fresh ideas for hospitality

The Pineapple has been a symbol of hospitality for centuries. According to legend, captains of New England would mount a pineapple on their fence posts when they had a safe return from sea.  This served as an invitation for family and friends to visit and share a meal together.  Today, the pineapple serves as a symbol for the highest quality in hospitality .

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Saint Charles, Missouri � Oct. 2, 2007 � EcoRooms & EcoSuites continues to grow in its role as an environmental steward for the hospitality industry, adding three new members to its prestigious Board of Advisors: Jenn Holderied-Webb, John R. Hendrie, and Stephen Tagliatela.

EcoRooms & EcoSuites (www.EcoRooms.com) is an online directory of environmentally responsible hotels, motels, inns and B&Bs. With insight from some of the most thoughtful and greenest minds in the industry as a guide, the Web site�s rigorous �Significant 7� Criteria  is helping to define what it means to be a green hotel.

�We�re proud to have Jenn, John and Stephen join our Board of Advisors,� says Ray Burger, President of Pineapple Hospitality, which operates EcoRooms & EcoSuites as a Division of Pineapple Hospitality. 
�As the trend of going green continues to explode in every facet of society, our new advisors will bring us new ideas and different, fresh perspectives to best serve our green travelers and lodging partners.�

�Before, most of our advisors came from the Midwest and Western United States, either California or Texas. Coming from New York (Holderied-Webb), Massachusetts (Hendrie) and Connecticut (Tagliatela), our three new members will provide a bit of an �East Coast style,� giving us a greater insight into the trends and issues occurring on the Atlantic side of the country as well,� Burger adds. �By bringing them all together, I believe EcoRooms & EcoSuites will become an unmatched resource for green hospitality outreach and education.� 

Meet the Team

Already a formidable group working with some of the greenest hotels on the planet, the new Advisors join current members of EcoRooms & EcoSuites� Board of Advisors, which includes: 

• Deirdre Wallace, President & Founder of The Ambrose Group; 
• Natalie Marquis, General Manager of Habitat Suites Hotel; 
• Rauni Kew, Director of Public Relations & Green Programs for the Inn By the Sea in Cape Elizabeth, Maine;
• Wen-I Chang, President of Atman Hospitality Group and the owner/developer of California�s premier green hotel brand: GAIA Hotels; 
• Stefan Muhle, General Manager of the Orchard Garden Hotel in San Francisco.

• Jenn Holderied-Webb � This new advisor is fortunate enough to live and play in one of North America�s greatest treasures, the Adirondack Park. It is this setting that inspired her interest in sustainability and conservation. Having graduated from Hamilton College and received her MBA from Northeastern University in Boston, Holderied-Webb returned home to Lake Placid, N.Y., to work in the family business.  With her parents, brother and sister she runs the Golden Arrow Lakeside Resort, a 160-room full-service hotel in the heart of the Olympic Village. In 2002, the Golden Arrow became the first hotel in the area to become completely non-smoking, years ahead of the mass trend. In 2005, the property was rated 3 leaves by the Audubon Society for it excellence in sustainable business practices.

• John R. Hendrie � With a strong background in human resources, organizational effectiveness, communications and hospitality, Hendrie has dedicated his career to elevating organizational performance across varied industrial sectors. For the past 10 years, he has presided over Ragsdale Associates, a consortium of management consultants specializing in customer service/satisfaction, communication and branding. Hospitality Performance, a subsidiary, is focused upon destination development, education, training and assessment counsel to validate the retail experience. Hendrie holds a bachelor of arts degree in English and a master�s degree from the Cornell Hotel School. He resides in Merrimac, Mass.

• Stephen Tagliatela � Serves as Owner & Innkeeper of the Saybrook Point Inn & Spa in Old Saybrook, Conn. Under Tagliatela�s guidance, the 80-room facility in Saybrook is a four-time winner of the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP�s) Green Circle Awards.

As the Golden Arrow Lakeside Resort is the latest hotel to receive a listing on EcoRooms & EcoSuites, Holderied-Webb says she is looking forward to gaining even more insight into the steps she and her hotel can take to protect the delicate environment of the Adirondack Mountains. Though the green policies she has implemented have already been a smashing success.

