Upland, Calif.�(Oct. 29, 2001) You never know what you might find in your basement.  Dozens of hotels across America today are uncovering thousands of dollars in operating cost savings in their basements, thanks to Green Suites International�s O-Tech Direct Injection Ozone Laundry System.

�About 60 percent of the costs incurred to install O-Tech systems on three of our washers in January 2001 was covered by rebates from local utilities,� said Doug Bartels, Vice President and GM of the 123-room Best Western Executive Inn in downtown Seattle.  �In the end, we paid just about $8,000 out-of-pocket to outfit three washing machines with O-Tech, and by year�s end we will have recouped that money in energy, water/sewer and chemicals savings.

�Green Suites� O-Tech system provides significant immediate and sustained cost savings,� Bartels said.  �Yes, oft-ignored laundry operations � tucked away in the basements of hotel operations � can combine O-Tech and ongoing rebates from local utilities to inject big bucks directly into properties� bottom lines.� 

ROI ASAP

Bartels and officials at other lodging properties equipped with O-Tech said that laundry operations often are overlooked when it comes to cost-saving strategies, but that it is very possible that operators can uncover tens of thousands of dollars in annual savings � with very little upfront capital investment � by outfitting their washing machines with Green Suites� O-Tech systems.

O-Tech enables hotel laundry departments to reduce chemical costs and water and sewer bills by 40 percent.  In addition, O-Tech helps hotel laundry operations cut energy expenses related to hot water needs by 60 to 80 percent, while extending the life of expensive guestroom linens up to 50 percent thanks to the removal of certain chemicals harmful to textiles.  Furthermore, by eliminating at least one rinse cycle, O-Tech can shave five to seven minutes off typical wash times, significantly bolstering laundry operations� capacity and productivity, said John Boynton, Green Suites International�s Seattle-based Accounts Manager.

�With current rebates, many client properties are realizing ROI in six months to a year, with typical cost savings of thousands of dollars annually � tens of thousands of dollars annually for larger hotels � lasting for decades,� Boynton said.

�We view O-Tech as a real money maker, and our many clients now are realizing this firsthand,� he said.  �Conservatively, O-Tech can pay back even a 100-room hotel well in excess of  $100,000 on energy and water/sewer expenses over the system�s lifetime.  This doesn�t even count labor, linen replacement and chemicals savings that combined can mirror the aforementioned utilities savings.� 

Downstream Benefits

�With the heightened environmental awareness of today�s travelers, it�s important for hotels to embrace �green solutions� that can improve their corporate citizen image WHILE adding green to their operations,� Bartels said.  �Green Suites� O-Tech Laundry System is just such a rare gem because the only loss is that significant �fixed costs� are rinsed from a hotel�s laundry operations.�
Bartels said the heat is on properties in the Pacific Northwest to conserve water and energy following record-low snowfall and energy crunches suffered by neighboring supplier states.

�Not only are water/sewer and energy costs skyrocketing, but there is tremendous pressure to conserve these limited resources, particularly in Seattle,� Bartels said.  �We viewed this significant challenge as an opportunity to improve our operations and image.  With a little homework and Green Suites International�s assistance, we uncovered utilities rebates that helped us minimize capital investments in our laundry operations, as well as our consumption of energy and water.�

Boynton said there are a few other Ozone laundry systems on the market, but most are not directly injected, triggering installation and maintenance issues while hindering cost savings.

�We�re the only manufacturer that has developed redundant Ozone systems � meaning that every washer has its own O-Tech system, so it�s easy to outfit and maintain entire laundry operations without paralyzing the department for days or weeks, as necessary with competitors� one-off solutions,� Boynton said.  �In this case, the word �redundant� is a very good thing � and only we can claim it and we don�t make our clients pay more for it.�

Best Western�s Bartels agreed that installation and maintenance of O-Tech is painless.  Nancy Finch, GM of the 553-room Renaissance Madison in Seattle, said Green Suites International�s professional local support is what sold her on an installation currently in the laundry works.

�Unfortunately, some suppliers out there just make a sale and walk away,� Finch said.  �Since we expect to have these O-Tech Ozone laundry systems for decades, it was extremely important to us that we partner with someone such as Green Suites International, which has a proven track record of servicing accounts in a timely, professional manner in person � not over the phone or through some third party.�

Green Machine

Harold Nicholls, assistant maintenance engineer at the 402-room Niagara Falls View Hotel and Convention Center in Ontario, said the recent installation of O-Tech systems on four washing machines helped the property avoid a capital expenditure of about $75,000 (U.S. dollars).

�We recently added 107 rooms and we were looking at adding two 125-pound washers, but were able to boost capacity a similar amount by just installing O-Tech systems,� Nicholls said.  �We saved tens of thousands of dollars and significant space, while locking into enviable energy, water and chemicals savings for many years to come.�

Nicholls said there are many downstream benefits to O-Tech that aren�t often calculated in the systems� already-impressive ROI.  For instance, Nicholls said that with the reduction of laundry chemicals, the hotel�s bed linens now are lasting nearly twice as long.

�When was the last time you went to the store and bought bed sheets?  They are not cheap,� Nicholls said.  �Imagine having to replace bed sheets for 402 rooms every six months to a year.  With O-Tech, we have been able to nearly double the life of our linens � a benefit that alone could pay for our four O-Tech laundry systems within just a few years.�

Adriano Corsini, GM of the 237-room Seattle Hilton Hotel, estimated that Green Suites� O-Tech Direct Injection Ozone Laundry System will save the property tens of thousands of dollars annually. According to Corsini, the Seattle Hilton will tap rebates from local utilities to offset approximately 70 percent of the estimated $35,000 initial cost of buying and installing several O-Tech systems. 

Following are some of the benefits that Corsini expects to reap EVERY YEAR for 30-plus years for installing O-Tech systems that will have an end cost to the hotel of about $10,000:

• Up to $12,500 in cost savings by extending the life of bed linens up to 50 percent by eliminating the need for many cleansing chemicals that are harmful to textiles;
• $6,000 in chemicals savings;
• $9,000 in energy savings as the need for hot water cycles is eliminated;
• $8,500 in water/sewer bill savings as rinse and other cycles are eliminated through proprietary Ozonated technology and systems.

�This is not one of those �nice-to-do� green hotel initiatives that has to be shelved because of the industry downturn,� Corsini said.  �Rather, O-Tech is a green solution that makes money, typically paying for itself in just a few months, with significant savings that can last decades.  When developing and marketing O-Tech, Green Suites International wisely realized that environmentally friendly hotel operating solutions must be bottom-line friendly as well.  O-Tech stands in a class of its own as the lean, green, clean Ozone laundry system.� 

Based in Upland, Calif., Green Suites International assists hotels by developing solutions that are profitable to hotels and image enhancing to the more than 43 million environmental travelers in the United States.  Solutions include natural amenities delivered from elegant dispensers, non-toxic cleaners, air and water filtration systems and energy and water efficient products.  Facilities reaping the benefits of Green Suites International�s solutions include properties from every state and 12 different countries.  For more information on Green Suites International, its O-Tech Direct Injection Ozone Laundry System and other environmentally friendly cost-saving solutions, please contact Ray Burger, Green Suites International Co-Founder and VP Sales & Marketing, at 888-590-2285, e-mail [email protected], or visit www.greensuites.com.

Barb Worcester, Principal
PRPRO
[email protected]
Tel: (440) 930-5770