Was your property built before 1993? If so, chances are you’re losing money with every flush and use of the sink and shower. After all, you can’t control your hotel guest’s use of utilities. However, you can control your operating costs, and through simple, environmentally friendly renovations to plumbing and electric, you can significantly lower expensive water/sewer and electric bills. Let’s say that you have a 25-year-old, 100-room property with a 50 percent occupancy rate that hasn’t had any updates to toilets, shower heads, sink aerators or continuously operated common area lighting. A guestroom toilet is flushed 15 times a day...

LEXINGTON, KY.—Haiku has earned a bronze medal in the International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA. The fan’s sleek look conceals Sensorless Drive Technology that delivers an 80 percent improvement in energy efficiency over conventional ceiling fans while the hand-crafted bamboo airfoils span 60 inches, offering an aerodynamic profile for smooth, silent airflow. Operated by a thin, hand-held remote, Haiku has 10 settings including the exclusive Whoosh mode which stimulates the variations in natural airflow for greater user comfort.“We are honored to receive this award and thank the international design panel of judges for their affirmation of Haiku’s design excellence,” said...

SANTA CRUZ, CALIF.—LittleFootprint Lighting, a producer of sustainably designed LED task lighting products made in the United States from recycled e-waste, announced it has signed a Master Distributor agreement with Pineapple Hospitality, a distributor of environmentally friendly products to the hospitality industry. The agreement will cover the nationwide distribution of LittleFootprint Lighting’s HeronLED Personal Task Light, the first and only desk lamp made in the United States from e-Waste. As Master Distributor, Pineapple Hospitality will extend the availability of LittleFootprint Lighting’s ultra high-efficiency desktop lighting to all of Pineapple Hospitality’s lodging industry clients.“Pineapple Hospitality is proud to add LittleFootprint...

BERKELEY, CALIF.—Architects, engineers, and urban planners are consistently seeking to access and manage the environmental impacts the buildings they produce. Although the operational energy of commercial structures in the United States accounts for approximately 35 percent of total electricity consumption, the materials that are used to build the building are also scrutinized for their environmental impact.The Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has a new software tool for building professionals studying all phases of the complete lifecycle of a building, from acquisition of materials to construction, the use of the building, and finally demolition and end of life to determine its...

MILWAUKEE— Telkonet, Inc., developer of the EcoSmart energy management platform incorporating patented Recovery Time technology, announced that it signed a dealer agreement with Suite Control, a firm specializing in energy, electrical and entertainment technology solutions in Australia and Southeast Asia. Suite Control has completed a significant number of automation and integration projects, receiving numerous awards for their work. Recently, the company has designed and completed installations in hospitality buildings that focus on energy management and resource utilization. “We have a number of clients interested in reducing their cost of operations through energy management,” said George Nikols, director of business development for...

SALT LAKE CITY—Control4, a provider of residential and light commercial automation systems, announced that the newly built, luxury Montage Deer Valley Residences will feature Control4 smart home solutions. In April of 2011, Montage Deer Valley unveiled the Control4 hospitality solution in a total of 154 deluxe guestrooms and 66 suites within the resort. Control4 implementation within the Montage Deer Valley resort includes automation of lighting and temperature, fireplace control, effortless entertainment, remote controlled privacy settings and energy saving features.“I remember talking to a guest and said, ‘I want the TV to turn to Fox News at 6 a.m....

RIPON, WIS.—UniMac, a provider of on-premises laundry equipment, announced that OPTidry, over-dry prevention technology (OPT), is now available on stack tumblers. The technology allows laundry managers to reduce labor, energy and linen replacement costs associated with over-drying. Over-drying occurs when tumble dryers run longer than needed because they cannot detect when linen has reached its optimal dryness level or when staff uses incorrect cycles. This decreases throughput, uses excessive energy and causes linens to deteriorate faster. OPTidry over-dry prevention technology is an innovation that connects sensors located within the lifters to UniMac’s rotary transfer switch to offer a high...

HOUSTON—Toshiba International Corp. has introduced a new candelabra LED lamp that offers appealing light and energy savings. Toshiba’s new candelabra 180 series is a direct replacement for a 25W incandescent candelabra and is designed to fit standard E12 and E26 socket fixtures. The Energy Star qualified lamp uses up to 84 percent less energy than incandescent candelabras.“This new lamp creates inviting, warm light that brings out the colors and elegance of any room,” said Peter DallePezze, vice president of marketing and product development, Toshiba International Corp. LED Lighting Systems Division. “This is exactly what designers, architects and homeowners have...

NEW YORK—Greenwood Energy, the North American renewable energy division of the Libra Group, announced it will install a second combined heat and power plant (CHP) for Millennium Hotel and Resorts in New York City. This project, which will be located at the Millennium Broadway Hotel in midtown Manhattan, follows the first CHP installation at Millennium Hilton, announced in March 2012. The transaction further endorses the developing trend among hotel groups to find ways to reduce energy costs while increasing overall energy efficiency at their properties. It also represents another milestone in Greenwood Energy’s pursuit of deploying clean power generation...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Results of the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) 2012 Lodging Survey provide strong evidence that the greening of the U.S. lodging industry is continuing. Funded by the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Foundation (AH&LEF) and conducted by STR, 52,155 U.S. hotel properties were polled in the survey that is conducted every two years. Similar data has been collected since 1988. There was a healthy response rate of 23 percent to this year’s survey.While most of the questions were repeated from previous years, there were new questions as well. For example, hoteliers were asked for the first time...