Each year, the hotel sets two to three major environmental goals. In past years, some of those goals were hit by using crushed limestone in the beach outside the hotel to offset the effects of acid rain, which is a problem in the area; implementing an in-room recycling program, which has more than doubled the amount of recyclables and attains 85-percent guest participation; and the ongoing installation of a green roof (growing plants and herbs), aiding in energy conservation.

Another innovative solution the hotel is working on is creating a carbon-offset program, which guests can access on the resort�s Web site. Because the resort is a drive-to destination, guests can see how much carbon dioxide their trips put into the atmosphere, and calculate the cost or the steps that can be taken to offset the effects.

�The guest feedback has been 100-percent positive every time we implement a new green strategy. Guests applaud us for taking the initiative, and they reward us with more repeat business and referrals� Holderied-Webb says. �We are blessed to be located in such a beautiful location in the Adirondack Park. Both the hotel and our guests want to do everything we can to make sure future generations can continue to live and play here.�

Holderied-Webb is proud that Golden Arrow is rated 3 leaves by the Audubon Society for its excellence in sustainable business practices. She believes both being listed on and being an advisor of EcoRooms & EcoSuites will help the hotel take even greater steps forward toward a greener future.

�There are a lot of great environmental minds on the EcoRooms & EcoSuites Board of Advisors. It will be a great forum to exchange ideas and discuss the challenges we face up ahead,� says Holderied-Webb. �I�m sure I�ll pick up ideas on things we can do or do better. I can�t wait to get together and pick each other�s brain. There�s no need to try to reinvent the wheel. We should all be working together for the good of the planet and for the future of our children.�

Eager to Help

As a writer and consultant to the hospitality industry, Hendrie says EcoRooms & EcoSuites can provide crucially important clarity and leadership to an often-confusing marketplace.

�The green movement has taken off precipitously in the past year or two � and with it has brought forth all sorts of different associations, products and services,� Hendrie says. �Not that there�s anything wrong with newcomers, but it has to some extent confused the market.

�At EcoRooms & EcoSuites, my goal is to make the organization one of the top sources people in the industry turn to understand and evaluate green practices,� he adds. �This is a huge issue. The concern for applying the standards of green is not just happening in the U.S. It�s a global concern. We�ll work hard at EcoRooms & EcoSuites to make sense out of it all.�

Hendrie praised Burger and Pineapple Hospitality for being on the forefront of the environmental movement. As an admittedly pretty opinionated guy, Hendrie will be happy to chip in more than his two cents worth to impact real change in the hospitality industry.

�There�s a lot of lip service out there, but even worse there are a lot of companies that don�t understand what it truly means to be green,� Hendrie says. �This is too important of an issue to be left behind on. Consumers practice conservation at home. Why wouldn�t they continue those practices when they travel? This is not just about marketing. It�s about stewardship.�

Team Participation

Tagliatela also hopes to gain new insight and ideas from working on the Board of Advisors, though he gets new ideas every day from his own team at the Saybrook Inn.

�Almost everything we do is employee-driven,� Tagliatela says. �They�re driving the bus, always coming up with new ways to save energy and the environment. The idea is to run the business in an environmentally responsible way, and not detract from the guest experience at all.�

The hotel�s policies helped it become the first full-service hotel in Connecticut to receive the prestigious ENERGY STARTM award by the Environmental Protection Agency. The Saybrook also received Green Circle Awards from the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection for:

• Installing water-recycling laundry equipment with Ozone to reduce hot water, water soap, bleach and propane gas usage;
• Improving effluent quality being discharged into the septic system;
• Implementing a 100-percent recycled process for cooling water;
• Reducing annual energy or water consumption rates by more than 15 percent;
• Deploying 90 energy-saving programmable thermostats, and much more. 

Eco-Criteria

Burger stresses that getting listed on EcoRooms & EcoSuites is not easy. Rather than being a directory of every hotel with a towel re-use program, EcoRooms & EcoSuites will only take those facilities that pass its rigorous standards. That way, the 50 million-plus environmentally conscious travelers can visit the site and know they�re booking green hospitality experiences.

