STAMFORD, CONN.—eco Hybrid Solar, LLC, a Stamford, Conn.-based solar energy firm, announced that their brand new Hybrid Solar Water Heating System is now available. Three years in the works, the proprietary hybrid system is unique in that it combines the use of two technologies for water heating, providing greater cost savings to users. “Solar hot water heating systems have been around for 50 years,” says company owner Gordon Whelan. “The difference with ours is that it’s the only system to maximize the efficiency of existing technologies by integrating solar thermal and recycled waste heat from refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment into...

MONTEREY, CALIF.—Setting the bar for environmentally-conscious hotels in Central California, Portola Hotel & Spa, located in the heart of Monterey, was recently granted its Silver Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). Portola Hotel & Spa becomes one of only three hotels in all of California and one of only six hotels in the United States to earn this level of accreditation in the Existing Building (EB) category. As an independent hotel brand, and an existing building, Portola Hotel & Spa achieved this certification as a result of a longstanding commitment by...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The appliance industry through the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM) recently launched an independent verification program to confirm refrigerator and freezer internal volume and energy usage claims made by manufacturers and brand owners. This voluntary program is aimed at boosting the confidence of consumers, retailers and regulators in the validity of energy claims made by manufacturers of refrigerators and freezers sold in the United States and Canada.AHAM’s Refrigerator, Refrigerator-Freezer and Freezer Verification Program will also assist the Energy Star program, managed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in approval and monitoring of qualified appliances and the...

DALLAS—An interactive dashboard that integrates in-room electronic systems and status including occupancy, locks, safes, lighting, energy management and more, allows hotel properties to manage subsystems remotely over the hotel LAN or Web-based connection. This software-based system, Integrated Room Control Dashboard, is an integral part of Orion by VingCard Elsafe, the new intelligent energy management solution from VingCard Elsafe. The energy management system was designed to automatically control temperature settings as guests travel in and out of their rooms, thereby reducing energy costs while ensuring guest comfort. As it integrates with a hotel’s wireless online locks, safes, lights and other networked...

KELLER, TEXAS—Hotel Rescue announced that it has joined the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star program as an Energy Star Partner and will be able to expand its energy services by verifying almost immediately whether a hotel or commercial property qualifies for an Energy Star rating, measuring and tracking the energy performance of a property’s facilities, developing a plan with the both the client and Energy Star to achieve a property’s level of desired energy savings, assisting clients in spreading their green message and getting their properties listed on the official Energy Star property list, and supporting the Energy...

BALTIMORE—SavWatt USA, Inc. announced that it will sell LED T-8 fluorescent tube replacements. SavWatt’s 16 Watt , 4 foot, T-8 LED tube will replace a typical 40 watt fluorescent tube (includes ballast), providing immediate energy savings of 60 percent, which does not include savings for service and replacement costs. Based on an average energy cost of 15 cents per kilowatt, the tube will have a 24 month payback. SavWatt LED tubes consume low power. Power efficiency reaches 90 percent, with energy savings of 60 percent compared with traditional fluorescent tubes. Tubes contain no ultraviolet, infrared ray radiation, mercury or heat...

BOSTON—In the early stages of an $18 million renovation project, one that will see a complete guestroom and corridor redesign, the 38-story, 803-room Westin Copley Place in Boston is preparing to add to its long list of environmental achievements. In 2010 the property earned Green Key and Green Seal certification, an Energy Star rating, and significantly reduced its energy consumption, water consumption and waste sent to landfill. The hotel’s green team, which deserves much of the credit for the accomplishments, is led by Jeff Hanulec, director of engineering, an industry veteran constantly on the lookout for ways to improve operational...

BERKELEY, CALIF.—Researchers at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) released a new study on the installed costs of solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems in the United States, showing that the average cost of these systems declined by more than 30 percent from 1998 to 2008. Within the last year of this period, costs fell by more than 4 percent. The number of solar PV systems in the United States has been growing at a rapid rate in recent years, as governments at the national, state, and local levels have offered various incentives to expand the...

MILWAUKEE, WIS.—Telkonet, Inc., a company specializing in integrated intelligent networking and smart energy management solutions, is generating savings through a new SmartEnergy installation within the Springhill Suites hotel on Paradise Road in Las Vegas. This recently completed installation has enabled the hotel to expand its environmental awareness initiatives while recognizing significant savings on its energy reduction. By using Telkonet’s SmartEnergy platform, the hotel is able to implement a program that ensures guest comfort while optimizing energy savings. With 300 guestrooms and nine conference rooms totaling more than 4,500 square feet of conference space, the Springhill Suites recognized a significant opportunity...

PALO ALTO, CALIF.—Southwall Technologies Inc. and Dow Corning Corporation announced the availability of energy-efficient Heat Mirror “S” film and 982FS two-part structural silicone sealant for commercial building projects in North America. Having successfully worked together over the past three decades, the two companies are now combining the best of their suspended film and silicone sealant technologies to provide the industry’s lightest weight and most energy-efficient multi-cavity insulating glass available for large glass-intensive projects. With the combined solution, architects and window manufacturers can now increase energy savings by up to 30 percent, block more than 99 percent of UV radiation...