WASHINGTON, D.C.—The following is a statement from Chip Rogers, president and CEO of the American Hotel & Lodging Association, on updated Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) face-covering guidance due to the spread of the COVID-19 Delta variant. “As cases of the COVID-19 Delta variant continue to grow in the U.S., hotels will implement safety guidelines based off CDC guidance, and in accordance with state and local laws.  As outlined by the CDC, the circumstances for a change in mask requirements are local, not national, and may be temporary depending upon location. Therefore, we encourage each hotel to monitor their...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow issued the following statement on the CDC’s updated guidance announced Tuesday: “As noted by President Biden, the updated guidance from the CDC marks another phase for America in navigating the pandemic. “From the onset, we have said our industry will follow the guidance of public health authorities. The last thing we want is a backslide in the nascent recovery of travel, particularly as business travel slowly begins to rebuild. Adhering to the CDC guidance allows Americans to safely continue the return to our professional lives, including in-person meetings and business travel. The updated CDC...

MUKILTEO, WASH.—As the nation stumbled its way through the pandemic in the past year, with public fears and government mandates abounding, most companies (95.6 percent) tried to do something to combat COVID-19 transmission in poorly ventilated, indoor spaces. Unfortunately, according to a new survey, they often made subpar investments, spending millions of dollars with limited success. The survey was commissioned by Omni CleanAir, a maker of commercial-grade air purification systems that have been eliminating airborne illnesses for more than 30 years. “We polled more than 430 HR managers around the country on the importance of various COVID-19 precautions and defense measures,...

ENGLEWOOD, COLO.—The recent pandemic has posed never-before-seen challenges for the hospitality industry, requiring owners, managers, and brands to take new precautions to keep both guests and staff safe. Despite tourists’ enthusiasm to travel again, they are more conscious than ever before about sanitation, safety, and cleanliness. Those vital concerns led MicrobeProof, Inc. to introduce Clean-a-Card, a proprietary countertop key card disinfection unit that effectively cleans and refreshes hotel key cards, regardless of the type of lock system. The unit is superior to manual cleaning methods for several reasons. “Hotels that employ Clean-a-Card for guest key disinfection show that they care about the...

GLENDALE HEIGHTS, ILL.—Gone are the days of toxic and hazardous cleaning chemicals. PathoSans Technologies is leading the world toward a new era in cleaning and sanitizing with proprietary products that are non-toxic, completely safe for people and places, and 99.999 percent effective at killing disease-causing microbes. A provider of electrochemically activated solutions (ECAS) and application equipment for cleaning and disinfecting, PathoSans showcased that mission with a new brand logo and message, “The Clean That Says You Care”. “At PathoSans, we believe that cleaning is truly an expression of caring—about the well-being of your loved ones, your friends, your business, your reputation and even...

As a hotel property, you are already focused on the cleanliness and safety of the facility. You cannot be in business without doing so daily. Couple a global pandemic with weary customers, and your attention to detail is seriously tested. Further, there are so many regulations coming from different organizations that it is hard to both commit to being sustainable and follow the rules. Fortunately, there is one solution that addresses all your pain points. Without using harmful sprays or toxic chemicals, UVC light is the most efficient way to render illness-causing viruses, bacteria, and other airborne pathogens harmless. By...

PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y.—While the practice for using germicidal UV fixtures to disinfect air has been well established in hospitals for over 70 years, ULTRA Germicidal Smart Fan by Modern Forms now helps you create a safer sanctuary for hospitality settings. “We didn’t intend to enter the established ceiling fan market. Our friends in the industry told us it was futile for us to even try, but here we are. We realized that we could use technology to stir things up,” says Dirk Wald, Co-CEO of Modern Forms and WAC. “And this is just the tip of the iceberg.” ULTRA uses...

NORTHBROOK, ILL.—The GBAC Online Fundamentals Course 2.0 is now available via GBAC Academy, an online learning portal for cleaning professionals from the Global Biorisk Advisory Council, (GBAC), a Division of ISSA. Those who complete the course within 30 days of enrollment will receive a Certificate of Completion from GBAC and be able to use the title GBAC-Trained Technician to promote their expertise. “With more than a year of learning and cleaning and disinfecting against SARSCoV-2 under our instructors’ belts, we are excited to share best practices that will help participants effectively manage infectious disease risks,” said GBAC Academy Education Manager Melissa Wernersbach. “GBAC-Trained Technicians...

DALLAS—Lennox International, a global leader in the heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration markets, is revolutionizing the commercial HVAC industry by introducing the rooftop unit Ultimate Indoor Air Quality system as part of its Building Better Air initiative. With the ability to remove 99 percent of the virus that causes COVID-19 from the air, Lennox has developed a rooftop unit that can help commercial businesses improve the health of their building. Using a factory-installed combination of MERV 16 filters and UVC Germicidal lamp, the Ultimate IAQ system has been third-party tested to show a 95 percent single pass efficiency rate with a 70 percent...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The following is a statement from Chip Rogers, President and CEO of the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA), on easing face covering and physical distancing requirements for hotel employees in response to updated Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) guidance. “In response to increasing vaccination rates across the country and of our workforce, and consistent with CDC and OSHA guidance, the hotel industry supports vaccinated employees being given the choice whether to continue wearing face coverings, in accordance with state and local laws. This change in policy for vaccinated employees is a result of our industry’s...