NIANTIC, CONN.—The luxurious Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa has become the first Hyatt property to upgrade its energy management system with the environmentally-friendly ecoMODE option from INNCOM. Niantic-based INNCOM develops, manufactures and markets integrated room automation systems for the international hospitality industry.
Situated on 40 acres along a three-mile stretch of the Ka’anapali Beach coastline, the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa features guest suites accentuated with plantation-style wood furniture and Hawaiian elegance, and 100,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space. The property is on Conde Nast Traveler’s “Gold List” of Best Places to Stay in 2008 and is listed among Conde Nast Traveler’s Top Golf Resorts for 2008.
INNCOM’s environmentally friendly ecoMODE is a special setting available as an option on all styles of e4 Smart Digital Thermostats, as well as INNCOM switches and touch-screen devices. The ecoMODE control system is designed to make “Going Green” a simple process for both hotelier and guests. With a touch of the control’s Green Button, guests activate the thermostat’s enhanced energy-saving mode and thus can choose a host of environmentally correct programs predetermined by the hotel, such as reduced linen changes or bath-amenity replacements.
In the simplest ecoMODE system, pressing the Green Button triggers an enhanced energy-savings setback and illuminates a green LED to indicate the guest’s sustainability-program participation to hotel staff. In a centrally controlled system, this notification is also sent to the central server, instantly alerting appropriate staff members to the guest’s participation, as well as collecting data regarding program involvement.
Management, Guests Adopt System
Gary Bulson, senior engineer for the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa, said his property is the first in the Hyatt chain to adopt the ecoMODE control system, which is especially appropriate given the lush physical environment in which his property is located. INNCOM’S ecoMODE is finding favor among guests as well as the hotel’s management, he noted.
“The feature I like best about the system is how it allows our guests to actively participate in choosing to allow a deeper set-back of room temperatures,” Bulson said. Not only is this a key to sustainability in developing a property’s commitment to going green, but it also is a key contributor to saving energy and, in turn, cutting costs property wide—a crucial consideration in an era when energy prices are increasing significantly.
“We are very proud of our ecoMODE system,” said INNCOM CEO Duane Buckingham. “ecoMODE further enhances INNCOM’s core energy management system, which has reigned as the leading solution in the worldwide hotel industry’s effort to install systems that are both environmentally friendly and ‘friendly’ to operators looking to dramatically reduce energy costs. ecoMODE is designed for any lodging property that seeks to demonstrate a firm commitment to environmental sustainability practices. We share that commitment with Hyatt Hotels & Resorts and are proud to be partnering with them on the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa installation.”
Evidence of the ecoMODE system’s impact on the lodging industry’s “Going Green” campaign is the fact that the INNCOM product was singled out as the Kenneth F. Hine “Best of Show” award winner at the 92nd Annual International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show.
For more information on ecoMODE and other INNCOM products, go to www.INNCOM.com.
