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 _____________________________________ An INNCOM White Paper · 2007
INNCOM international, inc.Tel: (860) 739-4468 · Fax: (860) 739-4460E-mail: solutions@inncom.com · URL: www.inncom.com
Energy Managementand Your Valued Guest:
How Do You Impress Your Guests, Cut Energy Costs, andDo Your Part To Be Green?
 
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Energy is typically a hotel’s second highest operating cost. With utilities costs on the rise, theimpact on financial statements is obvious. Rising energy prices are cutting into hoteliers’ profitmargins. While energy cost-cutting is imperative, there is an acute need by hotels to temper cost-cutting efforts with the desires of its customers. Hospitality solutions must be multifaceted— simultaneously addressing:
hoteliers’ need to generate profits
hotel management’s need for efficiency and reliability
guests’ expectations of comfort, safety, and satisfaction
customers’ desire to buy from socially responsible businesses andhoteliers’ obligation to be environmentally sensitiveHow do you impress your guests, cut energy costs, and do your part to be green?
Rising Energy Costs versus Your Valued Guest’s Needs (and Wants)
In 2006, even as the U.S. lodging industry enjoyed double-digit growth in gross profits,operating expenses grew an average of 7.8 percent – nearly twice the rate of inflation for thesame period
1
. Energy alone typically accounts for 30 – 35 % of a hotel’s operating costs
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,surpassed only by labor, which accounts for over 40%.So where is this energy beingused? According to the U.S.Department of Energy, 22% of energy costs in commercial lodgingis due to space heating and coolingand 20% is due to lighting
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. Amajor difficulty in managing thesecosts rests with the nature of theindustry: the lodging industry’scustomers are direct consumers of much of a hotel’s heating/coolingand lighting – and they fully expectto have comfortable levels of both,even in the most limited-servicehotel.While guests require an agreeable room atmosphere, a hotel’s rooms are actually occupiedfewer than twelve hours a day, meaning energy is wasted maintaining guest settings even whenguests are not present. And though housekeeping may be instructed to reset the thermostatand turn off lights in unrented rooms, it has been proven, time and again, that they cannot berelied upon to do so.
Energy Usage: US Commercial Lodging
42% Water Heating20% Lighting16% Space Heating6% Space Cooling16% Other 
US Department of Energy
 
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Core Energy Management Strategies
When it comes to controlling the heating/cooling and lighting costs of a guestroom, theDepartment of Energy has four recommendations
4
:
Install digital thermostats that monitor room occupancy and automatically adjust thetemperature when guests enter or exit.
Save on utility bills and maintenance costs by installing centralized energy managementsystems.
Save on lighting costs with energy-efficient lighting and occupancy sensors.
Educate cleaning and maintenance staff to turn off lights and adjust thermostats, andimplement preventive maintenance programs.Let’s start with the most basicrecommendation: installing
digitalthermostats
that monitor roomoccupancy. Direct digital control (DDC)thermostats, on their own, offer precisetemperature control. A digital thermostatallows the hotel to set a
target temperature range 
and a guest to select a
specific target temperature 
. Unlikemechanical thermostats, a digitalthermostat will not over-shoot the targettemperature and swing between heatingand cooling as it attempts to correct itself.Some digital thermostats on the marketare only made to provide the simpletemperature control described above.Such a device may be adequate for verysmall properties where it takes little time for housekeeping to maintain economic settingsmanually. However, if your property can benefit from automated control and increasedfunctionality, you will want an
expandable 
digital thermostat, whether or not you choose toimplement its extended features right away.An expandable digital thermostat is a “smart” device, meaning it contains programmablesoftware that enables it to perform multiple tasks. An expandable thermostat also possessesthe necessary hardware, such as infrared and passive infrared (PIR) sensors to execute thesetasks. Expandable digital thermostats are vital components in a centrally controlled energymanagement system.
Some hotels choose to upgrade in stages. They may purchase and install expandable digital thermostats in the first stage, then connect the thermostats to a 
The Challenge
Reduce energy usage when guestroomsare not occupied
Eliminate overshooting of desiredtemperature by guests
Provide automatic setbacks for rented/unrented, occupied/unoccupied,nighttime, and hibernation conditions
Provide easily programmable settingsfor seasonal conditions and other desired changes
Extend HVAC equipment life
Manage loads to reduce peaks in energyconsumption
Improve guest comfort
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