Upland, Calif.� (Feb. 18, 2002) Ask not what you can do for the environment, but what it can do for you. That�s the philosophy of Ray Burger, Vice President Sales & Marketing of Green Suites International, hospitality�s leading provider of ecological solutions providing economic benefits.

Don�t take this wrong: Burger is big on environmental initiatives. He just knows firsthand that most people already know they could be doing a lot more at work and at home to help preserve the Planet and our natural resources. What they don�t always know, Burger said, is exactly how participation in these programs can and should help them and their properties cut costs, bolster public images and improve staff and guest satisfaction.

�That�s where our EcoRooms & Green Suites Accommodations come in,� Burger said. �These environmental engineering packages for guestrooms help hotels test the green waters quickly, easily and cost effectively. They help hoteliers see firsthand the critical �what�s in it for me� so environmental awareness programs achieve optimal buy-in from management, employees and guests.�

Designed to save

Green Suites International�s EcoRooms and Green Suites Accommodations are basically the same environmental engineering and housekeeping program, with the later designed for suites and the earlier for standard-sized guestrooms. Each guestroom or suite can feature a baker�s dozen of ecological solutions that bolster hotels� bottom lines. The products deliver energy and water efficiency, reducing waste and costs. 

While no one should dismiss the country�s 43 million environmental travelers, few operators can turn an eager ear to new environmental initiatives in today�s economy without first hearing the bottom line.

Very often, EcoRooms & Green Suites Accommodations programs come with rebates that deliver a complete payback in 12 to 18 months, with significant ROI (thousands of dollars) continuing to be reaped for years.

Among the EcoRooms/Green Suites �standard� savings solutions are:

1. Low-flow-showerheads;
2. Low-flow sink aerators;
3. Early-closer toilet flappers;
4. Toilet tank diverter valves;
5. Bathroom amenity dispensers featuring biodegradable and hypoallergenic soap, lotion, shampoo and conditioner;
6. Energy-efficient compact fluorescent solutions from partners such as GE Lighting;
7. Recycling receptacles;
8. Linen and towel reuse programs with informative EcoCards featuring interesting EcoFacts to encourage guests to participate and help conserve the planet�s natural resources;
9. Non-toxic, low-odor cleaning products; and
10. Post consumer waste Paper Products such as facial and bathroom tissues;

�With this easy-to-implement green guestroom package, a hotel can save significant money and enhance its public perception � leaving guests and employees alike with a good feeling about themselves,� Burger said. �In a rare win-win-win, EcoRooms & Green Suites Accommodations make world champions out of hotels, their guests and staff and the environment � a terrific trio working together to reduce energy and water consumption, and waste generation.�

Competitive differentiator

The Best Western Park Plaza in Puyallup, Wash., has been aboard the EcoRooms program for seven years with 12 such-designated guestrooms out of its inventory of 100 rooms. General Manager Chuck Valley said initially he was hesitant to embark on the initiative because he questioned the payback, but that he is constantly �WOWed� by the ability of this green room package to deliver on its promises.

�Thanks to energy-efficient lighting, we cut our costs in that area in half in all of our EcoRooms � and that�s just one of more than a dozen savings solutions included in the package,� Valley said. �In fact, as lamps elsewhere on our property burn out, we�re now replacing them with compact fluorescent lighting, which alone we estimate could save us more than $1,000 a month in the end.�

Valley said that while the cost savings of the EcoRooms package quickly answered his ROI questions, the benefits that the program has delivered in bolstering public perceptions can�t be overlooked either.

�I can�t tell you how many guests have come to us and personally thanked us for our EcoRooms � and come back to stay in them as well as told others about us,� Valley said. �EcoRooms are their own marketing machines. While not everyone knows what they are, once they enjoy such a stay they never forget them. EcoRooms are a rare find in competitive differentiators because they save hoteliers money!�

The 114-room Holiday Inn in Danbury, Conn., has had 10 EcoRooms for five years and GM Bill Doyon said the Green Suites plaques outside each room underlines the staff�s pride in the program.

�We receive so many comments that these rooms are different than any others that our guests have stayed in,� Doyon said. �They voice their appreciation and even pitch-in in the program themselves. Many guests opt to have their linens changed every third day and towels replaced every other day � and they thank us for educating them on the environment and giving them this option to play a part.�

Sean Collard, Assistant General Manager of the DoubleTree Guest Suites at Times Square in New York, said the property�s two Green Suites floors have been big hits since their introduction in 1994.

�It�s not always easy to get the buy-in from corporate and management, but once they hear the solid ROI numbers and guests� comments, many eventually come around,� Collard said. �We�re very lucky because our owners, GE Investment Co., and our property management company, Hilton Hotels Corp., are very big on environmental initiatives that make sound business sense, such as our 26 Green Suites.�

Stepping stones

Collard said the Green Suites program has helped spur projects in other areas of the landmark hotel.

For instance, in next year�s first half, he said the property plans to replace some 6,000 light bulbs and 1,000 ballasts across the property.

�Our Green Suites floors really �showed us the light� as far as other efficiency gains we can capture across our entire property,� Collard said. �With an anticipated rebate of $6,000 or just under 10 percent of our capital costs for this lighting retrofit, we expect to reach a payback in seven months. After that, it�s a savings of $60,000 or more a year with Green Suites� energy-efficient GE Lighting solutions.�

The moves to embrace energy-efficient lighting propertywide at the New York DoubleTree and the Washington Best Western are two examples of how EcoRooms/Green Suites Accommodations programs can serve as stepping stones to larger environmental initiatives with big bottom-line incentives.

Another example involves the Hotel Triton, an upscale boutique San Francisco property owned by The Kimpton Group. Since opening its EcoRooms Floor consisting of 24 of its 140 guestrooms on April 22, 1995 � the 25th Anniversary of Earth Day � the property has implemented all of the standard features of an EcoRoom plus a dozen more optional products in all of its rooms, with one exception.

�We don�t have Green Suites recycling receptacles in our rooms, but that doesn�t mean we don�t participate in the program,� said GM Nick Gregory. �Being an upscale boutique property, we instead have chosen to have our housekeeping staff take on the task of separating guest discarded paper, plastic and glass for recycling.

�I guess technically we�re missing one piece of the puzzle, but we feel we�ve just re-defined the piece to meet our needs and those of our guests,� he said. �At the Triton, we believe we�re a complete EcoRooms Hotel � in every room, on every floor � and we have the products and savings to prove it.�   

According to Gregory, achieving a buy-in from top decision makers and front-line employees is critical to the success of any property-wide environmental initiative.

�You can buy all of the products you want, but if you don�t receive 100-percent buy-in from management and staff, the program won�t take flight as it should,� Gregory said. �Once you educate staff and achieve  a full buy-in, you can begin marketing these EcoRooms in ways that many competitors cannot. When it comes to being environmentally aware, we�ve established quite a reputation of going a step beyond, like we strive to do in everything else we do here at the Triton. �

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 or GE Lighting�s Hospitality Solutions, please contact Ray Burger, Green Suites International VP Sales & Marketing, at 888-590-2285, e-mail [email protected], or visit www.greensuites.com.

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