COMMERCE, CALIF.—Nora Lighting’s 2” iLENE LED Mini Cylinder is now available with a new pendant cone accessory and wider range of finishes, including champagne haze, silver, black and white. The Mini Cylinders can be surface, cable or stem mounted, up to 7’ in length. A canopy-mounted driver allows cool operation and can be specified for 120V or 277V input with Triac, ELV or 0-10V dimming. The iLENE Series also offers Comfort Dim technology, a color tuning option that creates a warm ambience in residential and hospitality settings. Comfort Dim fine tunes the Kelvin temperature from a bright 3100K to an intimate...

BOCA RATON, FLA.—Saltability’s Himalayan Salt Cellulite/Body Scrubber has been named “Best Exfoliation Tool” in Healing Lifestyles & Spas’ 11th annual Earth Day Beauty Awards. Each year, the online wellness publication awards its Earth Day Beauty Awards to recognize “the very best” of beautiful, ethically produced indie beauty products. Saltability is the spa industry’s leading global provider of warmers for Himalayan salt stone massage and other Himalayan salt spa treatments and wellness products. Saltability products and treatments are found at top spas and wellness destinations worldwide, including Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, Four Seasons in London and Hong Kong, Montage Laguna Beach, the MGM Macau and more. Created...

WILMINGTON, DEL.—DuPont introduced the newest pattern additions to the DuPont Tedlar Wallcovering Avant-Garde collection. Inspired by nature’s essential building blocks, Roccia and Travertino are the latest seasonal patterns in the Avant-Garde collection, giving designers even more stone and metal options for a strong, durable look indoors. The stacked-slate look of Roccia has Italian-inspired names ranging from light patterns like “Grigio” to darker shades with blue undertones found in “Azure.” A familiar texture in the Travertino design features colors such as the elegant “Ivory” and the sturdy “Black” shade. “We’re committed to adding more patterns and colors every season to give architects...

LAS VEGAS—Bartech, a Las Vegas-based provider of automatic, profit-generating minibar solutions for the global hospitality industry, has unveiled Minibar+, an innovative solution that enhances Bartech’s manual minibars with semi-automatic functionality. Simple to set up and implement, Minibar+ is a “plug and play” solution that is available as a downloadable application, easily adding semi-automatic functionality to Bartech’s manual units to give hotel operators the ability to control key functions of these devices without having to set foot in the guestroom. As the industry becomes more “guestroom-centric” with hotel guests avoiding common areas like restaurants and bars, the in-room F&B offering is...

READING, PENN.—Ambius colleagues from the United States and Canada took to their communities over the past few weeks to give back to the frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Deemed Hometown Heroes, the frontline workers included healthcare professionals, senior care facility workers and first responders. More than 108 teams and districts participated in the Hometown Heroes program, choosing organizations in their own communities to say thank you. The teams developed care packages, some of which included lunch for staff, care packages and homemade cards from colleagues’ children. “We have seen extraordinary examples of bravery and sacrifice from healthcare and first responders...

ATLANTA—Interface, a worldwide commercial flooring company and global leader in sustainability, debuted ‘Together by Design,’ a series of online resources and events providing architects and interior designers with the opportunity to connect and access innovative content throughout June. Launching alongside NeoConnect 2020, the series includes: Inspired by Design: product and interior design inspiration, including a preview of Interface’s recently launched and upcoming carpet tile collections; Connected by Design: designer profiles, insights and videos; Lead by Design: content and educational sessions, including webinars, thought leadership panels and the Interface Adaptation series that highlights key learnings brought forward during the pandemic, especially in teaching the world about honoring the evolving needs of the Earth; and Uplifted by Design: entertaining and inspiring interactive events including demonstrations, happy hours and more, inspired by the engaging nature of NeoCon. “As our industry continues to move forward, community engagement and discussions remain...

ST. LOUIS—Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers are looking for additional ways to protect themselves from getting sick. Business owners are scrambling to add additional layers of protection to instill guest confidence and get people back into their stores and restaurants. Enter the Clean Hands Company, the St. Louis based technology-meets-hygiene manufacturers of the Clean Hands System. This unique handwashing compliance system, developed by Ray Johnson and Fred Striley, ensures employees wash their hands on a regular basis. Launched in 2009, the system was originally created with restaurants in mind, but the founders knew that hand washing was a necessity that encompassed so much more than...

LONDON—A pasta straw company, Stroodles, has launched to provide an environmentally friendly solution to the single-use plastic crisis and rise of greenwashing from the paper straw industry. In comparison to soggy paper and plastic straws, Stroodles are an improvement as they provide greater durability, are flavourless, vegan, 100 percent biodegradable and are edible raw or cooked after use. A core principle for Stroodles is their “drink-easy” ethos, meaning drinkers don’t have to change behaviour or compromise on drinking experience to do good for the environment. Speaking about the inception of his pasta straws, Chief Stroodle and Founder, Maxim Gelmann, says: “While we’re...

SKOKIE, ILL.—Nominations are open for the first annual Guest Room Attendant Excellence Award, which acknowledges the contributions of guest room attendants (GRAs) at hotel companies across the United States. Sponsored by UMF Corp., the award celebrates the often unheralded workers who serve as the first line of defense in ensuring a safe guest environment. The deadline for nominations is Monday, Aug. 31, 2020. “As the world faces an ongoing battle with COVID-19, the hospitality housekeeping department is emerging front and center, ensuring guest safety, satisfaction and loyalty,” said UMF CEO George Clarke. “Industry associations and thought leaders have reacted quickly...

JASPER, IND.—Indiana Furniture announced an expansion of their portfolio with seven new lines set to launch over the course of the summer. These additions were designed to provide both style and functionality across a broad range of applications, including helping companies to better outfit working spaces amid the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. As Indiana Furniture celebrates 115 years, they are inspired by the essence of yesteryear, of people, places, and things that are legendary, and by modern concepts and desires that will shape our future. They designed their latest additions to break through the everyday, while providing for every day. Indiana...