Keeping pace with the times means hotels today offer technological bells and whistles to attract web-savvy customers. Gigi Onag reports.

We take for granted that front-desk staff in hotels worldwide already know our room number, check-in and check-out details, along with other information, when we give our names upon arrival. We’re so used to the light automatically switching on the minute we insert the key card in the wall slot. And our expectations of technology-assisted convenience climb even higher with each passing year.

The days are long gone when the technology used in hotels was unseen and confined to back-of-the-house operations – largely in the property management system. But in the last 15 years or more, the phase of development and adoption of new technologies have accelerated at an unprecedented rate that no industry has been left untouched.

Today’s business traveller cannot fail to see the overwhelming amount of technology at their disposal in the guestrooms and other areas of their favourite property. Staff in the dining outlets carry PDAs to take orders, while conference and banquet spaces are equipped with the latest audio-visual facilities and public areas are enabled for wireless internet access.

It’s no secret that hotels in this day and age use technology to introduce new services, and at the same time improve existing ones, especially at customer touchpoints. These innovations are mostly geared toward business travellers.

At the Hilton Beijing, for instance, those staying on Executive Floors can now avail of its printer-on service. This wireless printing service allows guests to get any document off their laptops at anytime either at their rooms or at the executive lounge.

Hilton Beijing has set up a website where guests can upload files after keying in a private print code. The guests will then have to collect their printouts in the Executive Lounge. The service is free for the first 10 pages (black and white) with succeeding pages being charged at CNY10 (US$1.47) each.

“We are giving great attention to the technology available in our MICE facilities which have been proven to be a significant attraction to the business travellers around the globe,” says hotel general manager Michael Nagel.

Meanwhile, Terence Ronson, managing director of Pertlink Limited, observes that hotel guests have come to expect the availability of certain technologies as “a given”.

“The higher its star rating, a hotel tends to provide more in-depth tech experience. Amenities range from IP phones with colour screen, beverage-making facilities, electronic safe, curtain controllers, printers and fax machines, hi-definition television to hand-held remotes to control air-conditioning, lights and in-room entertainment. Technology helps differentiate and support the brand standards that hotels need to have,” he adds.

Pertlink Limited is a technology consultant and provider that specialises in the hotel industry. Its portfolio includes boutique and international hotels across Asia, particularly China and Hongkong. Its latest project is installing the IT systems in the soon-to-launch, Kempinski-managed Tangula Luxury Trains that will run from Beijing to Lhasa.

“We will mimic all the same creature comforts one would expect in a fixed five-star hotel. We will provide satellite TV, video and music on demand, IP telephony, multimedia connectivity, wireless internet access, RFID (radio frequency identification) door locks and much more,” he adds.

The high-powered amenities available in hotels today are a result of the unrelenting progress in the IT sector. As new technologies become cheaper and easier to install, they quickly find applications in the hotel industry and many of them find their way in guestrooms and in the hotel’s front-of-house operations – in areas where they have direct touch points with guests.

Normally, the degree to which IT is chosen and deployed very much depends on the hotel brand, the location and the application required, meaning whether the property is a casino, a downtown business-class property or a resort.

“Macau is, of course, going full steam ahead with development. The hotels are spending copious amounts on technology for their casino and gaming systems, but they scale back for the rooms simply because they want guests in the casino, not in their rooms enjoying the in-room entertainment,” Ronson notes.

This observation holds true for W Hongkong which opened its doors last month. A healthy dose of high tech around the hotel certainly helps it achieve its brand image.

“Featuring the highest quality and level of technological offerings is essential to W Hongkong’s delivery of the brand’s signature Whatever/Whenever service philosophy and culture.

“Our focus on providing technological efficiency and a multiplex for the senses results in the creation of those truly memorable experiences – whether in the boardroom, the guestroom, or within a gala event – that contribute to our connecting emotionally with our guests. Ours is a unique combination of substance and style in the city’s most important new commercial and finance district,” says Matthew Jung, director of marketing, W Hongkong.

With newly built hotels being more aggressive in putting advanced systems that will support sophisticated amenities and new service features, there is heavy pressure on existing hotels to upgrade their systems to remain competitive.

“In Hongkong, we will see a new Ritz-Carlton, a W Hotel and a Swire-backed hotel in Pacific Place. There are also a couple of boutique hotels that have opened.

“I know some hotels are looking to revamp their existing technologies as they are lagging behind in sought-after amenities,” Ronson says, adding, “Being late is not always a bad thing, you can see what others have done and you can re-shape your designs.”

BANYAN TREE PHUKET

COUNTRY: Thailand

TECH HIGHLIGHTS: Free Wi-Fi access and the latest entertainment system.

Mood lighting to create the right ambience both inside and outside around the wading pool.

An interior occupancy sensor automatically switches on the light between the master bedroom and the master bathroom when it detects a person in the hallway.

With a push of a button, the shower room is converted into a steam room with temperature set at 43.3ºC.

WHERE IS IT? Double Pool Villas

X-FACTOR: Renowned for its “floating bedroom”, the Double Pool Villas (living room pictured above) take indulgence to new heights.

EMIRATES PALACE HOTEL

COUNTRY: UAE – Abu Dhabi

TECH HIGHLIGHTS: Every guest has full command of all in-room gizmos – lights, air-conditioning and the entertainment system – via a touch-screen remote control.

