NATIONAL REPORT—The hospitality industry is no stranger to green initiatives and has been committed to sustainability programs for a long time. With the 24/7 nature of their operations, hotels, restaurants, and related businesses have a huge impact on the Earth’s resources, making the conservation of water, energy, and raw materials a top priority that also makes good business sense for owners. According to the EPA Energy Star Program, U.S. hotels spend close to $4 billion on energy costs each year and are the fourth most intensive users of energy in the commercial sector. Lighting accounts for nearly 25 percent of...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—In a little more than a year, 34 corporate customers have installed, deployed or purchased more than 250 fuel cell power systems and hundreds of backup power units, totaling more than 30 MW of power, plus more than 1,000 fuel cell-powered forklifts. “The Business Case for Fuel Cells 2011: Energizing America’s Top Companies,” a new report released by Fuel Cells 2000, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., profiles 24 new corporate fuel cell customers and revisits 10 companies that have installed or ordered additional systems for several North American locations since last year. One of the installations...

RYE BROOK, N.Y.—American DG Energy Inc., a leading on site utility offering clean electricity, heat, hot water and cooling solutions to hospitality, is now operating a 375 kW combined heat and power (CHP) system at Doral Arrowwood Hotel and Conference Center in Rye Brook, N.Y. The company estimates the total revenue from this project to be approximately $10 million over the term of the agreement. “As a premier hotel in Westchester County, N.Y., we are dedicated to providing our guests with the highest quality experience; we believe this includes delivering an eco-friendly approach our guests can feel good about,” said...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Hasek Communications, the Cleveland, Ohio-based publisher of Green Lodging News, has added a new case study to the Vendor Case Studies section of Green Lodging News. The case study focuses on the Tremont Plaza Hotel in downtown Baltimore and its installation of compact fluorescents (CFLs) from Osram Sylvania. The 300-guestroom property replaced 2,200 60- and 100W incandescent lamps with more energy-efficient CFLs. Energy savings was the primary goal of the lighting replacement, but it was equally important to Tremont Plaza Hotel that the suites’ aesthetic appeal and guests’ comfort not be sacrificed. A number of solutions were evaluated,...

BRADENTON, FLA.—American ALDES is now working with the top hotel chains to implement highly effective strategies to save energy at existing properties by installing devices that automatically regulate ventilation systems to save energy and provide good indoor air quality. Many energy experts have reported the cost of ventilation systems in hotels as 4 percent, but the often overlooked real cost of ventilation is the load it places on heating and cooling systems. Energy saving programs often address the effects of energy waste rather than the cause. These tactics often focus on less consumption by improving the efficiency of the HVAC...

SUNNYVALE, CALIF.—Enlighted, Inc., a building sense and control company, launched the Enlighted Lighting Control system and announced the successful closing of a $14 million round of funding from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Draper Fisher Jurvetson and Intel Capital.  This funding will support growth plans for Enlighted’s significant project pipeline and its efforts to deploy its innovative lighting and energy management platform. This novel system provides lighting monitoring and control distributed to the level of each fixture in the building that is designed to achieve between 50 to 75 percent energy savings in existing customer facilities. In addition to reducing...

MCLEAN, VA.—Hilton Worldwide and its portfolio of 10 hotel brands announced the 2010 results of LightStay, its sustainability measurement system. Since the introduction of LightStay, the company continues to improve sustainability and economic performance and saved more than $74 million in utility costs as a result of the following reductions: 6.6 percent reduction of energy use; 7.8 percent reduction of carbon output; 19 percent reduction of waste output; and 3.8 percent reduction of water use. To date, Hilton Worldwide’s efforts are equivalent to the removal of more than 50,000 cars from the road, water savings that could fill more than...

TORONTO—In an effort to advance far-reaching strategies for energy efficiency and fossil fuel independence in new and operational buildings, the International Living Future Institute unveiled the Net Zero Energy Building Certification program. The program is linked to the Living Building Challenge, widely considered to be the world’s most stringent and progressive green building program. As with the Living Building Challenge, certification is based on actual performance rather than modeled outcomes. Buildings must be operational for at least 12 consecutive months prior to evaluation. “In the next two decades, we are looking at the disappearance of cheap oil, a scarcity of...

CAROLINA, PUERTO RICO—Verdanza Hotel in Isla Verde has become the first hotel on the island with a charge station for electronic vehicles (EVs). “At Verdanza we are proud of our efforts to ensure that the daily operation of the hotel is friendly to the environment. The decision to install a charge station was a natural next step in our commitment to contribute to a healthier environment,” said  Rick Newman, president of Verdanza Hotel, adding that although Puerto Rico has not yet reached a critical mass in the use of EVs, it is fertile ground for this type of innovation. “The...

MENTOR, OHIO—EYE Lighting International, a leading manufacturer of lamps, luminaires and related lighting products, has achieved recognition on the Designlights Consortium’s Qualified Products List. LED fixtures on this list may qualify for state and utility energy efficiency program incentives. The demand for LED fixtures is growing at a rapid pace and utilities want to be assured they are purchasing high quality LED luminaires. The Designlights national list of qualified products provides the necessary information for energy efficiency program administrators to determine whether the LED luminaires they are evaluating qualify for possible incentives. The Designlights product list requires criteria similar to...