These are the rather daunting words of the chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Dr Rajendra Pachauri.
If the words of Dr Pachauri don’t wake you out of your stupor, not much else would have the ability to. Preservation is the need of the hour and with hotels being among the largest consumers of energy, they need to sit up and pay rapt attention.
Energy conservation, waste management, STP (sewage treatment plant), treatment and disposal of effluents, rain harvesting systems, solar systems, controlling emission of carbon dioxide – these are all green initiatives which hotels across the country and beyond are adopting.
But how effective and efficient are they? As noise over environment issues reaches a new high, HotelierIndia.com investigates if the hospitality sector is truly going green?
Walk The Talk
Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces adopts EARTH (Environment Awareness & Renewal at Taj Hotels), a project which reiterates the conscious effort to commit to energy conservation and environmental management.
EARTH has received certification from Green Globe, an international benchmarking and certification programme for the travel and tourism industry, based on the Agenda of 21 principles for Sustainable Development endorsed by 182 Heads of State at the United Nations Rio Earth Summit in 1992.
“This is being done across all hotels and 67 hotels have been certified to date. Eleven hotels have received the silver certification,” explains H N Srinivas – Sr. Vice President, Human Resources, Taj Hotels.
The Taj believes that green initiatives are real and today there is a direct correlation between how humans behave and climate change. According to him all the upcoming hotels at the Taj, will be LEED compliant.
At The Park Hyderabad, India’s first LEED Gold certified hotel, designing and planning is such that it maintains low outdoor heat absorption, high acoustic levels, minimal emission levels, energy-efficient lighting, and optimum utilisation of
natural lighting.
“There are two aspects to going green in today’s world,” says Anurag Bajaj, General Manager, The Park, Hyderabad.
“First is to abide by the laws enforced to save the environment and second to be socially conscious about the same. Most people adhere to the first and being market leaders by being socially conscious is what distinguishes a profit focused business from a socially responsible organization.”
Offering a tangible example of this social responsibility, Alok Verma, General Manager, Fortune Select Exotica Mumbai, says “we have installed low-flow showerheads and sink aerators and low-flow toilets and toilet-tank fill diverters. We are in the process of installing window film to lower heating and cooling loads and reduce glare in guestrooms and we’re also planning to purchase “Energy Star” appliances wherever possible.”
Confirming that hotels are indeed putting their green foot forward, Desiccant Rotors International sales head for the western region Sumant Padhi, says “Hotels are increasingly employing green technologies especially for HVAC for energy optimization. We are working with hotels like Oberoi Hotels and Resorts and Grand Hyatt hotels among other upscale brands and have seen much of the demand coming from the luxury segment as they can afford the higher initial costs for
such products.”
According to him the Green trend is particularly visible in high-end hotels, but will trickle down to other hotel segments too with growing awareness as well as alternative technologies getting cheaper.
He adds: “Going green is not just fashionable but necessary in today’s world of hospitality and hotels are adopting eco-friendly technologies for waste reduction, water and energy conservation and other environment friendly practices.”
Desiccant Rotors deals in products like Energy Recovery Ventilators (ERV), Treated Fresh Air units (TFA), CO2 Sensors, and evaporative cooling modules for AHUs and chillers.
An initiative worth mentioning here is that of the Heritage Madurai, which takes its leftover food and sends it to a local
piggery farm.
Courtyard by Marriott has a companywide ECHO programme (Environmentally Conscious Hospitality Operations) in place to provide guidance in five key areas: Water and energy conservation, clean air initiatives, waste management, clean-up campaigns and wildlife preservation.
The Courtyard by Marriott, Pune Hinjewadi follows what they call ‘Spirit to Preserve.’ “It’s not only about tree plantations, but a lot more like waste management where we are doing a sample project wherein wet garbage from the kitchen is being stored in a small tray and enzymes have been sprayed on it to convert it into manure,” says Deepak Manocha, General Manager, Courtyard by Marriott, Pune Hinjewadi.
And backing this preservation by hotels, Rajeev Jain, director of Windorz India, a provider of building curtain wall and structural glazing systems, says “More and more hotels are making environment friendly choices as it is the need of the day.
For instance to maintain indoor ambient temperature in hotel building, hoteliers and designers are using energy efficient glass in their external façade and windows, the choice of glass depending on the specifications as well as aesthetic requirements, which is an important consideration in hospitality.
Though such products are more expensive, due to their energy efficiency features have almost become a must for hotel buildings. One can say it is a mixed bag, while some hotel properties think of it as a great marketing gimmick, there are a few who take the ‘environmental-friendly’ tag very seriously.”
An official spokesperson for Duravit India says that besides its bath products it also offers an eco-friendly range of water saving urinals and dual flush water closets.
“Luxury hotels and wellness properties are keen customers for our water saving bath products and fittings, though luxury and mid-segment hotels are investing more in these systems.
