CHICAGO—Constellation Energy announced that its subsidiary, Constellation NewEnergy, has entered into a green electricity purchase agreement with the InterContinental Chicago Hotel. As part of the agreement, Constellation NewEnergy will secure approximately 2 million kilowatt hours of Green-e certified Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) through its NewMix Super product to match 50 percent of the hotel’s electricity usage. “Working with Constellation NewEnergy to match half of the hotel’s energy demands is in perfect alignment with our commitment to sustainable and environmentally-friendly practices,” said Chris Mander, regional vice president and general manager, InterContinental Chicago. “In addition to furthering our own environmental goals, we...

AURORA, OHIO—TCP Inc. announced that it is a charter member of the newly formed U.S. Conference of Mayors’ Climate Protection Council. The council was announced during the two-day Mayors Climate Protection Summit in Seattle last month. The new Climate Protection Council brings business leaders and mayors together to address the issue of climate change and discuss innovative solutions for helping to make cities more sustainable. In addition to TCP, the seven Charter Members include: The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers; American Chemistry Council; DuPont; Johnson Controls, Inc.; Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. and Waste Management. “As the largest manufacturer of energy saving light...

LAS VEGAS—With SensorStat, a direct digital control thermostat distributed by EnerBrite Technologies Group, Inc., two major Florida hotels have found a way to save on both energy costs and maintenance costs associated with mold and mildew. The Radisson Hotel Palm Beach Airport and the Clarion Jacksonville Airport Hotel & Conference Center both credit SensorStat for helping them meet the challenge. “Unbelievably, we have already reached (a return of investment) just 12 months after installation,” said Clarion Jacksonville Airport general manager Norman LeBert, who had SensorStat installed in June 2006. “Also, energy costs in our area were actually increasing at a...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Green Lodging News has added its fourth case study to its new Vendor Case Studies section. The case study focuses on the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority (LVCVA) and how it has effectively tackled the challenge of safely disposing thousands of fluorescent lamps. The study details how the Las Vegas Convention Center uses Air Cycle Corp.’s Bulb Eater to safely crush and store the lamps. That is important because fluorescent lamps contain potentially harmful mercury. LVCVA now has two Bulb Eater machines at the Convention Center. This OSHA- and EPA-compliant device crushes more than 1,000 fluorescent lamps (amount...

WALTHAM, MASS.—American DG Energy Inc., a leading on-site utility offering electricity, heat, hot water and cooling to hospitality facilities, has entered into a 15-year agreement to supply low-cost energy to the Hotel Indigo Boston–Newton Riverside, a branded boutique hotel located in Newton, Mass. Under the terms of the agreement, Hotel Indigo will soon receive a substantial portion of its electricity, space heat, swimming pool heat and domestic hot water directly from an on-site cogeneration facility, providing 100 kW and 732,000 btu’s per hour of energy while offsetting up to 328 tons of CO2 gas each year. American DG Energy will...

SHOREWOOD, ILL.—MJSI, Inc. has released its proprietary HydroClean toilet fill valve for the hotel industry. The HydroClean is the only toilet fill valve that is specifically engineered to save water, detect leaks, clean the tank and eliminate water hammer. Unlike ordinary fill valves, the HydroClean calibrates the proper water flow to the toilet and the tank without compromising flush efficiency. Miscalibration is the most frequent source of water loss in toilets—even in high efficiency toilets. In a collaborative study with a major hotel chain, it was found that installation of the HydroClean toilet fill valve in high efficiency 1.6-gallon toilets...

MALVERN, PA.—USA Technologies has been issued a patent for the VM2iQ, a key technology in the EnergyMiser energy conservation product line that targets the nation’s four million vending machines and $46 billion vending industry. The company announced that the U.S. Patents and Trademark Office had issued patent number 7,286,907 for Method and Apparatus for Conserving Power Consumed by a Refrigerated Appliance Utilizing Audio Signal Detection. “The patent protects strategic technology in the VM2iQ which is installed inside a vending machine and switches the cooling system in and out of energy savings mode by monitoring vending machine sales,” said Dan van...

MUSCLE SHOALS, ALA.—Aleco, with 30 years of experience as one of the largest manufacturers in the United States of energy saving impact doors and PVC strip doors for the food service industry, featured its new line of rigid and flexible ImpacDors, the JetStream Air Curtain and Economy Pan Rack Covers, at the International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show in New York last month. The company’s line of ImpacDors offers an extremely wide variety of features and construction. The FS-250 is specially designed for high-volume traffic between the kitchen and the front of the house in restaurants. It is a lightweight and...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Green Lodging News has added its third case study to its new Vendor Case Studies section (click here to go to it). The case study focuses on the Boulder Outlook Hotel & Suites and its recent transition from traditional PVC plastic hotel keycards to Green-Key™ paperboard keycards. Green-Key™ is an environmentally friendly alternative to the traditional plastic hotel keycard. Unlike plastic keycards, Green-Key™ is recyclable, biodegradable and produced from paperboard, a renewable resource. Its paperboard construction also makes it an economical choice by eliminating the cost barrier that many high priced eco-friendly products have. Green-Key™ was developed to address several...

GLENVIEW, ILL.—Protect-A-Bed announced that its innovative mattress protector product, AllerZip, was honored with the 2007 Editor’s Choice Award at the 92nd annual International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show in New York. One of 10 awardees, Protect-A-Bed’s AllerZip is a complete mattress encasement that protects against liquids, allergens, mites and bed bugs—a growing problem in hotels across the country. The Editors’ Choice Awards recognize the year’s most innovative new products for the hospitality industry. Protect-A-Bed won the award for the category of “essentials.” “This award confirms that it is vital for all hotels, big and small, to use bedding protectors on...