Archana Sharma – New Delhi
Looking at creating innovative solutions to reduce the investment in rooms, Laurent Coene, hospitality global solution architect, Schneider Electric Asia Pacific, stated, “We are looking at reducing the complications regarding the technology present in hotel rooms and ease the functioning process by cutting down the functions for the operators.” He believes that such innovations will not only save time, but also the installation cost. Highlighting the global scenario of the hospitality industry, Coene stated, “The hospitality sector is growing globally amongst which the Indian and Chinese markets are showing a faster growth even if the US market remains strong in terms of capacity, new buildings and construction.” Elaborating on the various innovations by Schneider for the India market, Coene informed about the various energy efficiency services, loadshedding schemes, remote energy management solutions, room control for lighting, temperature and blinds etc. Also with his experience in the sustainability department, Coene added that though international brands are becoming more sustainably aware and coming up with various programmes to enable the same across all their properties, there aren’t that many brands which are appointing a chief sustainability officer (CSO), which is essential for maintaining the brand as sustainable.
Talking about the global trend of retro fittings, Coene stated, “A lot of older properties are upgrading to retro fittings, and therefore we are looking at coming up with solutions that will upgrade the technology of the property without ripping the rooms apart.”