SAN ANTONIO—The Westin® Riverwalk Hotel—located in drought-laden San Antonio, Texas—recently reinvented its on-premise laundry to save 300,000 to 350,000 gallons of water per month. The remake involved the replacement of water-guzzling washers with more efficient Continental Girbau models and a complementing water reclamation system. San Antonio experienced its hottest summer on record in 2011, contributing to the city’s shrinking aquifer levels and catapulting water utility costs. To combat the drought, San Antonio’s water districts dangled water-conservation incentives before commercial businesses.

MORRISVILLE, VERMONT—Kevin Amyot had serious qualms last spring when contractor Ed Friedrich first proposed a major pump-retrofit project at the Sunset Motor Inn, one of the properties Amyot manages for the H. A. Manosh Corporation in Morrisville. Friedrich’s $13,000 estimate called for the replacement of 18 fixed-speed circulating pumps in the heating system at the Sunset with 10 circulators from the Grundfos Pumps Corporation.

Should continuous improvement be a requirement for carrying on a green certification from one term to the next? I posed this question in a recent blog entry and then proceeded to contact spokespersons for the various leading green certification programs to learn whether or not continuous improvement is indeed a requirement. The spokespersons represented the following certification programs: Green Key Global, Green Globe Certification, Green Seal, EcoRooms & EcoSuites, LEED, and Sustainable Travel International’s STEP. Attempts were made to include the Audubon Green Leaf Eco-Rating Program and Energy Star but representatives of Audubon and the U.S. EPA had not responded as of press time. Why is continuous improvement important?

AUSTIN, TEXAS—Sustainability isn’t just a buzz word in the hospitality industry—it’s become a guiding force for forward-thinking hoteliers who are concerned about contributing to the growing nationwide mattress disposal issue. Hotels, like the Austin, Texas-based Mansion at Judges’ Hill, are choosing to proactively encase their mattresses to not only preserve their expensive assets, but to increase their recyclability. “I’ve never felt comfortable recycling our discarded mattresses because they were too soiled or damaged to pass along to someone else,” says Lisa Wiedemann, the general manager and partner of the hotel. “Now that we have proactively encased our mattresses and box springs, I know I can donate our used mattresses with confidence.”

AUSTIN, TEXAS—Sustainability isn’t just a buzz word in the hospitality industry—it’s become a guiding force for forward-thinking hoteliers who are concerned about contributing to the growing nationwide mattress disposal issue. Hotels, like the Austin, Texas-based Mansion at Judges’ Hill, are choosing to proactively encase their mattresses to not only preserve their expensive assets, but to increase their recyclability. “I’ve never felt comfortable recycling our discarded mattresses because they were too soiled or damaged to pass along to someone else,” says Lisa Wiedemann, the general manager and partner of the hotel. “Now that we have proactively encased our mattresses and box springs, I know I can donate our used mattresses with confidence.”

The locally owned and operated Tremont Plaza Hotel in downtown Baltimore, Maryland features 37 floors, 300 guest suites and is also home to the Grand Historic Venue. Recently, while undergoing an extensive renovation of all its suites, Tremont management identified an opportunity to significantly reduce the hotel’s energy consumption and utility costs through the elimination and replacement of 2,200 60- and 100W incandescent lamps with more energy-efficient lighting technology. With a commitment to servicing the community and a genuine interest in guest satisfaction, the hotel management did not want to sacrifice the light quality in its rooms so turned to North American lighting leader OSRAM SYLVANIA for its expertise.

The locally owned and operated Tremont Plaza Hotel in downtown Baltimore, Maryland features 37 floors, 300 guest suites and is also home to the Grand Historic Venue. Recently, while undergoing an extensive renovation of all its suites, Tremont management identified an opportunity to significantly reduce the hotel’s energy consumption and utility costs through the elimination and replacement of 2,200 60- and 100W incandescent lamps with more energy-efficient lighting technology. With a commitment to servicing the community and a genuine interest in guest satisfaction, the hotel management did not want to sacrifice the light quality in its rooms so turned to North American lighting leader OSRAM SYLVANIA for its expertise.

MADISON, WIS.—Here in Madison, Wisconsin, the Fountain Prairie Inn & Farms offers their visitors a unique experience on their 280-acre property. The landowners, John and Dorothy Priske, take pride in considering their land to be an ecological treasure and operate their family farm on the principles of sustainable farming. Sustainable farming is a growing trend in agricultural practice. Its foundation lies in the farmer’s ability to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

FLORENCE, ALA.—Saving space is invariably one of the prime attractions in switching from a storage tank-type water heater to a tankless system. Most applications involve mounting these medicine-cabinet-sized appliances on an exterior wall, which frees up precious floor space for more productive uses. Even multiple-unit commercial systems, whether hung on the wall or placed into some sort of racking system in the middle of a room, tend to command substantially less space than a comparably sized tank-type system.

FLORENCE, ALA.—Saving space is invariably one of the prime attractions in switching from a storage tank-type water heater to a tankless system. Most applications involve mounting these medicine-cabinet-sized appliances on an exterior wall, which frees up precious floor space for more productive uses. Even multiple-unit commercial systems, whether hung on the wall or placed into some sort of racking system in the middle of a room, tend to command substantially less space than a comparably sized tank-type system.