Hilton Cebu Engineer Invents System to Reuse Ice Machine Cooling Water

LAPU-LAPU, PHILIPPINES—An invention that reuses the water used to cool ice machine compressors has allowed Hilton Cebu Resort & Spa in the Philippines to recycle hundreds of thousands of liters of water each year and save on its water bill. The invention, a simple piping system, is attached to three ice machines in the hotel, capturing the water used to cool the compressors and then sending this “grey water” to be reused in the hotel’s flushing tanks, rather than simply washing down the drain.

The system was created as part of a water saving project led by Hilton Cebu’s chief engineer Antonio Dizon and team members Junar Penalosa and Gaspar Pasucal, who were looking at ways to boost the resort’s environmental efforts. General manager Harald Feurstein said the engineering team’s effort was a victory for Hilton Cebu’s efforts to be more eco-friendly and it has been well received by guests as well as hotel staff.

“By just not letting that water disappear down the drain we are saving and then reusing around 32,400 cubic meters of precious water in a year, and that in turn saves the hotel approximately $20,000 per year,” Feurstein said.

Special meters attached to the piping system revealed the project had saved Hilton Cebu the initial setup cost of $1,000 in just 20 days of operation and the system has now been adopted as part of Hilton Hotels Group’s best practices for all its properties around the world.

“Located on a private beach overlooking the pristine, azure waters surrounding Cebu’s Mactan Island we are very concerned with preserving our environment as it is a huge part of our business,” Feurstein said. “However, any hotel anywhere in the world can see the excellent improvement this has made to our bottom line and consider both the economic and eco-friendly benefits of saving an important resource such as water.”

Go to the Hilton Cebu Resort & Spa.