WHITE PLAINS, N.Y.—Guestroom 2010 will return to the 92nd annual International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show (IH/M&RS), showcasing the cutting-edge innovations and eco-friendly new products that will soon be found in hotel guestrooms. The model hotel room, developed by the Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP), will feature nearly 50 of the latest and near-future technologies at the industry’s premier marketplace, taking place November 10-13, 2007, at New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. “Guestroom 2010 is a unique presentation of the remarkable new products that will make the hotel experience more efficient, comfortable and earth-friendly,” says Christian Falkenberg, IH/M&RS...

ATLANTA—Healthy and sustainable buildings are the talk of the building industry, but what exactly defines what a healthy building is? ASHRAE will discuss this and other topics at its IAQ 2007: Healthy and Sustainable Buildings conference in Baltimore. The event will be held Oct. 15 to 17. IAQ 2007 will address what tools and metrics can be used to quantify buildings’ health and sustainability and how indoor air quality can be certified as sustainable. Plenary session speakers will compare the functionality of rating systems, how they can be improved and what information other than the ratings can developers, designers and...

LEXINGTON, KY—With nearly 100 million active spa-goers globally, the spa community casts a large net. Affecting society, the economy, culture and the environment, spa is synonymous with healthy lifestyles. And the eco-conscious roots of the industry are growing deeper still. “Environmental consciousness has always been there for the spa community,” says International SPA Association Chairman Jim Root. “Sustainability is in the fabric of spa. Sustainability is based on the very same ideals as the timeless values of spa and Salus Per Aquum. Sustainability is not a passing fad; it’s a deliberate lifestyle for those who work in...

NATIONAL REPORT—Most people do not believe there is a serious shortage of potable domestic water in the United States. Because of our massive natural resource of fresh water, to some degree they are correct. While the problem may not be a shortage of water overall, the more serious problem is that much of the water is not in the major metropolitan areas where most of it is consumed. For example, you will never convince hotel operators in Florida, Southern California and Arizona that there is a sufficient supply of water, because they are already experiencing droughts and shortages. When these...

In part one of this article (click here), I addressed how one can conserve water and cut costs in guestroom areas and building exteriors. In part two I will focus on kitchen, laundry, pool and spa, public restroom, and cooling tower opportunities. In the Kitchen The single largest user and waster of water in hotel kitchens is the dishwashing machine. The most serious problem occurs when the fill valve is not functioning properly and the machine is constantly trying to fill itself. The easiest way to inspect for this is to listen for a continuous sound of running water. When possible,...

NATIONAL REPORT—In the areas of your hotel that guests rarely see—offices, kitchens, corridors, stairwells, storage rooms—there is no need to keep the lights burning 24 hours a day. Yes, in some hotels there is activity in those spaces around the clock but certainly not constantly. During those times when workers are not present, why not employ lighting control systems to turn out the lights, save energy and reduce costs? Inevitably, power plants will not have to work so hard, which means less pollution and fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Carlos Villialobos, senior product manager for Wattstopper/Legrand in Santa Clara, Calif., says...

SINGAPORE—As part of the launch of the Energy Smart Building Labeling Program, the National Environmental Agency (NEA) and Energy Sustainability Unit (ESU)—an entity jointly supported by the School of Design and Environment, National University of Singapore (NUS) and various Research Partners—has awarded The Regent Singapore, a Four Seasons Hotel, the country’s inaugural Energy Smart Hotel Award. This award accords recognition to buildings (and now includes hotels) in the top 25 percent of their class for achieving exemplary energy efficiency without compromising indoor environmental quality. Since the energy-efficiency label was launched in December 2005, The Regent Singapore has undergone rigorous testing...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) announced that former President Bill Clinton will deliver the keynote speech of the opening plenary of Greenbuild, the world’s largest conference and exposition dedicated to green building, to be held Nov. 7-9, 2007, in Chicago. “This is an unprecedented opportunity for our green building community to hear from one of the greatest philanthropic and environmental leaders of this century,” says USGBC President and CEO Rick Fedrizzi. “The William J. Clinton Foundation is facilitating a series of global action plans that are addressing some of the most intractable problems of our times—AIDS, economic sustainability...

HOUSTON—Facility management professionals from around the world will converge on the Big Easy to analyze the latest industry trends and rediscover New Orleans during the International Facility Management Association’s (IFMA) World Workplace 2007 Conference & Expo, Oct. 24-26, at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in the heart of New Orleans. Long recognized as the world’s premier educational and networking conference for facility managers, World Workplace brings industry leaders from the world’s top business and government organizations together with educators and exhibitors to focus on the future of facility management. Now in its 28th year, the conference will...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Retailers and electronics manufacturers voluntarily recycled more than 34 million pounds of electronics in 2006 as part of their commitment to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Plug-In To eCycling program. The program is a voluntary partnership between EPA and electronics manufacturers and retailers to offer consumers more opportunities to donate or recycle their used electronics. Since 2003, Plug-In partners have recycled more than 95 million pounds of electronics. “Our Plug-In partners have energized the industry to give consumers practical alternatives for recycling their used electronics,” says Scott Sherman, EPA’s associate assistant administrator for the Office of Solid Waste and...