But budget hotels too are showing interest towards water efficient systems. DLF is one of our customers among many others to opt for water efficient shower systems, dual flush toilets and other similar products.”
The spokesperson added: “Though the initial cost of eco-friendly fittings is high compared to similar regular fittings hotels have begun to adopt them for their long term benefits and savings and also because hotel guests have become more sensitive to environmental issues and prefer to use sustainable products.”
Ruchika Mehta, Director Marketing Communication, Shangri-La New Delhi, whose property has an ISO 14001:2004 says, “Our endeavors are to advocate comprehensive standardised policies in providing quality products and services, as it commits to address environmental concerns as part of the business ethics.
We do tend to change the temperature settings on the capital plant depending on ambient temperatures. However we need to upgrade our technologies to maximise the use of energy.”
The Courtyard by Marriott, Hyderabad is the only hotel company to be using bio diesel and have installed a new boiler this year that helps save over 120 liters of water per day.
Shailesh Kumar, Director of Engineering, Goa Marriott Resort adds, “besides the green measures in our operational aspects, we also periodically undertake various activities throughout the year like beach cleaning (since the resort is located close to the beach), tree plantation drives, pollution control checks for employee vehicles etc.
However Deepak Bhosale, Manager Corporate Communications, Ispat Industries, manufacturers of steel building materials, offers a different point of view.
He says, “The green label is more of a marketing gimmick for most hotels as many are still reluctant to make huge investments in eco friendly technologies. It is the luxury and mid-segment hotels that are investing in some environment friendly practices and very few hotels have adopted green technological solutions and products in its entirety.”
But Bhosale feels hopeful that the trend will catch on with the hospitality industry sooner or later.
He adds “As most hotels in India were built at the time, these technologies were not available, so such properties can only go for retro-fitting such as energy efficient lighting, eco friendly interior furnishings etc. however upcoming hotels are now looking towards getting LEED certifications for their buildings and incorporating sustainable construction materials and systems right from the building planning stage.”
Raj Menon Country Manager InterfaceFLOR India agrees. “The eco friendly trend among hotels will definitely increase in the coming years especially with growing awareness among travelers who are increasingly making environmentally sensitive choices.
The price factor is a constraint for budget and mid segment hotels in incorporating eco friendly technologies but simple green practices such as recycling of carpets, paper or bio degradable waste is not hard to adopt and many hotels are going that way, even promoting such activities through their marketing. The green trend is a marketing tool but hotels are also making sincere efforts in opting for green choices.”
The Marketing Manager – Brand, Communications at Saint Gobain Glass India, Dinesh Kumar too is optimistic about hotels’ green initiatives and feels hotels are serious about green products and practices and it is not just a passing phase.
He says “We have seen most hotels opting for eco-friendly alternatives as they understand that such products are cost effective in the long run.
However, budget hotels though, would like to go for eco friendly alternatives. Sometimes high initial cost becomes a hindrance, but in the hospitality industry green is definitely the way to go and green hotels as they claim are practicing sustainable ways.”
Training
Hospitality being people-centric, it is but natural to start at the hotel in terms of employee training to incorporate the organisation’s green ethos.
“We take them through the concept during their induction period to get a holistic understanding of the initiative. We encourage our employees to be consistent in their efforts to follow green measures by nominating an employee as the ‘Green Ambassador’ of the month as well as share green tips every month,” says Bajaj.
According to Bajaj each Oberoi hotel has a green team that comprises of the heads of departments and conceptualises and implements innovative ideas to conserve energy and preserve the environment. Also, training is done at all levels of the organisation from top management to line staff.
“Trained manpower is available in the property for operation and maintenance of the treatment and disposal facilities,” says Verma.
“We have something called as the Daily Smart Starts which is a small document containing all the relevant and important information which is discussed in the morning meeting and at the beginning of each shift.
Each day we mention one environment friendly habit and encourage associates to follow it in their daily life. And what is really amazing to see, is the number of volunteers we get when we plan a green activity, so its participation and the Spirit to Serve which is inculcated so beautifully into each Marriott associate,” says Manocha.
At Ista Hyderabad, all the employees of the hotel are responsible towards energy conservation and collectively form the hotel Eco team.
“Each department has an environmental coordinator and this initiative is led by the Chief Engineer and as a practice the environmental coordinators meet each month with a prime responsibility to check whether all the environmental policies are being complied with. If any deviation is observed it is immediately brought to the notice of the departmental head,” says Jaideep Anand, General Manager, Ista Hyderabad. The Taj does not just have a module incorporated in its induction but also has an e-learning module on environmental issues.
Cost Benefit Analysis
Going green is easier said than done. Not only is green technology and material more expensive, the tangible benefits are hard to see.
Green investments are not always the easiest to justify when it comes to revenue or profitability but the benefits are long-term.
