STAMFORD, CONN.—The Florida sun is shining its light on a new lodging option for travelers, with the opening of Element Miami International Airport. Element , the eco-wise brand of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., brings a fresh update to the Miami hotel scene with 209 guestrooms and suites built green from the ground up.Element Miami International Airport typifies the “balance” that Starwood’s Element brand offers to business and leisure travelers. The hotel’s strategic location puts it at the doorstep of one of the world’s busiest air-travel hubs—Miami International Airport—and just two blocks from the long anticipated Miami Central...

ANN ARBOR, MICH.—NSF International, an independent global organization that writes public health standards and certifies products for food, water and consumer goods, now offers Green Squared Certification for sustainable ceramic tiles, glass tiles and installation materials. NSF’s Sustainability division is a leading developer of sustainable standards and certification programs for building and furnishing products such as furniture, wallcoverings, and furnishing fabrics, carpets and flooring. Developed by the Tile Council of North America (TCNA), Green Squared certification provides accurate, third-party verified information on the environmental impacts of certified tile products. Green Squared certification through NSF Sustainability helps manufacturers and suppliers of...

LAGRANGE, GA.—InterfaceFLOR has chalked up another sustainability first, continuing its legacy of leadership in the contract furnishings industry. The global manufacturer of modular carpet tile has aligned with “Architecture 2030” and is the first manufacturer to adopt the nonprofit organization’s 2030 Challenge for Products. The 2030 Challenge for Products initiative calls on the architecture, planning, design and building communities worldwide to specify, design and manufacture products that will meet a carbon footprint of 30 percent below the product average through 2014, and subsequently improve on this reduction: 35 percent in 2015; 40 percent in 2020; 45 percent in 2025;...

ATLANTA—Changes to help make buildings and systems more sustainable are part of the newly published version of the high performance green building standard from ASHRAE, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES). ANSI/ASHRAE/USGBC/IES Standard 189.1-2011, Standard for the Design of High-Performance, Green Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, provides a green building foundation for those who strive to design, build and operate high performance buildings. It covers key topic areas of site sustainability, water-use efficiency, energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality and the building’s impact on the atmosphere, materials and resources. When first introduced in 2009, the...

COMMERCE, CALIF.—Nora Lighting introduces Cori, a new LED track lighting fixture for architectural applications. Cori can be installed in new or existing Nora track systems and “H” style tracks, or can be specified with “L” or “J” adapters and retrofitted to existing “L” or “J” style tracks.The fixture includes an integral driver unit with a die cast aluminum head containing the LED array. Cori is available with 12W or 23W LEDs and both models are available in 3000K warm white and 4000K cool white. Architecturally-styled fins dissipate the heat and assure longer performance life.The unit can be installed in...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) announced that the third public comment period for the proposed 2012 update to its LEED green building program will open March 1, 2012. The comment period, which will close on March 20, marks the start of the LEED 2012 program delivery process.“LEED sits at the core of the green building movement, and is critical in realizing our collective mission,” said Scot Horst, senior vice president of LEED, USGBC. “LEED’s strength comes from its continuous evolution. This continuous improvement is the outcome of thousands of technical volunteers working to develop the program and...

LOS ANGELES—MindClick SGM announced that Fairmont Designs, a leader in sustainable custom contact furnishings for the hospitality industry, has joined the Hospitality Sustainable Purchasing Consortium as a Contributing Member. Specializing in the design, manufacture and marketing of furnishings, case goods and seating to the contract market, Fairmont Designs has a longstanding commitment to defining business success by not only delivering comfort and style through its products—but also by advancing environmental well-being in the communities it serves. Its membership in the Consortium moves further toward establishing the new Hospitality Sustainable Purchasing Index (HSP Index) as the industry resource for sustainable...

RALEIGH, N.C.—Hyatt Hotels & Resorts and Southern States Management announced the opening of Hyatt Place Raleigh West/RBC Center, one of the first LEED certified hotel buildings in the Raleigh area. As a part of the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification process, Hyatt Place Raleigh West/RBC Center boasts a variety of features intended to increase environmental sustainability, including: electric car charging stations, 30 solar panels to generate hot water, LED lighting throughout the hotel, energy efficient HVAC systems, motion activated thermostats in all 132 guestrooms, water efficient landscaping, solar powered trash compactors, and a hotel transportation van...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—NEWH The Hospitality Industry Network, the not-for-profit business networking and education organization in hospitality, will host its quarterly NEWH Regional Tradeshow in Bethesda, Md., on Friday March 16 at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center. Each NEWH Regional Tradeshow provides a unique opportunity for clients in key major metropolitan areas to meet with existing and new suppliers showcasing their newest products and services in an intimate business casual tabletop format. Attendees can catch up on all the latest offerings in hotel, resort, spa, healthcare, restaurant and lounge contract furnishings. The NEWH DC Metro Chapter will host a pre-show...

NATIONAL REPORT—All Elements and Alofts have them. So do all Home2 Suites by Hilton properties. Drury Hotels Company is in the process of rolling them out to its branded properties and Four Points by Sheraton branded hotels will have them in their guestrooms by the end of this year. Many other properties either have them or are testing them. What they all have or will have are amenity dispensers. Replacing or complementing the small amenity soaps, shampoos, conditioners, bath gels and lotions that travelers are used to, amenity dispensers can reduce amenity-related costs significantly and dramatically stem the flow...