by Brianna Crandall — June 13, 2016 — MACH Energy, a provider of energy and water management software services and solutions, recently announced the results of what the company says is one of the largest national surveys to date of hotel and lodging professionals on energy and water management efforts.
The poll reached out to over 5,000 industry professionals, and the responses exposed significant opportunities to expand energy and water efficiency awareness as well as adoption of energy and water management best practices. Meanwhile, hotel and lodging professionals seek to improve overall guest experience and the bottom line, says the company.
Of primary concern to MACH Energy in conducting the survey was to specifically gauge the operational depth and diversity of methods used by hotel teams in running their properties efficiently. Companies surveyed represented a full asset range, including luxury, casino, historical, boutique, economy, and extended-stay properties.
While 61% of respondents reported their hotels ran a sustainability program, the success of these programs remained unclear — 42% of those with programs did not know if their program was achieving savings, 29% of respondents did not have a program, and another 7% were unaware if a program existed.
Wei-En Tan, vice president of research, MACH Energy, commented:
Despite many hotels proclaiming sustainability initiatives, there is an incredible opportunity to expand the adoption of affordable energy and water management solutions. Deployment of energy and water management systems, in particular, would provide immediate bottom-line improvements to teams looking to decrease operations costs, and improve their standing with guests, which will enhance revenue per available room (RevPAR).
Among respondents who had implemented energy and water efficiency and sustainability measures, 80% listed cost reduction as their primary motivator, followed by interests or requirements of guests (39%) and ENERGY STAR scores or LEED requirements (30%). Little variation was seen by job title, with C-level executives, hotel owners, asset managers, general managers, regional directors, operations managers, engineering managers, and sustainability directors universally stressing the importance of cost savings in describing energy priorities.
Additional survey takeaways include:
- 70% of respondents rely on operational improvements to reduce energy and water expenses, while 47% opt for capital-intensive projects such as occupancy sensors.
- While 92% of respondents knew the general sizes of their common areas, 30% did not know the utility costs tied to the common areas, showing areas for improvement in reducing usage.
- Only 30% of respondents reported using an energy management system (EMS) to reduce energy and water costs.
- For survey participants who reported using an EMS to improve operational efficiency, 79% said reduced costs were their favorite feature, followed by real-time monitoring capabilities (55%) and ease in tracking variance and budgets (45%).
Jon Moeller, CEO, MACH Energy, concluded:
The hotel and lodging industry has made incredible strides to address sustainability concerns and to take advantage of the associated cost and time savings and improved guest experience. Our team has worked hand in hand with some of the most progressive building teams to integrate energy management programs and make their job easier, and we look forward to bringing low-cost, high-impact EMS solutions to the rest of the industry as it embraces the value creation in energy and water management.
The complete report is available to download from the company’s Web site upon brief registration.
Also visit the MACH Energy Web site to learn about the company’s CRETech energy and water management solutions for commercial real estate property managers, operators, engineers, and owners. With some of the nation’s most iconic buildings under management, MACH says it counts hundreds of commercial, REIT, hotel, and corporate building owners as customers encompassing hundreds of millions of square feet of properties across the country.
