TECHNOLOGY UPDATE: User-friendly Devices Help Guests Feel at Home
by Frank Wolfe, CAE

When a person goes on vacation, he usually wants to escape from his everyday routine. He values the extraordinary items that impress - flat screen TVs, state-of-the-art stereo systems, and super deluxe mattresses. What the traveler is also looking for are ways to ease the stress of travel by having a guestroom that is a comfortable base of operations with a variety of technological devices that are simple to use. These unpretentious items can be helpful for both the guest and hotel staff. 

“Wireless Electricity”
Today, guests don’t simply travel with a suitcase of clothes. They are armed with a collection of portable, multimedia devices, which all have to be recharged. A slew of wireless charge pads have been released recently that offer a great alternative to hunting around the room searching for empty electrical sockets. Wireless charge pads, “mats” that wirelessly recharge your electronic devices, are just becoming available on the market. These mats work slightly differently from each other, but basically your iPod or Blackberry begins to charge when its external electrical contacts touch the electrodes on the surface of the charging pad. An all-in-one device like this makes it easy for guests to get ready for the following day, eliminates the need to travel with a multitude of cords, and is one less electronic device that occupies a wall jack. 

Central Controls 
Guestroom designers often take their cues from home design trends, and one rising trend that the industry should not ignore is the integration and automation of media and ambient controls. Software has been recently developed that centralizes a home’s media, lights, and security controls. To help guests avoid the tireless exercise of figuring out the multiple switches and controls in a guestroom, the hospitality industry should take heed of this award-winning technology. While at this point there isn’t an all-encompassing system available for guestrooms, several types of centralized controls and different styles are currently on the market. These systems merge voice, video, data, and environmental controls on a vivid touch screen phone. Full colour, interactive menus with pictures can also be displayed on the unit. Other hospitality suppliers are offering switch systems for guestrooms that house the controls for lighting, drapes, and temperature on one panel. In the not too distant future, central controls will be integrated with voice recognition software so that when the guest enters the room, voice commands will perform these functions. 

Back-of-the-House Efficiencies
New innovations are also helping back-of-the-house operations. Robotic floor cleaners can be set to work on their own while the housekeeper takes care of the rest of the room. Automated minibars can also be a help to staff. The new wave of guestroom refrigerators are energy efficient, have sensing capabilities, real-time posting, expiration date management, and perpetual inventory control. Some can be integrated with the hotel’s guest management programs, or even inform the front desk if a guest, who has checked out, has left personal medication in the minibar. 
Furnishing your guestrooms with user-friendly devices will enable a guest to feel at home, and make his stay more enjoyable. Another plus for the hotel is that these technologies can be used as additional revenue streams for the enterprise. 

Frank Wolfe, CAE, is the CEO of Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP). For more information about HFTP, log on to www.hftp.org.