The UK government announced yesterday a price hike of 54% will come in force in April 2022.
This increase of the cap energy that energy companies are able to charge comes after a record increase in global gas prices, which has caused many smaller energy suppliers to close and customers being transferred to alternative providers.
For Hotels, this news has come at a time when many are still recovering from COVID-19 restrictions and national lock downs which has led to ongoing disruption. The price hike may well be the nail in the coffin for those that are hanging on day to day trying to make the business work.
The industry now has 2 options, either do nothing and accept the price hike and adjust their rates to cover, or they can take positive steps towards a more sustainable and energy efficient future.
We have all done it in the past. See one of these boxes and we know how they work. Pop any card in and voila! the lights come on, electric is live and we can happily watch TV.
Then once we are ready to leave, take the room key with us and leave the air conditioning going so that the room is the right temperature for bed later!
Although the concept of these were great in the day, the key card box relies on the assumption the Guest will remove the key card when they are leaving the room. Not only this we have stayed in Hotels recently where the key card was already installed upon arrival of our stay.
Instead the Hotel should think about installing Guest Room Management Solutions.
Smart wall panels can be made to bespoke designs and configurations that detect if the guest is present in the room and set sensible limits for the air conditioning to be used within.
The PMS link enables a high level of automation between the check in process and the Guests presence in the Hotel, allowing automatic temperature setting in the room on Guest arrival and occupation.
Using a web management platform, the Hotel has full visibility of each room allowing smarter decisions to be made from energy consumption to scheduling of housekeepers.
Many Hotels benefit from large south facing roofs that could accommodate a large scale photovoltaic (PV) solar array.
These PV systems are now capable of generating free energy from the sun that could be used to support the operation of the hotel in real time and excess energy stored in onsite batteries for when the sun has set.
Time of use tariffs could be utilised to store energy when its at its cheapest and used later when it is more expensive.
If your Hotel is a Graded building in the countryside, why not utilise your grounds to more sustainable use and build your own solar farm.
Do you know what each room is costing you per night when a Guest stays or the room is vacant?
Hotel owners and operators need to become more aware of what each room is costing via energy consumption to help them make better more informed decisions.
Imagine knowing how much or how long it takes to heat a room to a desired temperature, or the difference changing light bulbs to LED has reduced consumption. Even choices like future TV models could be more informed if you knew exactly how much power that TV is pulling even when a Guest is not there.
The data we can gather can transform what Hoteliers know about their buildings and the impact small changes can make to the bigger picture.
Another way to harness the power of the sun for heating and cooling of the room is to install smart shading solutions.
These can be linked to the temperature of the room and work alongside the air conditioning of conventional heating system within the Hotel.
If the room is too cool and the temperature outside is set to be hot, then set the window shading to be open to ensure the room is at the right temperature naturally.
Equally if the room is getting too hot, then automate the shading to close to help cool down the room before the need of the air conditioning.
Although the last thing the Hotel industry needs is further increases in overhead costs, it does open up the discussion of what can be done to lower the reliance on natural resources.
The COP26 summit in 2021 brought climate change and sustainability to the forefront of the world leaders and society in general. We all have a part to play.
Hoteliers need to start planning for the future without fossil fuels. For this to succeed they also need to evaluate what can be done to mitigate energy use every minute of every day the hotel is operating.
Shannon Harris: Feb 21, 2022 1:02:20 PM
Personally, I'm a great believer of the expression 'if it's not broken, don't fix it'. However to contradict myself, I'm also a great believer of...
Gary Yeames-Smith: Feb 4, 2022 8:15:00 AM
The UK government announced yesterday a price hike of 54% will come in force in April 2022.
Shannon Harris: Feb 3, 2022 10:49:50 AM
There's no secret that energy usage is one of the highest operational costs within modern hotels; falling shortly behind labour costs. If you're a...
