WASHINGTON, D.C.—In one effort to gain better understanding of building energy efficiency, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is searching for a more granular level of building data from the multi-billion dollar hotel industry. Based on data collected from a nationwide survey of buildings (the Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey—CBECS), the EPA developed its 1 to 100 Energy Star scoring system to benchmark hotels, motels, and other lodging facilities on their energy efficiency, and hotels want honors-level grades. But the industry has grown significantly—2014 marked the fifth consecutive year that hotels and lodging added new jobs to the economy, bringing...

WAILEA, HAWAII—Today, Fairmont Kea Lani will hold a Power Up Celebration and blessing to mark the completion of a photovoltaic installation project. The 500 kilowatt, 1,528 panel solar installation generates 845,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, enough electricity to power 139 homes on Maui. The project is expected to reduce the resort’s current energy demand by more than 10 percent and reduce CO2e emissions by 462 metric tons of CO2e annually. This reduction in CO2e emissions is the equivalent of removing 97 passenger cars from local roads per year. “Fairmont Kea Lani’s commitment to social responsibility is deeply ingrained in...

WEST CALDWELL, N.J.—Delivering high-performance optics in a new design, MaxLite presents the LED Parking Garage Square Canopy as long-lasting, energy-efficient lighting for commercial and municipal parking applications.Listed by DesignLights Consortium (DLC) and eligible for utility rebates, the Square Canopy consumes 80 percent less energy than the conventional 250-watt metal halide luminaires it is designed to replace and operates far longer, with a lumen maintenance rating of 50,000 hours at L70 standards. With a depth of approximately 3 ½ inches, the Square Canopy is an ideal choice for illuminating parking decks, stairwells and other low-bay installations where high quality security...

LEXINGTON, KY.—Big Ass Fans’ new Haiku Light was engineered to reduce energy waste and eliminate bulb swapping. The Haiku Light delivers three times the brightness of a typical 75W bulb, lasts 30 times as long and uses about one-third of the energy. Ideal for indoor and outdoor use, the LEDs are sealed to repel bugs, dirt and dust so it never has to be cleaned out.The heart of the Haiku Light is automation—each fixture includes both motion-sensing technology and scheduling functions. Another feature that will be introduced later this year is Active Light Equalization, which will automatically adjust brightness...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has unveiled a waste and materials tracking feature in its Energy Star Portfolio Manager, which is a free benchmarking and tracking tool for commercial building owners and managers. Reducing waste and reusing materials more productively through sustainable materials management over their entire lifecycles conserves resources, helps communities remain economically competitive and supports a healthy environment.EPA’s Energy Star Portfolio Manager is already used to measure energy, water and greenhouse gas metrics in more than 450,000 U.S. buildings, representing over 40 percent of U.S. commercial space, as well as in more than 10,000 buildings...

DUBAI, U.A.E.—HMH is progressing well on its ECO Vision 2020 with the aim of reducing energy and water consumption at the various hotels managed by the group by 20 percent year over year.Laurent A. Voivenel, CEO of HMH—Hospitality Management Holdings, said, “We have been conducting regular audits across our properties to measure, manage and reduce our carbon footprint. We have developed practical, cost-effective strategies to reduce our carbon footprint by upgrading infrastructure and changing behaviors. Actions such as these are critical to mitigating the devastating impact of climate change on people and nature. We are very pleased with the...

ROCK HILL, S.C.—HyLite LED Lighting has introduced a new LED tube light as an alternative product to its existing high-performance LED tube lights. This new, normal-brightness LED tube will provide customers a more economical choice in LED retrofit lamps while providing high quality, long lasting illumination.The new HyLite LED tube light is a direct-wire LED retrofit solution that provides up to 50,000 hours of rated life. The lamp does not require a ballast or additional equipment to operate, which minimizes energy savings and eliminates a potential point of failure in the system.The 4 foot LED tube runs at 18W...

NATIONAL REPORT—With many areas of the United States experiencing from abnormally dry to exceptional drought conditions this summer, many hoteliers are taking a close look at opportunities for water savings. One area of operations where there is an opportunity to reduce water use significantly is the laundry. At least two companies—P&G Professional and Ecolab USA—are gaining traction with programs that not only save water but also reduce energy consumption and extend linen life as well. P&G Professional’s Tide Professional Coldwater Laundry System helps reduce the water used in a commercial washer by up to 40 percent. Ecolab’s Aquanomic Laundry...

SAN RAMON, CALIF.—According to fishnick, it has launched its Fe3 online sustainability training for foodservice professionals. Fe3 (Foodservice Energy Efficiency Expert) is an online training program designed specifically to educate and certify foodservice professionals in the fundamentals of energy and water efficiency for commercial foodservice.A few years ago, the fishnick team started the discussion of creating certification training for foodservice professionals that would be delivered on an e Learning platform. Fishnick enlisted a small team to help execute the idea and bring Fe3 to life.Fe3’s development team consists of: Richard Young (Curriculum Development - Fe3; Dir. of Education -...

SMYRNA, TENN.—Franke Foodservice Systems announce that their variable speed kitchen ventilation control system, called VariVent, has been awarded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s 2016 Energy Star Emerging Technology Award. As a recipient of the 2016 Energy Star Award, VariVent is recognized as a promising technology that has the potential to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to high standards set by the EPA. Franke’s VariVent is an exhaust management system that offers savings on energy consumption for exhaust fan motors and HVAC systems. Without an exhaust management system, exhaust fans typically run at 100 percent regardless of the cooking load....