of the system is critical.

1/5 of travel businesses make more than 50% of their revenue from sales outside the GDS booking system, and as they do this, payment transactions are more unreliable and vulnerable opening bigger risks to the customers

Travel Agents are now faced with the situation where they have to utilize all channels to stay afloat. The market has gotten so competitive with more airlines going the direct booking route. Travel Agents now have to be flexible though they face the risk of multiple accounting systems. This could potentially increase the cost of doing business and they may have to input information in multiple system which of course per article may lead to mistakes. GDS may need to look at their approach and some of the fees charged if this trend continues.

The article talks about the new green hotel, which is currently under construction, but will soon be opened to public. Everything in this hotel will be constructed from the green-wise point of view: starting from water heating systems, ending eco-packages and special offers. A must stay for every ecologist.

This article is a must read for any company looking at a new software implementation. At my last job I was part of the implementation team and we had to set up, test, and install our new software system. We had an implementation team in place but we didn't have a great plan in place before we started and it showed. We were all rarely on the same page and we each had our task list and did it without really communicating with one another. I ended up leaving the company before we were done but I know the actual "go live" date ended up being about four months later than the original target date.  If we had had more of a plan in place at the start I'm sure the implementation would have gone more smoothly. From personal experience, I can attest to the validity of this article. Researching and mapping out a plan is as important as researching and choosing the best software for your company.  

This article discusses the "Green Hotel" award that is presented every two years to Asean resorts. The purpose of this award is to bring awareness to hotels about the importance of being eco-friendly and preserving our environment. Thousands of hotels compete for this award based on criteria including water efficiency, air quality management, collaboration with local organizations and external communities. I personally love that collaborating with external communities is a criteria for this award because I find that to be very important. Well-known resorts should help smaller organizations and team up with them to show they care about those around them. Once of the recipients, Daluyon Beach and Mountain Resort, focused on protecting and sustaining the rich ecosystem surrounding their resort by constructing their resort using eco-ethical materials and placing priority in sustaining its environment-friendly atmosphere. The hope is for these awards to be an incentive to improve the tourism industry and to provide awareness to the hospitality industry regarding global warming and other important natural effects hotels are having on our environment. While it promotes healthy competition in the tourism industry, it also improves the quality of the hotels in Asean countries which in turn will lead to more tourism and financials for the country.

This weeks module is about learning the green terms for hospitality. Therefore the first link I have provided is the vocabulary of the concept of Cradle to Cradle. Cradle to Cradle is a concept that ends the linear model of resource extraction to product manufacturing to land fill instead it becomes a circular model that eliminates the concept of waste. It follows the Triple Bottom Line of profits, planet, people in the design of products energy resource. Hotels can purchase Cradle to Cradle or C2C certified products from carpet and flooring, building exteriors to laundry detergents that are made to be reabsorbed into the circular model. This website is worth checking out. This link below is a summary of C2C in their own PDF Design for the Future http://www.mbdc.com/images/Design_For_C2C_Future.pdf