YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, CALIF.—Yosemite Lodge at the Falls, a popular year-round lodging destination in the heart of Yosemite Village, unveiled today two prototype guest rooms on the cutting edge of environmentally-friendly interior architecture and design. The two rooms at The Lodge are the first of their kind in Yosemite National Park. Reflective of Delaware North Companies’ award-winning GreenPath environmental stewardship platform, the two eco-friendly guestrooms were designed with an eye toward an eventual rollout throughout the Lodge’s 245 rooms. Every design selection, from insulation and paint to textiles and light fixtures, was evaluated based on its proximity, sustainability, recycled...

ZIONSVILLE, IND.—FANIMATION unveils The Inlet, an Energy Star-rated ceiling fan with energy efficient compact fluorescent lighting. The Inlet is a sleek and functional, close-to-the-ceiling mounted fan that is available in Oil-rubbed Bronze and Satin Nickel finishes with an Opal Frosted glass lighting fixture. Reversible Cherry/Walnut blades are included and available with Cherry and Walnut finished woven housing accessories. The fan has a 52-inch blade sweep while optional blade sets offer a 42-inch blade pitch. Ideal for installations on lower ceilings, The Inlet is flush mounted at a distance of 8 3/8 inches from the ceiling, with a total height...

MARKHAM, ONT.—The Algonquin Eco-Lodge—located at the southern tip of Algonquin Provincial Park near Bancroft, Ontario—flipped the switch on a unique project that will use the natural power of water to provide electricity for the lodge. Nestled on the shore of picturesque Moffat Pond, about 2.5 kilometers from the lodge’s parking lot, the lodge boasts true tranquillity as guests hike in and regular vehicle traffic is nonexistent. However, this peacefulness comes at the cost of being off the power grid. With a desire to make the Algonquin Eco-Lodge more comfortable for guests, and to be true to the goal of being...

SANTA CLARA, CALIF.—WattStopper has added network capability to its self-configuring Digital Lighting Management (DLM) lighting control product line, enabling remote management of lighting controls throughout a floor, a building or an entire campus. This product line expansion also includes two new DLM digital photosensors for automatically switching or dimming up to three zones of lighting in daylit areas, new DLM lighting control panels, and new dimming features for DLM wall switches. Digital Lighting Management is a distributed control system that automatically maximizes lighting energy efficiency within each controlled space. A DLM local network can include room controllers, occupancy sensors, personal...

NIANTIC, CONN.—INNCOM International has unveiled its next generation of guestroom controls that builds on its “Glass Series.” With a MODular design, the guest-facing DEVice boasts heightened functionality and customization to accommodate new construction and retrofit hotel projects with equal ease, and the solution’s artistic look and feel can meet nearly any design requirements conceived for the hotel guestroom. MODEVA was just introduced at the 2010 Hospitality Design Exposition & Conference at the Sands Expo & Convention Center in Las Vegas. “Our customers have pushed us to deliver products and systems that give guests memorable, positive experiences without confusing technology,”...

HOUSTON—In an effort to even further reduce their carbon footprint, Hilton Americas-Houston, the city’s largest hotel and first Green Seal certified hotel in Texas, is now even greener with the installation of the AquaRecycle water recycling system in the hotel’s laundry. The laundry facility, covering 27,000 square feet and rivaling most commercial laundry plants in both size and capacity, is by far the largest hotel laundry in the city, washing and finishing more than 675,000 pounds of linens per month. The two Lavatec tunnel washers wash 100 pounds of linens every two and half minutes, with a maximum working capacity...

AURORA, OHIO—TCP, Inc., a leader in compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) manufacturing and technology, introduces a new fully dimmable CFL product line incorporating a patent-pending high performance CFL ballast design that features proprietary NXP GreenChip power management IC chip technology. This new design approach, dubbed TruDim Technology, results in a CFL with smoother full range dimming performance from 100 percent down to one percent. The dimming curve is designed to more accurately match the human eye’s reactions, which is more pleasing to the end-user. “In the past, customers have had to put up with dimming CFLs that don’t dim...

MILWAUKEE, WIS.—Telkonet, Inc. announced that the SmartEnergy system has been chosen as a component of a utility rebate and incentive program administered by Conservation Services Group, Inc. The Premium Efficiency Cooling Program will provide incentives to participating contractors and lodging properties to install Telkonet SmartEnergy on heating and cooling equipment in the greater San Diego County area and in limited areas in southern Orange County. With typical HVAC run time savings of 30 percent, hotel and motel operators can reduce energy costs, advance green initiatives, and improve guest comfort with Telkonet’s energy management controllers and occupancy sensors. The Premium Efficiency...

NEWPORT, ORE.—One of Oregon’s greenest inns—The Viking’s Greenstone Inn—is just days away from its May 21 opening. Located in Newport within steps of the Pacific Ocean, the 20-room inn features solar panels positioned on a recyclable metal roof, a waste water heat recovery system, a series of seven on-demand water heaters, a key card-based guestroom energy management system, and carpeting made from recycled materials. According to Brendan Carmody, who owns the inn along with Bonnie, his wife, there are plans to add a charging station for electric vehicles toward the end of this year. The owners also intend to...

LAS VEGAS—Royal Philips Electronics has unveiled its 12-watt EnduraLED light bulb, an LED replacement for a 60-watt incandescent light bulb. Shown for the first time at the Lightfair International trade show, it marks an important breakthrough in the use of LED lighting technology in everyday applications. The bulb will deliver up to 80 percent energy savings and last 25 times longer than its century-old predecessor. The significance of developing an LED equivalent to the 60-watt has been recognized by many international organizations, including the U.S. Department of Energy, which created the L-prize competition to spur development of this highly sought...