I recently wrote about water bottle filling stations, their many advantages (dramatic decrease in plastic bottle consumption), how they can be used to increase profits, etc. This past week I posted an article on atmospheric water generation and several companies that have come along to offer systems that produce filtered, drinkable water from the humidity in the air. Whereas the water bottle filling stations require a water line connected to the machines, the atmospheric water generators do not. If they are solar powered they can be located just about anywhere—as long as humidity levels are at least 40 to 45 percent.
I first learned about atmospheric water generation during last fall’s HX: The Hotel Experience in New York. There, Florida-based Atmospheric Water Solutions, Inc. featured its air to water generators. That company offers a machine capable of producing water cooler quantities, high-capacity bottling machines that produce up to 2,000 bottles per eight hour day and generators that produce up to 5,000 gallons per day. Atmospheric Water Solutions, Inc., like its competitors, filters and purifies the water before dispensing it.
For my article I interviewed representatives of British Columbia-based Aqua Air 247 Inc. and Australia-based Generation Water. Aqua Air 247 Inc. has teamed up with Element Four Technologies Inc. to create the Atmospheric Water Generator Machine. The Atmospheric Water Generator Machine, which holds 90 liters of water, dispenses reusable/refillable water bottles. The bottles come in a variety of sizes but do not exceed 600 ml. The bottles can be custom printed.
The Atmospheric Water Generator Machine, similar in size to the beverage machines found at hotels and resorts today, can produce enough water for up to 120 to 160 500 ml bottles each day. The machine comes with an alkaline water option and promotional 24″ digital screen to promote on-site events and advertisements. The Atmospheric Water Generator Machine can accept credit cards, cash, room keys or be set up with no charge system on it.
Remote Monitoring Offered by Aqua Air 247 Inc.
Aqua Air 247 Inc. maintains and services its machines and can monitor them remotely. According to Roland Nadon, Director of Sales and Marketing for Aqua Air 247 Inc., the machines can save an average resort $8,000 to $10,000 per month and add $100,000 to $120,000 to the bottom line each year. Aqua Air 247 Inc. expects to roll out its machines this fall.
Australia-based Generation Water offers solutions ranging from 32 liters per day, an ideal replacement for traditional water coolers, all the way up to full turnkey solutions which produce and bottle between 100 and 10,000+ liters of drinking water per day. Generation Water can bottle still or carbonated water in one’s choice of custom labeled, glass bottles.
There are certainly factors to consider when purchasing or leasing a machine. Vendors I spoke with take care of servicing the machines. The machines need to be cleaned and water tested on a regular basis. The machines need to be located so they are convenient to guests. According to Ryan Kohler, Managing Director of Generation Water, location is also important to ensure optimal air flow. Air flow is important to ensure that the air entering the machine has a high water vapor content, rather than recycling the dry air that has already been processed.
I suspect you never imagined there would be so many ways to present water to your guests while making a huge dent in waste and increasing profitability at the same time. It is great to see suppliers developing so many options
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