PLAZA Hotels rely on the intelligent energy management system better.energy to save energy. Yonca Yalaz, Managing Director of the PLAZA Hotel Group, talks about the use and aims of the smart heating control system in the hotels in this field report.
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In this blog, we take a look at the background to the decision in favour of the intelligent energy management system, what it all has to do with Green Globe certification and why Hotel City Zurich is simply delighted with the system.
About PLAZA Hotels
Founded in Heilbronn in 2002, the PLAZA Hotel Group now comprises almost 50 hotels with more than 6,500 rooms in the three- and four-star segment. From elegant beach hotels on the Baltic Sea to business hotels in the business district, the hotels are as diverse and multifaceted as the team of employees.
Enthusiasm for what they do takes centre stage. In addition to flat hierarchies, the PLAZA Hotel Group is always open to new ideas.
The hotel chain recently proved that innovation has a place in the hotels when it decided in favour of the intelligent energy management system better.energy. We spoke to Managing Director Yonca Yalaz about the use of better.energy in the hotels of the PLAZA Hotel Group and the goals she is pursuing with the system. Because in addition to saving energy, better.energy has a lot more to offer hotels.
Rising energy prices are a challenge for hotels
The PLAZA Hotelgroup’s hotels are also affected by rising energy costs. To counteract the high energy costs, energy is being saved in the hotels of the PLAZA Hotelgroup. The intelligent energy management system better.energy is an important component in this endeavour.
One of the first hotels in the chain to be equipped with the intelligent heating control system is the Best Western Hotel am Kastell. Among other things, the old thermostats on the radiators were replaced with wireless ones that automatically regulate the temperature in the hotel rooms with the help of better.energy.
Reducing energy consumption with intelligence
The intelligent energy management system better.energy regulates radiators automatically and so efficiently that hotels can reduce their energy consumption by up to 31 per cent. With an interface to the hotel’s PMS system, better.energy controls the heating based on occupancy.
This means that the system knows when a guest checks in and the hotel room needs to be heated. As soon as a guest checks out, better.energy automatically lowers the temperature to an efficient level. The intelligent heating control system controls the thermostats based on temperature limits that are individually set by the hotel.
This prevents the guest room from overheating from the outset, thus preventing unnecessary energy consumption or unoccupied rooms from cooling down too much. “We can also relieve the burden on staff by using the system, as manual regulation is no longer necessary and can be automated,” says Yonca Yalaz, Managing Director of PLAZA Hotelgroup GmbH.
As the temperature is controlled automatically, the radiator thermostats no longer need to be checked and turned down when a guest checks out. This means less work for the hotel staff. What’s more, if a guest or housekeeping forgets to turn down the thermostat when airing the room, better.energy recognises the open window and automatically lowers the temperature instead of using energy unnecessarily.
As the temperature is controlled automatically, the radiator thermostats no longer need to be checked and turned down when a guest checks out. This means less work for hotel staff.
What’s more, if a guest or housekeeping forgets to turn down the thermostat when airing the room, better.energy recognises the open window and automatically lowers the temperature instead of using energy unnecessarily.
LoRaWAN: Ideal for hotels
better.energy uses modern LoRaWAN wireless technology to transmit data between the system and the thermostats. With LoRaWAN, hotels benefit from simple installation and maintenance. In addition, no structural measures are necessary and no cables need to be laid.
“In further discussions, it became clear that this new technology was a better fit for our company,” says Ms Yalaz. Unlike other wireless technologies, such as Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, the devices in the hotel can communicate with each other over a distance of up to 500 metres.
In addition, hotels can equip and retrofit as many radiators with the smart thermostats as they wish. The system is easily scalable and can be extended to guest rooms, hotel restaurants, meeting rooms and other public areas in the hotel. This makes LoRaWAN in combination with better.energy the ideal solution for hotels in particular.
In addition, the data, for example the temperature setting, is transmitted so efficiently between the system and the thermostat that the battery life can be extended to up to ten years. This is not only more environmentally friendly, but also reduces staff workload.
The key to sustainable success
It’s not just the reduced energy consumption that makes the Managing Director happy. “As a company, we naturally also want to act more sustainably as a priority and also contribute to becoming more sustainable as a company through further measures in the near future.” The energy management system not only reduces energy consumption, but also CO2 emissions.
The intelligent system ensures that the hotels’ green footprint is more positive. The fact that no construction work or cables need to be laid also makes better.energy a sustainable alternative. The fact that less waste is produced due to the extended battery life is also a big plus for the hotel and the environment.
Energy savings expected at the end of the year
The energy-saving potential of better.energy in the hotel is very promising. In addition to the Best Western Hotel am Kastell, other hotels in the PLAZA Hotel Group are now being equipped with the intelligent heating control system. “We see it as a good decision to have started or entered into this project and are looking forward to being able to record energy savings at the end of the year.”