Criteria to be an EcoRoom or EcoSuite:

1. Cleaning Products � General Purpose, Bathroom, Glass and Carpet Cleaning 

A. Must be Less than 10% VOC�s by weight. 
B. Must Be Diluted at least 8 to 1. 
C. The Undiluted product shall not be toxic to Humans. 
D. The Undiluted product shall not contain carcinogens or any ingredients that are known to cause reproductive toxicity.
E. The Undiluted product shall not be corrosive to the skin or eyes 
F. The Undiluted product shall not be a skin sensitizer 
G. The Undiluted product shall not be combustible 
H. The product as used shall not contain substances that contribute significantly to the production of photochemical smog, Tropospheric ozone, or poor indoor air quality. The Volatile Organic Compound as used shall not exceed the following:

1% by Weight for Dilutable Carpet Cleaners
1% by Weight for General Purpose and Bathroom Cleaners
3% by Weight for Glass Cleaners 
3% by Weight for Ready to Use Carpet Cleaners 

I. The Product as used shall not be toxic to aquatic life 
J. Each of the organic ingredients in the product as used shall exhibit ready biodegradability
K. The product as used shall not contain more than 0.5% by weight of total phosphorus 
L. The product containers shall be recyclable or Manufacturers may provide for the returning and refilling of their packaging.
M. Prohibited Ingredients include the following: 

Alkylphenol ethoxylates 
Dibutyl Phthalate 
Heavy metals including arsenic, lead, cadmium, cobalt, chromium, mercury, nickel, or selenium 
Ozone-depleting compounds 
Optical Brighteners 

N. Training � The Product Manufacturer, its distributor, or a third party shall offer training or training materials in the proper use of the product. These shall include step-by-step instructions for the proper dilution, use, disposal, and the use of the equipment. A statement containing this information shall be provided to Each Supplier of cleaning products. They will sign the statement verifying that each of the products supplied complies with these standards. 

2. Paper Products � Consumable Paper Products shall be made from recycled fibers, with the following minimum postconsumer content: Bathroom Tissue: 20%, Facial Tissue: 10%, Napkins and Paper Towels: 40% 

3. Amenity Products � Property shall use refillable amenity dispensers or individual containers for shampoo, conditioner, soap, lotion, etc. Individual products shall be the smallest practical size for the length of stay and minimally packaged in recycled and/or recyclable materials. Used amenities are collected for donation to charity or for recycling where practical. 

4. Linen and Towel Reuse Program � Property shall implement and execute a well designed Linen and Towel Re-use program for all Guest Rooms. 

5. Recycling Program � Property shall establish and maintain recycling programs for the common areas, administrative areas, and Guest rooms. The Guest Room Receptacle must be clearly identified for Glass, Paper, Aluminum, & Plastic. 

6. Lighting � All Guest Room Lighting shall be Energy Efficient. No incandescent lighting is acceptable in Floor, Desk, Table or Nightstand lamps. Bathroom lighting shall be either Linear Fluorescent, Compact Fluorescent or a combination of each type. 

7. High Efficiency Plumbing Fixtures � Property shall use the following: 2.2 GPM Faucets with 1.5 GPM or less aerators, the showerheads shall be 2.5 GPM or less and the toilet shall be 1.6 GPF or less. 

About Pineapple Hospitality
Headquartered in Saint Charles, Missouri, Pineapple Hospitality� is an EPA ENERGY STAR� partner bringing fresh ideas to hospitality guests� doors and owner/operators� bottom lines � including FreshStay® (www.freshstay.com), Environmentally Sensitive Amenities�, the greenSPA� luxury amenity and dispenser system, Custom Linen and Towel Re-Use Programs, Guestat� programmable thermostats, high-performance energy- and water-efficient showerheads, the Nature�s Mist� deodorization system, and dozens of other products and programs. To get a taste of Pineapple�s sweet planet-friendly solutions helping thousands of hotels bolster business and cut costs, please visit www.pineapplehospitality.net, or call Ray Burger at 636-922-2285.

ECOQUOTE

To read more from the article, click on the link found in Dierdre�s profile at http://www.ecorooms.com/Board_of_Advisors.html

Ray Burger
President & Founder
Pineapple Hospitality, Inc.
[email protected]
 (636) 922-2285
www.pineapplehospitality.net