ST. PAUL, MINN.—Ecolab Inc., in partnership with the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS), announced that its manufacturing plant in Taicang, China, is the first site in the world to be independently certified under the AWS’s global standard for water stewardship.The AWS Standard is an ISEAL-compliant framework developed to promote sustainable freshwater use and to evaluate water stewardship practices, developed through a four-year, multi-stakeholder, water roundtable process that included diverse business, public sector and civil society interests from around the world. This globally consistent and locally adaptable standard outlines a set of water stewardship criteria and indicators for how water...

ODESSA, FLA.—Hasek Communications, the Odessa, Fla.-based publisher of Green Lodging News, has added an AirRevive case study to its website. The case study details the successful refurbishing and re-commissioning of 167 fan coils at a Marriott hotel—a process that took 21 days.The hotel that runs at 98 percent occupancy year round needed to upgrade or replace their guestroom fan coil units. The units were not properly operating to cool and heat. This resulted in guestroom complaints, reduced guest satisfaction and the consumption of more energy for less return. The challenge for this airport property was the property could not...

ALBANY, N.Y.—A bill proposed by state lawmaker Ken Zebrowski (A08371) would ban smoking rooms within lodging establishments in New York. Zebrowski announced the legislation during a press event last week at the Crowne Plaza in Suffern—Mahwah, N.Y. He was joined by the general manager of the Crowne Plaza as well as by a representative of the American Lung Assn. The American Lung Assn., POW’R Against Tobacco, American Cancer Society and the American Heart Assn. have all expressed support of the legislation.Zebrowski told Green Lodging News that he was inspired to act because of his own experiences staying at hotels...

ROCKVILLE, MD.—Choice Hotels International announced that Comfort Inn will join Comfort Suites in implementing a 100 percent smoke-free policy beginning July 1, 2016, making Comfort the largest hotel brand in the United States to do so with more than 1,700 properties across the country. Becoming the largest hotel brand to provide a smoke-free environment reinforces the Comfort brand’s commitment to wellness and helping travelers feel refreshed while on the road.“This smoke-free initiative is the latest in a series of bold steps the Comfort brand is taking to enhance the guest experience and deliver the needs of today’s business and...

ODESSA, FLA.—Hasek Communications, the Odessa, Fla.-based publisher of Green Lodging News, has added an EcoRaider case study to its website. The case study details the results of a USDA study that measured performance of a green bed bug killer in infested housing apartments. Based on the field study by entomologists from Rutgers University, the report revealed that EcoRaider, a natural insect killer, shows strong effectiveness in eradicating bed bug infestations in housing apartments, comparable to a leading professional grade pesticide.The field study was conducted in a high-rise public housing apartment building in New Jersey with a known bed bug...

STOCKHOLM—Blueair, a leading indoor air purification specialist, will use the upcoming IFA Berlin 2015 electronics trade show running September 4 to 9 to unveil new smart connected appliances to help pollution-wary consumers efficiently tackle hidden airborne threats at home or work.“We will present a stellar lineup of new technologies, products and design bringing people the very latest and best of indoor air purification technology geared to enhance health and wellness,” says Karin Kruse, Blueair Head of Global Product Marketing.Kruse said Blueair’s new technologies embrace a number of clever functions that will warn consumers when their indoor air is becoming...

ATLANTA—With 12 confirmed dead and more than 120 cases of infection due to legionellosis, New York City Council last week adopted legislation that requires adherence to part of ASHRAE’s newly published Legionella standard.The legislation addresses registration and inspection of cooling towers. It requires owners to create and file a plan to maintain equipment to comply with Section 7.2 of ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 188-2015, Legionellosis: Risk Management for Building Water Systems.The standard provides minimum Legionellosis risk management requirements for the design, construction, commissioning, operation, maintenance, repair, replacement and expansion of new and existing buildings and their associated water systems and components.“Standard...

BOISE, IDAHO—Cary Thomas and Ruth Hurt, owners of QuickRinse.net, announced the launch of their first product, Quick Rinse, a new way to rinse showers during the cleaning process that is six times faster and uses up to 83 percent less water than the traditional method of rinsing with a cup. The Quick Rinse vinyl bladder, ideal for hotel housekeeping, is placed over an existing showerhead and is secured in place by a velcro strap. Just seconds after turning on the shower, water flows through the natural rubber tubing for fast, efficient rinsing. Quick Rinse is designed for all types...

According to a recent National Sleep Foundation survey, 91 percent of all people identified the pillow as being most important to a good night’s sleep (second only to the mattress at 93 percent). Yet very few hotels actively manage their pillow inventory. Currently, most properties leave it up to the subjective opinion of their housekeeping staff to pull pillows out of service when they no longer meet the hotel’s standards. This works for pillows that are obviously stained, or are flat, or lumpy. However, this practice does not allow a housekeeper to know what might be on the inside of...

ATLANTA—Long awaited industry guidance on legionellosis is now available in a new standard from ASHRAE. The document establishes minimum legionellosis risk management requirements for building water systems.“The industry interest and input into developing this standard has been tremendous,” Presidential Member Tom Watson, chair of the committee that wrote the standard, said. “With 8,000 to 10,000 cases of Legionnaires’ Disease reported each year in the United States, and with more than 10 percent of those cases fatal, it is vital that we set requirements to manage risk of this bacteria.”Legionella can also cause a less-severe influenza-like illness known as Pontiac...