EcoGreenHotel

Save Money while Maintaining a Beautiful and Healthy Landscape

ROBBINSVILLE, N.J. –

Green Hotels want to make sure their lawn and landscape stays healthy and beautiful for the enjoyment of guests and improved occupancy rates. They must also think about controlling utility rates and being environmentally friendly.

Overwatering of landscape is often the major water waste culprit for a hotel property. But now, you no longer have to “guess” how long each watering zone should be operating thanks to the SmartLine System offered by Weathermatic, a global manufacturer and service provider of water conservation solutions for the outdoors since 1945.

EcoGreenHotel recognizes Weathermatic’s weather based watering technology that has proven to be an economical choice for properties of any size.

George Kenney of Soundview Landscape has installed SmartLine for several properties in Hawaii. “SmartLine has changed the way we irrigate properties,” Kenney states. “[When] we converted the landscaping at a condominium to SmartLine, the water savings have been so dramatic that the resort has asked to convert additional sites. If the next six months are equal to the first six months, the property will realize a savings of six million gallons in the first year of system operation.”

How Does It Work
Simply stated, it is a thermostat for the landscape. The SmartLine System replaces existing sprinkler timers that operate like the old egg timer.

It uses weather readings from a small, on-property weather station to automatically calculate precise run times for the plants in each zone using a proven evapotranspiration formula. It also uses sprinkler precipitation rates, soil type, and slope to apply water in run and soak cycles at a rate the soil can accept to prevent polluted runoff. In addition,” Brodie Bruner, VP Marketing and Sales for Weathermatic, notes, “this technology eliminates the need to have lawn maintenance crews manually adjusting controllers to match ever-changing weather conditions.”

Real Dollar and Water Savings
“More than 200,000 properties in over 80 countries are now using SmartLine,” saidBruner, “with SmartLine water savings ranging from 20 to over 60%.“

“The comforting part about converting existing controllers to SmartLine,” Bruner explains, “is that a typical installation can be accomplished in a few hours without any disturbance to existing landscaping or interruption of property use for your guests. Most importantly, this high efficiency system results in a return on investment of typically 12 months or less.”

You Only Know What You Measure
Weathermatic can provide a SmartLine Water Management Service that includes access to monthly reports detailing site-specific water savings and performance compared to water usage goals considering the actual weather conditions. This service,” Bruner explains, “acts both as a monitoring device and provides analysis to verify the entire irrigation system is working properly.”

Alen Hinckley, Yorkshire West Realty Advisors, saw the payback in less than three months and saved almost 4 million gallons of water after a year. With an effective annual 70% reduction, their group is rolling out SmartLine on all their properties. “It’s a no brainer,” said Alen.

SmartLine controllers are available in sizes for any property with configurations for wall mounting or pedestal installation. They can be wired or wireless for flexibility in mounting locations on any property. Several remote control options are available to insure easy irrigation field maintenance for landscape crews.

It seems sustainability options have finally come to the mainstream for trade shows and conventions. In recent years green practices have been adopted by convention centers, event planners, vendors and contractors to dramatically reduce costs and their environmental impact.

As the 2010 Waste Expo kicks off this week in Atlanta, EcoGreenHotel takes a look at the solid waste and environmental impacts of Trade Shows. WasteExpo is North America’s largest solid waste and recycling tradeshow serving both the private and public sectors. The show boasts “green” initiatives such as: extensive use of electronic media to eliminate paper, energy saving lighting, green cleaners, carpet made from recycled materials, and of course robust recycling programs.

It is held at the Georgia World Congress Center Authority in Atlanta which has recently adopted sustainability practices for its 3.9million square feet of space. Beyond the standard green building practices, the center works closely with a local Food Bank to ensure left over food and supplies from events do not go to waste. Plastic water bottles have been replaced with spring water coolers and food wastes are composted onsite.

But are these initiatives enough to create a sustainable trade show?

The most sustainable trade show is the recent advent of the virtual trade show. As the name implies, a virtual trade show is conducted online for all of the attendees and exhibitors in a virtual convention center. The nearly zero carbon footprint shows offer live speakers, interactive vendor booths, networking events, and opportunities to sample products and services. In today’s economy the time and cost savings alone make this option immensely more attractive than traditional shows. EcoGreenHotel likes the idea of the virtual trade show so much it has committed to attend the Spa Hospitality Expo on May 26 and 27. Please join us in our booth for your first virtual tradeshow experience. You can register for the free show at http://tiny.cc/dq4sh

EcoGreenHotel encourages the hospitality industry to participate in Earth Hour 2009, at 8.30pm on Saturday the 28th of March. There are several areas within a hotel or resort that lights and power can be minimized or eliminated for one hour. For more information on Earth Hour and to sign up to be counted as a participating hotel or resort please visit www.earthhour.org.
The hospitality industry can make a huge impact in environmental awareness by implementing green initiatives into their everyday business and Earth Hour is an excellent launch of an ongoing environmentally friendly program for your property.
The following steps should be taken to properly plan for a safe and successful Earth Hour:
• Promote associate involvement by creating a “Green Hotel Team” with a “Green Leader” from your management team and at least one associate from each department.
• The “Green Hotel Team” should meet weekly starting the week of March 2nd 2009 to come up with a list of lights, equipment and machinery that can be powered down for one hour on March 28th without jeopardizing the security or safety of your guests or associates.
• Involve the sales and marketing department to create an event around the night and promote to the local community through reaching out to your top accounts and possibly a press release.
• Earth Hour falls on a Saturday evening which may allow your restaurant to create a promotion around the event to bring in local clientele.
• Properly staff your property the night of the event to insure safety and security.

Send an email to info@EcoGreenHotel.com about your initiatives for Earth Hour and you will be included on www.EcoGreenHotel.com as well as included in further press releases supporting Earth Hour.

For tips and tools for energy reduction to support Earth Hour visit www.EcoGreenHotel.com.