BENTON HARBOR, MICH.—Whirlpool Corp., a leading manufacturer and marketer of appliances, announced the release of the company’s first global, comprehensive sustainability report. The report provides an overview of the company’s efforts to make a sustainable difference in the world. The company also produces an annual report and, for the first time, is making a detailed Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) report publicly available, in addition to other required regulatory filings. These reports reflect the company’s commitment to openly communicating with its stakeholders about its economic, social and environmental performance. Whirlpool Corp. is a leader in developing high-performance appliances that help conserve the...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Hasek Communications, the Cleveland, Ohio-based publisher of Green Lodging News, welcomes WiSuite as a Green Product & Service Directory partner. WiSuite’s Central Control and Monitoring system interfaces with WiSuite’s ZigBee Wireless Digital Thermostats to provide real-time building, zone, room and device level controls, monthly temperature schedules, device history and maintenance alerts. The WiSuite real time PMS I/F is the key to achieving a 35 to 40 percent reduction in heating and cooling costs. WiSuite’s centrally controlled energy management supports a walk-in quota system that allows hotel managers to specify a quantity of rooms to keep ready for sale at...

DALLAS—Thompson Mahogany Co., a fine hardwoods importer based in Philadelphia, has merged with East Teak Fine Hardwoods, Inc., an importer of First European Quality Teak and other fine hardwood products. Thompson Mahogany Company will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of East Teak, yet will maintain full operational autonomy from its headquarters location. The combined entities will leverage the strength of both companies to better serve customers in the residential, commercial, hospitality and marine industries. Founded in 1843, Thompson Mahogany Co. is a supplier of quality tropical hardwoods from Central America, South America and Africa. Thompson directly imports more than...

DALLAS—More than 40 Marriott hotels throughout Texas are doing their part to help the Texas environment. TXU Energy recently conducted energy audits at several large Marriott properties in the state. The recommendations, if fully implemented, would reduce electricity consumption by more than 2 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year—enough to power 115 homes—for a savings of $250 thousand per year. “Our goal was to do things that make sense from an environmental and financial perspective,” said Rob Bahl, regional vice president of engineering for Marriott. “TXU Energy helped identify the green steps we can take to achieve that goal.” The audits were...

ATLANTA—The Crowne Plaza Atlanta Perimeter at Ravinia recently announced its certification by Green Globe, a leading international brand for sustainable travel, tourism and related green businesses. Green Globe traces its roots back to the United Nations Earth Summit of 1992, and uniquely looks at a hotel’s effects on the environment as well as its impact on the community. Green Globe Certification CEO Guido Bauer said he welcomes Crowne Plaza Perimeter at Ravinia into the select group of certified hotels that have chosen to have their green achievements verified against international sustainability standards. “Green Globe recognizes that true...

MADISON HEIGHTS, MICH.—Two long-time hospitality industry stalwarts—SAFLOK and INNCOM International Inc.—recently announced a strategic alliance. The collaboration has yielded a new radio-frequency (RF) interface for energy management. Hyatt Regency Chicago, a four-diamond, 2,019-room hotel in the heart of downtown Chicago, just off the Magnificent Mile, is the first property to adopt this new interface. An existing SAFLOK customer, Hyatt Regency Chicago is updating from the SAFLOK MT (multi-technology) locks to SAFLOK’s Quantum ädese locks and installing energy management thermostats with an RF interface. The new RF interface provides a cost-effective energy management solution by allowing the lock and thermostat to...

NEW YORK—Perkins+Will, a global integrated design firm, announced the creation of its Perkins+Will Precautionary List. It was unveiled at GreenBuild 2009. The goal of the list is to highlight chemicals, which are listed by government agencies as having negative health issues and the classes of building materials where they might be commonly found, while offering available alternatives in an effort to push the building industry to embrace healthier buildings. “There is an ever increasing focus in the green building movement on the relationship between humans and the built environment,” said Peter Syrett, AIA, LEED AP and associate principal at Perkins+Will...

LOS ANGELES—Bentley Prince Street has just moved a few steps closer to “closing the loop” entirely on its products through the introduction of new backing technologies for both its broadloom and carpet tile products. Both High PerformancePC, the company’s new standard broadloom backing, and SelectRC, its new standard hard-back carpet tile backing, incorporate recycled and reprocessed carpet backing into new carpet backing. All manufacturing processes for both backings are performed in the company’s California headquarters, eliminating the need for, and associated environmental impacts of, additional transportation. “Through these new backings, as well as the introduction of our first product using...

NEW YORK—LG Electronics USA, Inc., a leading provider of flat-panel HDTVs to the lodging industry, and the leading recycler, Waste Management, Inc., announced a recycling program for hotel operators to responsibly dispose of outdated television sets and computer monitors. In 2010 alone, hundreds of hotels are expected to upgrade thousands of rooms with energy-efficient LG flat-panel digital TVs, which will displace older analog picture tube TVs. To support this growing trend, LG Electronics will now offer environmentally conscious hotel, motel and resort operators a cost-effective opportunity for recycling the obsolete hotel TVs. Under this new program planned for launch in 2010,...

WASHINGTON—Consumer product manufacturers will now be able to prove their sustainability claims to customers and stockholders with a new certification program that rewards the highest levels of environmental performance and leadership. Green Seal, the 20-year-old nonprofit certifier of green products and services, is launching a pilot Company Certification Program that provides a holistic assessment of a company’s product line and its business operations. The new program builds on Green Seal’s development of 30 environmental standards and certification of more than 3,500 “green” products and services. This pilot program will certify companies as a whole based on their commitment to environmentally-sound business...