Are you interested in creating healthier work environments? Using your garment or textile care budget to support truly environmentally friendly services and technology? What about adding an additional item to your checklist for becoming a green hotel? The Problems with Traditional Dry Cleaning Able to dissolve most organic materials, perchloroethylene (commonly known as perc or PCE) is the most widely used dry cleaning solvent nationally. It has been estimated by the Environmental Protection Agency that approximately 85 percent of cleaners use PCE as their primary solvent. However, some studies suggest that long-term frequent over-exposure to organic solvents such as PCE may...

SAN FRANCISCO—Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants has introduced Wines That Care during its hosted nightly wine hour at nearly 50 hotels nationwide. For guests in the mood to mix and mingle in the living room-style lobby with a glass of red or white, every savored sip will come from a featured winery of the month chosen for its dedication to the earth and local communities. Hand-picked by Kimpton’s wine director and master sommelier, Emily Wines, Wines That Care will offer pours from a different winery each month that has a unique story and genuine commitment to environmental preservation and sustainability....

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Hasek Communications, the Cleveland, Ohio-based publisher of Green Lodging News, welcomes FoodBizSupply.com as a Green Product & Service Directory partner. FoodBizSupply.com is a source for more than 400 sustainable tableware, paper products, catering supply products, to-go packaging, bags, green cleanup supplies, and much more. All products are biodegradable/compostable or recyclable. The website includes a Frequently Asked Questions area with information on PLA (polylactide) corn plastic and sugarcane bagasse, as well as links to information on composting and zero waste. For more information, e-mail rosetta@greenchoicevendors.com, call (888) 740-8831, or go to www.foodbizsupply.com.

SAINT CHARLES, MO.—Pineapple Hospitality, a distributor of green hotel products and marketing programs for the hospitality industry, has partnered with CynerGreen to provide a “bottle free” solution for hotels and meeting planners looking to reduce their environmental impact and carbon footprint. CynerGreen offers a complete line of hydration products and services including: adult and children’s reusable, stainless steel water bottles, HealthyTap natural portable water filters, reusable shopping bags, high volume hydration stations, and certification programs tailored to the hospitality and meetings industry. The company’s Bottle Free solutions pave the way for hotels, cities, communities, organizations, events and schools to eliminate...

MIAMI—Sustainability practices that minimize the impact of restaurant operations on the environment appear to be gaining momentum as the foodservice industry finds ways to measure the return on its investment in green systems and technologies, according to the results of a new benchmark survey from RSR Research. The study, “The Better-Run Restaurant: Environmental Sustainability in Restaurant Retail 2010,” finds restaurant organizations of all sizes hungry for greater efficiency in their operations, particularly those solutions which cut energy costs, reduce wasteful packaging, and can be leveraged to “tell a green story” to diners. While the industry is still struggling to...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Hasek Communications, the Cleveland, Ohio-based publisher of Green Lodging News, welcomes Kenyon International as a Green Product & Service Directory Partner. Kenyon International manufactures Kenyon Custom “suite green” compact ceramic cook tops with one or two burners and in 120-, 208- and 240-volt models. The cook tops include “HOT” and “ON” indicator lights. Kenyon Custom’s Lite-Touch Q Outdoors waterproof one-burner cook top and All Seasons Electric Grill for outdoor kitchens are available in 120-volt models. Kenyon International offers a three-year product replacement warranty. For more information, e-mail sowens@kenyonappliances.com, call (860) 664-4906, or go to www.kenyonappliances.com.

TROY, OHIO—Hobart’s new patent-pending Energy Star qualified AM Select Ventless warewasher not only cleans and sanitizes dishware and heavily soiled pots and pans, but it also can save more than $5,000 in energy recovery, reduced HVAC use and the elimination of a vent hood and fan installation. Using only .74 gallons of water per rack, the new AM Select is the first ventless door-type warewasher featuring energy recovery. Operators can save up to $792 per year in energy recovery (based on 200 cycles/day, 360 days per year at an energy cost of $0.011—or 1.1 cent—per cycle). Additionally, the elimination of...

NATIONAL REPORT—With advancements in controls technology and equipment design, washer-extractors (washers) are becoming increasingly more sophisticated and flexible. This is good news for hoteliers looking to save money in a recovering economy. In the race to gain new business, vendors are manufacturing higher G-force machines that spin off more water faster, allowing linens to dry in less time. In some cases, advancements have allowed rinse cycles and dryers to be eliminated entirely. While innovation has allowed vendors to squeeze just about as much water as they can out of the washing process, other advances, especially in software programming, are...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Green Lodging News has just added a new case study to its website. The case study focuses on the LEED-certified Hilton Garden Inn Gatlinburg’s new laundry operations that include two Continental Girbau 55-pound capacity soft-mount washer-extractors, each with an ozone system, and three Continental Girbau 75-pound capacity high-efficiency drying tumblers. Jeff Large of Laundry Systems of Tennessee worked closely with the Hilton Garden Inn to design the on-premise laundry. Over the next five years, the new equipment is expected to save more than $60,000. “The laundry will pay for itself in 48 months,” Large says. “Right now, everyone wants...

BETHESDA, MD.—Now that’s a lot of cooking oil. According to Brad Nelson, corporate chef and vice president of culinary for Marriott International, the company’s hotels in North America generate about 5.5 million pounds of used cooking oil each year. Add in the properties outside North America and that number just about doubles. With so much spent cooking oil to deal with, what’s a company the size of Marriott to do? This past summer the company started a test program at just a few properties in the Washington, D.C. area that resulted in the cooking oil being converted to biodiesel....