State-of-the-art technology in all meeting and function rooms. Each is fully equipped with a projector, motorised drop-down screen, plasma screens, microphones, audio-visual systems, wireless and wire data systems, sound system, videoconferencing system, IP camera and broadcast camera connectivity.

WHERE IS IT? All guestrooms, all meeting and function rooms

X-FACTOR: This iconic landmark in Abu Dhabi is pure opulence, heavily edged by technologically advanced amenities.

HILTON KUALA LUMPUR

COUNTRY: Malaysia

TECH HIGHLIGHTS: Level Seven, the hotel’s meetings and conventions space, says goodbye to the standard retractable partitions. The venue has what it calls “switch-able” glass that can change its appearance between opaque and clear. With a switch of a button, the frosted glass transforms into a clear glass panel. Used as wall partitions that divide the space into three suites, these glass panels also help regulate daylight transmission and can be converted into a flat screen for video and powerpoint presentations.

WHERE IS IT? Level Seven

X-FACTOR: A novel residential-style multi-event venue – a warm communal space for business meetings in a non-competitive setting.

PULLMAN BANGKOK KING POWER

COUNTRY: Thailand

TECH HIGHLIGHTS: Fully wired connectivity lounge where workstations are loaded with Microsoft’s productivity and online software. The lounge offers secure access to USB keys, MP3 players, external hard disks and other portable devices.

The hotel has a Meeting Matrix system that gives guests a 3D view of available conference and function rooms online, where they can perform virtual room setup. The system also accepts requests for rental of equipment prior to a meeting.

WHERE IS IT? Business centre/meeting and banqueting

X-FACTOR: An upscale hotel designed for the needs of business travellers.

ROYAL PLAZA HOTEL

COUNTRY: Hongkong

TECH HIGHLIGHTS: Wireless internet access outside the hotel. Partnering with a local ISP, the 693-room hotel offers SmarTone Vodafone Mobile Broadband to guests upon request. With a portable USB modem, guests can connect to the SmarTone Vodafone mobile network and go online anywhere in Hongkong – running email, IM, video and other online applications on their laptops. Fees include a device rental deposit of HK$2,000/US$256 (refundable in full upon return of the USB modem) and daily rental rate of HK$150 (US$19.20) for a 24-hour internet access.

WHERE IS IT? Outside the hotel

X-FACTOR: Around-the-clock online connection anytime, anywhere.

SHANGRI-LA

COUNTRY: Singapore

TECH HIGHLIGHTS: Newly installed high-density videoconferencing facilities in its function rooms. Provided by TANDBERG, the VC system features true CD-quality audio and superior video quality without network interruptions. The system allows meeting participants to have an interactive meeting with powerful live presentations. It is easy to use with its one-step PC plug-in or local area network connection. What’s more, the TANDBERG Precision camera is designed specifically for videoconferencing and has unique features such as voice-activated camera positioning.

WHERE IS IT? Function rooms

X-FACTOR: Staying at the forefront of technology to deliver Signature Events.

THE SHILLA SEOUL

COUNTRY: South Korea

TECH HIGHLIGHTS: Guestrooms on the Executive Floors are geared for business travellers with free Wi-Fi internet access and, knowing how expensive overseas mobile charges can be, their very own mobile phone unit with a local number that guests can use inside and outside the hotel during the duration of their stay.

Meeting rooms are equipped with plasma display panel, conference telephones, LCD projector and individual wired and wireless internet access. Of particular note are two boardrooms fitted with a four-way videoconference system that can accommodate up to 26 people.

WHERE IS IT? Executive Floor guestrooms and meeting rooms

X-FACTOR: With Samsung as its parent company, the hotel is a technological powerhouse.

W

COUNTRY: Hongkong

TECH HIGHLIGHTS: Standard guestrooms have wired and wireless broadband access, 42-inch Sharp LCD TV, a built-in tub-side 15-inch LCD TV, DVD/CD player, built-in 5.1 surround-sound system, multi-line Nortel IP phones with teleconferencing capabilities and iPod docks.

The grand ballroom can be converted into three soundproof studios. It has three 180-inch Draper Rollermatic projector screens and 250-inch screen with two Sanyo PLC-XF60 and two PLC-XV46 projectors and 18 ceiling speakers among others.

WHERE IS IT? All guestrooms, banqueting and functions rooms

X-FACTOR: Trendy and innovative designs meet cutting-edge technology.

MAJOR IT TRENDS IN THE HOTEL INDUSTRY

The hotel industry’s attitude towards the use of IT has undergone a great evolution in the past several years. Pertlink Limited managing director Terence Ronson notes that hotels worldwide have started switching to a converged network that allows voice, data and video to be carried across a single pipe. Not only is it cost-efficient, a converged network will allow the hotel to make upgrades to improve guest services or introduce new ones.

OTHER TRENDS

• Deployment of more high-definition TV screens and the distribution of high-definition content in guestrooms, as well as providing connectivity for guests to use their own multimedia devices
  
• Scanning of passports and ID cards
• Increased data security especially in the handling of personal data and credit card information
• Integration of internet-based services into the TV and phone systems – voice-over internet like the enormously popular Skype, instant messaging applications such as MSN, ICQ and QQ
• Use of digital signage for business meetings and corporate events
• Energy conservation and greener buildings; smart controls for air-conditioning and heating units