SCOTTSVILLE, KY.—Phil Meredith, Foodservice SBA Director Americas announced the expansion of Halton’s manufacturing facility dedicated to commercial air handling segment. Halton, a leading maker of commercial kitchen ventilation and air distribution systems, is investing $7.4 million to expand the company’s facility in Allen County, creating 60 full-time Kentucky jobs. Work will start immediately and is expected to be completed during the first half of 2024. The project will see the company expand its current manufacturing operation in Scottsville by 50,000 square feet, bringing its operational space to 91,000 square feet at its second facility. This expansion joins its sister facility, bringing...

AHLA last conducted The Lodging Survey with STR in 2018. It provided valuable information on numerous trends in lodging, including ones falling under Sustainability. AHLA and STR no longer conduct that survey. A very valuable replacement to that survey is the 2022 Green Lodging Trends U.S. Market Report. It is based on U.S.-specific data gathered for the 2022 edition of the global Green Lodging Trends Report (GLTR). The newly available U.S. report from AHLA—representing its Responsible Stay program—is based on data from 17,000 U.S. hotels. There were two data collection methods: direct participation by responding to the GLTR survey on...

HONOLULU—Premier beach resort brand Outrigger Resorts & Hotels has successfully achieved Green Seal certification for key properties in Fiji and Hawaii. Outrigger is first in the State of Hawaii to earn the prestigious Green Seal designation as well as the first hospitality brand to achieve certification outside of the United States. Green Seal is a global nonprofit whose certification mark is a universal symbol that a product, cleaning service or facility meets the highest benchmark of health and environmental leadership. Outrigger’s owned/managed properties that are now Green Seal certified include: Outrigger Reef Waikiki Beach Resort Outrigger Waikiki Beach Resort Outrigger Waikiki Beachcomber Hotel OHANA Waikiki...

OAK BROOK, ILL.—The Hyatt Lodge in Oakbrook, Ill., is providing a stay at a green, responsibly and sustainably crafted property. With prairie-style architecture in a retreat-like setting nestled among Lake Fred in Oak Brook, Hyatt Lodge has many structural elements of the space that were carefully selected and crafted to provide guests with a greener stay. The ceiling finish consists of no VOC paint which creates a healthier indoor environment and allows for easier breathing. All the wood furniture is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certified, promoting socially responsible forestry. Additional earth-friendly features at the Hyatt Lodge include the nightstands made from...

SOLON, OHIO—Demonstrative of its commitment to sustainability, Tarkett, a leader in innovative and sustainable flooring solutions, has received two GREEN GOOD DESIGN Awards for its Inspired Nature and LinoFloor xf2 & LinoWall xf2 collections. Organized by the Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies, GREEN GOOD DESIGN is an international program that recognizes new products, buildings, and construction and planning projects that have forwarded exceptional thinking and inspired greater progress toward a healthier and more sustainable universe. One of Tarkett’s award-winning collections, Inspired Nature, is a carbon-neutral collection of modular carpet...

LAS VEGAS—More than 600 exhibitors displayed their goods and services at last week’s HD Expo at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. More than 80 of those exhibitors identified themselves as sustainable in one way or another. It would be impossible to mention all those companies in this article but below are many examples of what this author considered especially creative and unique. Elkay Manufacturing Co. introduced its ezH2O Liv Pro Filtered Water Dispenser. Unlike other Elkay dispensers, this one features a low-profile design and a more upscale look with its either black or white frame. It fits within 16” OC...

VIENNA, VA.—Attune, an industry leader with the most comprehensive and flexible sensor platform delivering needed real-time data for digital transformation, announced that it has received the SOC 2 Type 1 compliance standard certification. The SOC 2 compliance certification distinguishes organizations as leaders in cybersecurity industry standards and data protection. Developed by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), the SOC 2 compliance report is a voluntary compliance for companies that adhere to the highest standard of security confidentiality. Through extensive auditing procedures, SOC 2 aims to monitor companies’ internal security controls and data privacy continuously. Additionally, SOC 2 provides assurance of...

VIENNA, VA.—Attune, an industry leader with the most comprehensive and flexible sensor platform delivering needed real-time data for digital transformation, has launched its new product for outdoor air quality monitoring. The Outdoor Air Quality Monitoring (OAQ) Kit repackages Attune’s UL-2905 Certified indoor air quality monitoring sensors for outdoor use, providing data on air quality around any given site. Attune’s flexible sensor platform is built from the ground up on solid modular design principles; its many Internet of Things (IoT) innovations have been recognized with the granting of 50 patents. Attune’s modular architecture enables the rapid integration of next-generation sensors, which...

If your company has set goals—even ambitious goals—for greenhouse gas emission cuts in the next decade and you are satisfied with those goals, it is time to reevaluate. That is the message from a very important UN report released last week from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). In a nutshell, the report said we are all not doing enough to keep temperatures to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. Temperatures have already risen to 1.1°C above those levels, a consequence of more than a century of burning fossil fuels, as well as unequal and unsustainable energy and land use. Said the...

DUBUQUE, IOWA—Innovative Ink Publishing, an imprint of Kendall Hunt Publishing Company, has released Sustainable Hospitality, written by green hospitality industry expert Dan Ruben. The textbook provides hospitality professionals and students with the knowledge and resources to make their properties environmentally sustainable. “The target audience is hospitality professionals who work for hotels, cruise ships, and other hospitality sectors, as well as hospitality students,” Ruben says. “Managers of senior living facilities, dormitories, and other lodging facilities will benefit from this book, too. Sustainable Hospitality offers a roadmap to a leaner operation—one where less energy and water are consumed, and where less waste is generated....