CHICAGO—The National Restaurant Assn. announced the recipients of its prestigious Kitchen Innovations (KI) Award for 2009. This year’s awardees will give the restaurant and hospitality industry new, state-of-the-art solutions to enhancing productivity, saving energy and water, speeding up prep and cooking times, and maximizing space and functionality in the back-of-the-house. All the KI products will be showcased in an interactive demonstration area at the 2009 National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show at Chicago’s McCormick Place, May 16 to 19. “Cost-saving, fast, multi-functional, flexible, efficient—these are all adjectives we look for when choosing new equipment and they describe each of this...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Hasek Communications, the Cleveland, Ohio-based publisher of Green Lodging News, welcomes ClearWater Tech, LLC as a Green Product & Service Directory partner. ClearWater Tech, LLC is a leading designer and manufacturer of ozone generation equipment and related components for water and air purification applications and markets. The EcoTex™ Advanced Laundry Oxidation System reduces environmental impact, improves laundry quality, saves money, energy and detergent, while providing superior disinfection. EcoTex technology has been proven in more than 2,500 installations worldwide. For more information, call (805) 549-9724, e-mail sales@cwtozone.com, or go to www.ecotexlaundry.com.

MANITOWOC, WIS.—Orion Energy Systems Inc. has developed an innovative parking lot lighting system designed to take energy savings and better lighting outdoors. The fixture boasts fluorescent lamps that reduce users’ energy consumption by 50 percent or more while significantly increasing light levels in comparison to the legacy high-intensity discharge lights that are used in most parking lots today. Orion expanded its product line to include the outdoor fixture as another substantial way to help customers save on light-related energy costs. It is estimated that there are more than 20 million parking lot lights nationwide. According to a study conducted...

TORONTO—The Delta Chelsea Hotel in downtown Toronto was selected as the winner of the 2008 Energy & Environment Award by the Hotel Association of Canada. This award is given to a lodging property that has developed a culture towards integrating environmental management practices that improve everyday operations and the bottom line, while maintaining quality service and meeting guest expectations. The Delta Chelsea has been at the forefront of hotel waste management through its strong partnership with Turtle Island Recycling. It has exceeded both industry standards and municipal targets in landfill diversion. While the City of Toronto set a target of...

ATLANTA—Onity announces the launch of Wireless innPULSE, an innovative new radio-frequency (RF) network that wirelessly connects SensorStat guestroom thermostats to Onity’s innPULSE energy management software. This enables hotel properties to network Onity’s proprietary in-room SensorStat products together to form a comprehensive energy management system (EMS) without the need for hardwiring from each guestroom thermostat. Since their introduction in 2003, Onity’s Wireless SensorStat EMS products have been successfully installed in thousands of guestrooms at properties around the world. Onity, one of the world’s leading providers of electronic locking solutions, is part of UTC Fire & Security, a unit of United...

ORMOND BEACH, FLA.—Built in 1956, The Maverick Resort is demonstrating its ongoing commitment to developing a high-performance sustainable building with the installation of a commercial hot water solar system on its roof. The system is currently under construction by Zon Solar Inc. “It’s becoming a trend to do green buildings,” said Keith Rasnake, general manager of The Maverick Resort. “We’re finally realizing that these structures have an enormous impact on our environment.” The green ethic—energy-efficient, water-sparing buildings full of features that stress the natural over the chemical, the recycled over the new and the renewable over the finite—is quickly becoming mainstream....

MINNEAPOLIS—Honeywell announced it has received an award from Flex Your Power, California’s statewide energy-efficiency campaign. The award is for the company’s Cool Control Plus program, which has reduced electricity consumption for hundreds of small hotels and motels throughout the Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) service area in northern and central California. To date, the program has cut energy use by more than 25 million kilowatt-hours (kWh)—enough energy to light the Golden Gate Bridge for more than 50 years. Over the lifecycle of the measures installed, Honeywell expects to achieve energy savings of more than 375 million kWh. Launched in 2006 and...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Hasek Communications, the Cleveland, Ohio-based publisher of Green Lodging News, welcomes Alliance Laundry Systems LLC as an advertising partner. The company’s washer-extractors, commercial dryers and flatwork ironers boast features to help any laundry reduce its operating expenses. Information about Alliance’s UniMac line of products can be found in the green section of the company’s website. By offering sophisticated washer programming features, the biggest opportunity for controlling water consumption, UniMac equipment can reduce both water and energy consumption. Thanks to fast extract speeds, UniMac washer-extractors can reduce drying time. Drying tumblers account for nearly 70 percent of all energy consumption...

PORTLAND, ORE.—The Heathman Hotel, Portland’s independent luxury arts hotel, will complete a 99 percent landfill-free remodel in late April. The renovation, involving the historic hotel’s 155 guest bathrooms, was planned in accordance with the property’s commitment to sustainability which includes ensuring energy efficiency, utilizing local resources, and re-using existing materials whenever possible. The renovation is projected to reduce gas usage by 20 percent and water consumption by 50 percent. “We are proud to lead the hospitality industry in our commitment to sustainability,” said Chris Erickson, general manager of the Heathman Hotel. “We find that our guests appreciate our effort to...

ATLANTA—ASHRAE proposed a building energy labeling program and high-performance building standard at its 2009 Winter Conference. More than 2,800 people attended the conference, held in late January in Chicago. Also taking place in conjunction with the meeting was the Air-Conditioning, Heating, Refrigerating Exposition, which attracted 54,000 registered visitors and exhibitor personnel. The show ranks as the second largest AHR Expo, just behind the 2006 Show in Chicago, in terms of number of exhibiting companies (1,911). Centered on the theme “Sustainable Urban Design: Engineering Tomorrow…Today,” the ASHRAE conference offered a technical program with more than 100 sessions, 15 educational courses and...