It is really a business call and works great when there is the support of everybody involved in the project undertaken. “The overall budget cost for such ventures are generally 5% to 8% higher than that of constructing another five star hotel. But the returns involved in the long run are higher. We at the Park would be saving 32% of energy annually,” admits Bajaj.
However not all hotels allocate a dedicated budget as contradictory as it may sound. At Fortune Exotica there is no fixed budget allocated to green measures as such and cost implication and benefit is measured in terms of each of the green initiatives.
At Heritage Madurai, approximately INR 50,000 to INR60,000 is spent monthly on green initiatives. The Taj has two kinds of budget allocations for its green measures.
One is a fixed amount and one is a variable based as a percent of the Gross Operating Profit. Again, the tangibility factor comes into play when it becomes possible to measure the consumption of fuel and electricity in a leisure property versus the investment for a brighter future which is the actual benefit the organization can reap without hampering anything involved.
At the Park Hyderabad, power-consumption is lower by 30% and potable water consumption has come down by 40%. The Oberoi Group’s hotels assist authorities in increasing forests with about 2000 trees being planted in the past year. It is also challenging to rationalise the cost of green initiatives.
Agrees Verma: “It’s really challenging, data collection and documentation is major activity, benefit assumption versus actualisation is a difficult task.”
Srinith De Silva, General Manager, Heritiage Madurai differs in his opinion.
“The results are tangible. Based on the systems we follow we find that our hotel has many advantages , here are a few – the temperature at our hotel is always a few degrees cooler than in the surrounding areas, solar water heaters help us reduce dependence on electricity, high quality insulation in all our rooms and service blocks helps us reduce energy consumption. Going green takes a lot of pre planning, but the money and time invested are well spent.”
It is however very clear that serious green thinkers also need to spend on systems and the ROI will come only after 7-8 years.
For many hotels however, it is not always about the investment and the return on investment. Marriott has become the first hospitality management company to join the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Climate Leaders program.
As a Climate Leader, the Marriott made a commitment to reduce greenhouse gases by 40,000 tonnes annually. Marriott surpassed its goal in 2006 and reduced its greenhouse gases by 70,000 tonnes. Marriott recently set a new goal to reduce greenhouse gases by one million tonnes over a ten-year period.
“It is also important as an organisation, to give back to the society,” admits Mehta.
“Hence if we evaluate such green efforts with cost, they would never seem important. Though at this stage we may not see any returns coming our way despite the efforts that we are putting in, in this respect. Over the long run what we will get is something rich and worthwhile and our doings of today may seem more like an investment.”
Ty Collins, General Manager, Hyderabad Marriott Hotel & Convention Centre, “this year alone we have invested in the blast mitigation film, a new boiler, and upgraded our laundry system. These capital investments help in gradually decreasing the your spends over the long term.”
The Goa Marriott maintains a balance by working on the ROI model for all the measures in place, as well as invests extra resources wherever required. For instance the organic waste converter came at a pricey INR20 lakhs, but the bigger picture proves that it is money well spent.
Oliver Kahf, General Manager, Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel says, “Adopting green initiatives will eventually boost the bottom line; with more and more corporations and companies opting for the green meeting package; cost of production will come down.
Right now, however the focus is on promoting environment friendly processes and doing our bit in contributing towards conservation rather than profits.
The return on investment is void in present times; but it increases your market share by providing the guest with a choice. Profits or return on investments is not the main focus.”
These initiatives often pay for themselves. “We have a green initiative one in every sector but on an approximate, 20% of our budget is set aside for green initiatives,’ says Anand.
Ista Hyderabad intends to reduce carbon foot print per employee by about 20% in a year’s time.
The Orchid in Mumbai has recently started using paper made from tetra-pack waste for back offices reducing the amount of fresh paper being used by employees for internal purposes.
After replacing some incandescent bulbs with LED lights in the lobby level, The Orchid is saving 1336 units of energy every month and 12.2 tonnes of Carbon Dioxide emissions annually.
Nitin More, manager marketing, Nitco tiles, which has an entire range of eco friendly flooring products, makes another point.
“For city hotels aesthetics is of prime importance and no one wants to compromise on that aspect such as using imported Italian marbles rather than locally available stones/marbles, hotel chains would go for natural or eco friendly products in properties such as resorts where natural and eco friendly ambience can be used as a marketing tool.”
He adds that the green trend is definitely there in hospitality but still is more of a fashion statement than a real thing.
He says “Luxury and mid segment hotels are the ones that are adopting environment friendly products though in some properties only, while city hotels focus more on cost-cutting methods than on supporting sustainable practices.
It is also to do with the guest profile as the guests at luxury hotels would expect the best, so hotels too would not compromise on the materials though would flaunt the towel/sheet re-use programs and eco friendly paper stationary to justify green label.”
