With the cost of energy rising, it is vital for the hospitality industry to use natural gases and electricity more efficiently. Renewable energy has become the new rage, with hoteliers trying everything to cut down their carbon footprint. Realising that although reducing energy costs may be a small percentage of annual turnover, by cutting down on these costs, it will directly impact on their revenue, without having to increase their sales or marketing efforts. Whatever costs you save on energy goes straight into the bottom line. By reducing energy consumption, it aids in minimising climate changes, which in an age of global warming is always a plus. Being energy efficient can drastically enhance a hotels business reputations as well as attract new guests.

Energy saving ideas

Housekeeping:

• Open the curtains to let natural light flow in to brighten the room.
• Turn off lights, aircons or heaters when rooms are being cleaned or are unoccupied. 19 – 21 degrees is usually a recommended or comfortable room temperature for guests.
• Wash linen and towels at a lower temperature
• Report water leaks as soon as you find them. (toilets or taps)
• When replacing beverage or snack vending machine, choose energy efficient machines.
• Have your geyzers, ice-makers, laundry and refrigeration equipments checked periodically.

Rooms:

• Install low-flow showerheads and extractors
• Switch to low-flow or dual flush toilets and make sure your toilet flappers are not leaking (regular checks annually would save you a fortune in lost water revenue)
• Use LED light bulbs and switch off lights when you don’t need to have them on.
• Inform guests that only if they require new towels should they place their old ones in the bath so that staff know to replace them with clean ones.

General building and public areas:

• Use solar water heating systems for hot tubs.
• Use daylight sensors for your lights so that they only come on when it’s dark
• Replace your standard light bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs which last longer and use about 75 percent less energy than standard one.
• Service your air-conditioning equipment regularly.

Get everyone involved

Energy saving is not limited to hotel management only. It’s the responsibility of management to educate and train staff as well as guests on ways to improve energy efficiencies. Incentivise staff to come up with ways to reduce energy consumption. Make it fun, offer incentives or rewards for ideas and always keep this top of mind with your employees and even with your guests. Small notes in bedrooms to remind guests of best practises does help. And if you want to take it to another level with guests, why not follow in the footsteps of Crowne Plaza who offer a free meal voucher to guests who generate electricity on their gym bicycle. Such a fun way to incentivise guests!

Tell us your thoughts

These are a few energy saving tips that we think work best in hotels or resorts. Please drop us a line to tell us what you think, and if you have a tip or idea that you think will benefit the hospitality industry – we would love to hear your feedback.

hotelexecutive.com, www.power-star.co.za news.nationalgeographic.com, putnamrise.org, www.earthtimes.org,