Home Heating & Cooling

Heating & Cooling

With up to 50 percent to 70 percent of a hotel’s energy bill attributed to heating and cooling (especially in limited-service hotels), there is no question that wise selection of equipment is important. Increasingly, hotel owners are turning to clean energy technology for heating and cooling. Got news or a story idea to share? Contact Glenn Hasek, editor, at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at: greenlodgingnews@gmail.com.

Heating & Cooling

Home Heating & Cooling
With up to 50 percent to 70 percent of a hotel’s energy bill attributed to heating and cooling (especially in limited-service hotels), there is no question that wise selection of equipment is important. Increasingly, hotel owners are turning to clean energy technology for heating and cooling. Got news or a story idea to share? Contact Glenn Hasek, editor, at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at: greenlodgingnews@gmail.com.

INNCOM’s In-Room Controls Now on Intelity’s ICE Touch for iPad

NIANTIC, CONN.—By adding INNCOM’s Integrated Room Automation Systems (IRAS) to Intelity ICE (Interactive Customer Experience) Touch on iPads, guests can now control room temperature, lighting, drapes and alarm clock directly from their iPad tablet computers—even when they are not in their rooms. INNCOM is an industry leader in advanced guestroom automation systems for hotels and resorts. IRAS is INNCOM’s customizable multi-purpose platform for in-room guest controls. Intelity is the hospitality software developer of ICE, the award-winning integrated, customizable, branded interface that enables hotel guests to request all services instantly via in-room tablet, TV, laptop or mobile device. “By placing the INNCOM...

Prestyl USA Launches Radiant Artwork Heating Panels

SPOKANE, WASH.—Prestyl USA is launching a line of far-infrared Radiant Artwork heating panels—panels of customizable thin-film artworks that provide heat to any room in a residential or commercial setting. Prestyl’s heating panel products are based on a highly efficient and reliable French thin-film technology that has been used in aircraft, ships, trains, homes and public buildings overseas for nearly 16 years. But now Prestyl has successfully incorporated this film into ultra-thin panels, printed artworks and decorative ceiling modules. The Prestyl far-infrared technology does not heat the air; the energy is reflected by some surfaces and absorbed by others, thus creating...

VingCard Elsafe Launches New Global Website

DALLAS—VingCard Elsafe, part of the ASSA ABLOY Group, has launched a new combined corporate website. The newly designed site is meant to replace the current individual sites for the company’s brands, which include VingCard, Elsafe, Orion and Polarbar. VingCard Elsafe is a leader in developing locking systems and electronic in-room safes for the hospitality industry, offering security systems that meet the operational needs of hotels and resorts. Additional product lines include Orion energy management systems and Polarbar minibar systems, which are offered in selected regions of the world. This newly launched VingCard Elsafe website unifies the company’s comprehensive hospitality product range...

Verve Living Systems Unveils New Line Of Products

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.—Verve Living Systems has introduced a new line of energy-saving automation products developed specifically for the needs of the hospitality industry. The products combine radio frequency and energy-harvesting technologies and incorporate wireless room controls. The products include an assortment of sensors and control devices that can be combined to work together in an organic network to determine the occupancy state of the room, set back temperature, and turn off lights and miscellaneous electrical loads to help hotels manage energy costs. The new portfolio of products uses highly efficient radio frequency technology in an attractively designed family of temperature and electrical...

Travelodge Hotel Saskatoon Installs 57 Solar Collectors

SASKATOON, SASKATCHEWAN—Believing that there is a moral obligation to conserve the natural environment is one thing; taking action towards green lodging practices and addressing eco issues head on is another. Proving it’s serious about the environment, Travelodge Hotel Saskatoon has taken strides forward to minimize its carbon footprint. With the help of local alternative energy company WSE Technologies and guidance from parent company Airline Hotels as well as the NRCAN/SRC, Saskatoon’s longest-standing north end business has installed a series of 57 solar collectors on its roof to capture the sun’s energy as thermal heat, which is then transferred indoors to...

New Bathroom Ventilation Systems Make Saving Money, Energy Easy

NATIONAL REPORT—Bathroom ventilation systems recently introduced by leading suppliers are making it easier than ever to save energy and money while still keeping bathrooms free of odors and moisture. There was a time when fans were noisy and consumed up to 144 watts. Today they are almost as quiet as a mouse and can use as little as 4 watts—a dramatic difference. Motion sensors are now available with some models and turn off fans left running by guests. With some fans, a humidity sensor is included. This ensures that the fan continues to run until the humidity reaches a...

Marriott in Ann Arbor Selects Telkonet’s EcoSmart

MILWAUKEE—Telkonet, Inc., developer of the EcoSmart energy management platform, announced that it will begin installation of its new EcoSmart Suite in Marriott’s Ann Arbor Hotel at Eagle Crest, located in Ypsilanti, Mich., owned by Long & Cox Properties. Prior to this energy efficiency upgrade, the property completely renovated guestrooms and other areas of the facilities and is now embarking on a comprehensive upgrade to significantly improve the energy efficiency of the property. Keen Technical Solutions, a Traverse City, Mich.-based company with a focus on energy conservation strategies and alternative energy integration, is the prime contractor on this project and will...

Study: HEPA Filters Reduce Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

FORT WORTH, TEXAS—A new study published in the Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine finds that the use of HEPA (high efficiency particle air) filters can reduce the risk of heart and blood vessel disease. The researchers found that the HEPA filters reduce the amount of airborne particulate matter in the air. Doing so results in improved blood flow and reduced risk of cardiovascular disease. The tests involved 45 adults and were conducted in 25 Canadian homes over a two-week period. HEPA filtration systems were added to the homes’ heating and HVAC systems. Concentrations of airborne particulates in the...

INNCOM Unveils INNcontrol 3 Room Management System

NIANTIC, CONN.—Hotel engineering teams play a big role in delivering guest satisfaction, and one of their most time consuming tasks is ensuring that guestroom equipment and systems are always ready to deliver a comfortable stay. INNCOM’s new INNcontrol3 solution provides the staff  with real-time monitoring of HVAC and temperature satisfaction and creates alarms for any units that are not operating properly. The system can also monitor humidity levels in each room and uses the existing HVAC equipment to lower humidity levels to a comfortable setting. The system also monitors guestroom network connections and reports non-communicating rooms. The solution will...

Nature’s Hot Water Like Liquid Gold to Owners of Box Canyon Lodge

OURAY, COLO.—If Karen and Richard Avery could save another therm, they would. They certainly are trying. The couple, who own the 39-room Box Canyon Lodge & Hot Springs in Ouray, Colo., have reduced the lodge’s natural gas consumption by more than 70 percent in the past four years. The Averys have wisely invested in a geothermal system that utilizes the natural hot springs on their 2.6-acre property. Once used by the Ute Indians many years ago and last century for a sanitarium, the hot springs are used to heat the guestrooms and all of the hot water for the...