Madan Singi, Sales Head Western Region, Merion Industries, a manufacturer and exporter of decorative laminates and panel products expresses similar sentiments.
He says “Eco labels for green hotels are more of a marketing and promotion device. Hotel establishments lack commitment on their part and convincing them to pay higher costs for green alternative products is difficult.
They would go for natural alternatives only if it is important for their overall hotel design and décor. But for resorts and wellness centers they would opt for bamboo furniture and recycled stone or glass to give guests the feel of nature. Also how many hotels actually are working on water recycling or waste recycling is doubtful”.
He adds: “The fault lies also with the vendors as they do not push such products with enthusiasm due to low financial gains and would rather focus on products which are popular or in demand with customers.
Also needed are guest awareness and participation programs by the hotel management so that they can appreciate the eco friendly aspects of the property rather than just aesthetics. To make the green trend successful hotels as well as service providers will have to promote tangible benefits of green products and practices rather than financial benefits.”
Guest Connections
Another challenge with hotels is in the actual implementation of green measures that can be only done with the cooperation of guests using the facilities.
Hence hoteliers use communications as a tool to educate guests on what they can do to reduce their carbon footprint without compromising on any aspect of luxury. Hotels primarily use posters, tent cards and personal interaction by staff to drive the message to guests.
“We have showcased the lifestyle of a typical village in South India inside the sprawling hotel property for guests and customers visiting the hotel to understand that we not only believe in green measures but practice the same as exemplified in the activities created in the village,” says Silva.
“Most of our guest communication collaterals deliver environmental messages,” says Mehta.
“We do understand that every guest may not hold the same beliefs as us. Hence our approach is subtle and more of an inspirational take than assertive. It’s all about perception whether you call it a fad or something that you do because you want to see a better tomorrow.
An experience of paradise is what we deem to give each of our guests each time that they visit us and while doing so, we simply cannot rule-out the major impact that the environment makes in this respect. In the end if every little contribution enables us to achieve our vision then we will endeavour to do so,” she adds.
Another way that has seen success is actually letting the guest know that their efforts at conservation are recognised.
“One of our primary methods of spreading environmental awareness amongst our guests is through a magazine which is kept in all the 245 rooms of the hotel.
The hotel also has a linen reuse program for guests who stay for more than one night. A guest who reuses their linen is given a certificate along with a gift for reusing their linen.
Each room in the hotel also has a master control panel to control the lighting and temperature of the room that has an eco-button which when pressed, increases the temperature of the room by two degrees without affecting guest comfort.
Guests who press the eco-button are given a certificate upon checkout which appreciates their efforts towards reducing energy,” says Akshay Gavai, Environment Officer, The Orchid, Mumbai.
Umesh Tandon, Sales Manager Everstyle Hotel Supplies India, suppliers of tableware brands like Robbe & Berking , Eisch , Urban Bar and Fuerstenberg, says “It mostly depends on how far the hotel management would go with eco friendly initiatives. Cost benefits and guest preferences are the top two reasons why hotels opt for ‘green’ practices.
Luxury hotel chains are the ones focusing more on green products as they are more attuned to international trends and the clientele too is more aware and inclined to make environment friendly choices. However, what is seen are hotels compromising on quality due to high costs”.
Giving an example he says, “We have introduced Chilewich basket weave placemats which are made of durable, easy to clean textiles that can help restaurants reduce both energy and laundry costs, but due to high initial costs, hoteliers would rather look for cheaper alternatives which might not be cost effective in the long run.”
Vijay KS, manager sales, Aesthetix Solutions, vendors for integrated AV technology, HVAC, lighting and security systems agrees “Green label for hotels is only partly true as it promotes more of guest participation initiatives such as eco friendly stationary, towel reuse, and plastic recycling bins for marketing of hotels, but for back of the house operations such as HVAC, lighting management and hot water recycling, many hotels are reluctant to implement green technologies because of the costs involved.
It is the luxury segment hotels that are opting for energy efficient systems and advanced technologies such as use of key cards to turn on the power in the room or the latest RFID cards.”
He adds “It also depends on the architect and designers of the property, if they incorporate eco friendly systems during the construction stage.
Sometimes due to budget constraints customers go for cheaper alternatives, which might claim to be eco friendly, but are not. That’s the sort of green labeling the public is objecting to.”
In all what hotels are doing is being increasingly scrutinised not just by the environmentalists but also by organisations like the Indian Green Building Council.
As S Srinivas, Principal Counsellor says, “hotels are uniquely positioned to make a difference as far as the environment is concerned as they can use automation and building technologies that help conserve energy, water and recycle and reduce carbon footprint.
When we started 10 years ago, hotels was a sector that was most challenging to convince to go green. But that has changed oday and we have hotels implementing this in spirit.
ITC Gardenia at Bangalore transplanted 100-year old trees which is commendable.”
