RIPON, WIS.—UniMac, a manufacturer of on-premises laundry equipment, announces the launch of its redesigned UC Series hardmount washer-extractors. The washer-extractor series offers supreme efficiency, helping on-premises laundries reduce operating costs and increase throughput. Using newly developed, advanced technology, the UC Series now uses 33 percent less electricity than two-speed models and 11 percent less water on average than previous models. The utility reductions are due to UniMac’s proprietary advanced inverter drive technology and minimized sump design that optimizes the cylinder water, which also maximizes cleaning results. The machines achieve an extraction speed of up to 200 G-Force, which removes...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Hasek Communications, the Cleveland, Ohio-based publisher of Green Lodging News, welcomes YesterTec Design Co. as a Green Product & Service Directory partner. YesterTec’s unique armoire styled mini-kitchens and hospitality centers can transform a standard room design into a multifunctional space. When the bi-fold doors of the mini-kitchen are open they slide into pockets out of the way, activating the power for the oven and cooktop. Hospitality Centers are very similar to working pantries, except that they typically include a sink, refrigerator and small microwave. Other plug-in small appliances like single burner cooktops, toaster ovens, blenders etc. can add...

CHICAGO—Hyatt Corp. announces the launch of a new menu, “For Kids By Kids,” which provides more nutritious, fresh and interactive offerings for the three million children served annually in all full-service Hyatt hotels and resorts throughout the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. The menu is grounded in Hyatt’s philosophy of Food. Thoughtfully Sourced. Carefully Served.—promoting healthy people, a healthy planet and healthy communities—and has been developed in association with the Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA). As part of the rollout, separate from its PHA commitment, Hyatt hotels will offer a three-course organic meal for children developed exclusively...

TORONTO—Fairmont Hotels & Resorts announced that it has formally removed shark fin from all of its hotel menus in Asia, effective immediately. The move, which also spans the luxury hotel brand’s global culinary operations, is in line with Fairmont’s commitment to environmental stewardship and supports an earlier pledge to offer sustainable seafood choices in an effort to conserve precious marine species.“We’re proud to be at the forefront of the movement to stop serving shark fin,” said Jean Michel Offe, Fairmont’s vice-president, food & beverage. “It’s a logical step for Fairmont, given our decades long work in greening our hotels...

BARAHONA, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC—What was once a family retreat for the Schiffino family, Casa Bonita Lodge is making its mark as one of the most sustainable destinations in the Caribbean. Set on 160 acres of unspoiled land in the Dominican Republic’s Barahuco Mountains, the lodge is partially powered by a 6.5-kilowatt hydroelectric generator situated on the Riosito River. The generator meets 30 percent of the 14-villa lodge’s electricity needs. According to Sandra Beltran, vice president of sales and marketing for Prohotel International, the company that manages the lodge, the goal is to upgrade the hydro plant so that it supplies...

MENOMONEE FALLS, WIS.—Alto-Shaam recently added a new, smaller Combitherm oven capable of holding four full-sized hotel pans and eight half-sized hotel pans in a compact footprint. The new 4.10ESi CT Express Combitherm oven equals all the performance benefits associated with Alto-Shaam’s larger Combitherm ovens.The new “bistro size” oven measures just more than 20 inches wide, 36 inches deep and slightly more than 30 inches high. Its EcoSmart design uses less electricity and water than other compact models.The CT Express Combitherm is available in an array of colors and has a controller with basic LED inputs, ExpressTouch controller with 200...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The National Restaurant Assn. announced its partnership with the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Assn. (CRFA) to launch a Canadian version of the Conserve Sustainability Education Program. The initiative will provide Canadian restaurant operators and foodservice establishments with tools and information to become more environmentally friendly in areas ranging from energy use to waste management. “We are so pleased to begin this partnership with our friends in the Canadian restaurant and foodservice industry,” said Dawn Sweeney, president and CEO of the National Restaurant Assn. “The National Restaurant Assn. launched the Conserve initiative to raise awareness and provide resources to every...

OSHKOSH, WIS.—Continental Girbau Inc. recently released the new Express Flatwork Ironer line, a team of waxless ironers capable of finishing up to 50 feet of linen per minute. Available in 13- and 20-inch roll diameters and up to 125-inch finishing widths, Express Flatwork Ironers boast new conveniences, including significantly enhanced processing speeds; an easily accessible lint cleanout; a wide, metallic feeding tray; reinforced lateral bearings; and multiple heating systems and types. All models are available in natural gas or electric heating, and the 20-inch is also available in steam heating. Making the most of available space, these return-to-feed ironers...

CHICAGO—The National Restaurant Association announced that exhibiting companies at its 2012 Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show—held May 5 to 8 at Chicago’s McCormick Place—have donated more than 41,710 meals to the Greater Chicago Food Depository (GCFD).“Donating surplus food from the National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show is a long-time tradition we are proud to uphold,” said Jack Crawford, convention chair for NRA Show 2012 and president and CEO of Ground Round Independent Owners Cooperative, LLC. “The generosity of our exhibiting companies this year is amazing, as the number of meals donated this year exceeded the number of meals donated last year...

BOSTON—Regulations proposed in Massachusetts by that state’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) will ban commercial businesses, including hotels, from discarding food waste. Greg Cooper, director of consumer programs for the DEP, expects the regulations to be implemented by the middle of 2014. “My feeling is that it is highly unlikely it will not happen,” Cooper said. The DEP is currently in the process of holding a series of stakeholder meetings in order to develop a framework of what the ban will look like. Those discussions are taking place monthly. The framework for the regulations will done by fall, followed...