This year�s awards are being given in three categories, with one winner in each category: 

Candlewood Hotel Company, Inc., based in  Wichita, Kansas with 35 hotels open and 30 under construction, is receiving The Telman MasterTech Award for Bottom Line Profits, for producing an extraordinary impact on employee productivity and payroll costs through the implementation of an Electronic Imaging System and a new accounting system.  �We have been working the last 18 months to get this accomplished�, said Lisa Penn, Records Management Coordinator  for Candlewood.  �While it is hard to say in exact numbers what will be saved, the current estimate is about $90,000 in labor savings in the first year of implementation.  Plus, with this kind of improvement, people can get their jobs done more efficiently and that is important for our employees and our shareholders.� 

Prime Hospitality Corp., based in New Jersey with 166 hotels including the AmeriSuites brand, is receiving The Telman MasterTech Award for Guest Services, for providing extraordinary amenities for business travelers in their TCB (Taking Care of Business) Suites. �Our basic approach is to keep our eye on the future � looking at what keys to guest satisfaction are emerging as important � and shaping our programs and services around them�, explained Ed Dykes, Vice President Operations for AmeriSuites.  �This is how our TCB Suites came about. Prime is committed to making the necessary investments to be on the cutting edge for its guests.� 
 
Carol Beggs of Sonesta International Hotel Corporation is the recipient of The Telman MasterTech Award for Individuals, for her outstanding leadership that continues to result in Sonesta Hotels providing breakthrough technology to their guests and employees. �The Royal Sonesta, Boston, is in the middle of a very technology oriented part of the country, and we consider ourselves on the cutting edge with regards to implementing technology� explains Laurie Juliano, PR Manager for the Royal Sonesta, Boston.  �And, Carol Beggs has made this possible through her vision of what can be accomplished with technology, and her commitment to the effective implementation of this vision.� 

The 1998 Telman MasterTech Awards will be presented at the HFTP Annual Convention�s Awards Luncheon, sponsored by Telman, on September 26 at the Hyatt Crystal City in Washington, D.C..