When one gets a light bulb moment, it’s a moment of discovery—a great idea. In the case of Quest Hotel & Conference Center Cebu’s Energy Conservation Program, it’s a bright idea that literally concerns light bulbs, among many other things.
Quest Hotel Cebu internally launched its Energy Conservation Program in mid-April, initiated by both the hotel’s security department manager, Leandro Paralisan CSP, and has since been in full swing. Even at the program’s early stages, the results are manifesting itself in significant savings in operational spending.
The aim of the initiative is to continually lower the consumption and costs of utilities such as electricity, water and liquefied petroleum gas without affecting services and guest comfort.
Some of the program’s guidelines include setting the room to 22 degrees Celsius when unoccupied (21 for corner rooms), keeping curtains closed to prevent direct sunlight from heating up the room, keeping the function rooms’ doors closed to keep the cool air in, plus vigilance in conserving water, in various ways, including adamant maintenance measures to ensure zero leaks. As well, dimming lights to the minimum needed during the day without affecting ambient lighting, or switching them off entirely, when not in use. Many of these efforts might indeed be very basic or common practices, but the key is in maintenance and consistency.
The program is monitored by a team of ‘marshals’ through thorough, daily walkthroughs, with a checklist that includes guest floor areas, guest rooms, meeting rooms, restaurant and dining areas, the kitchen areas, front of the house, back offices, external public areas, and monitoring for wastage or misappropriation. In some areas, including guest floors, some utilities, including hallway AC units are also mandatorily shutdown after 10PM, during low occupancy.
Analysis on utility bills of each department is then conducted to identify areas for further energy consumption reduction, or to track progress to be able to develop further action plans if needed.
As the property is looking at this program to run long-term, planning and testing for the hotel’s shift to the use of LED lighting, are also currently underway.
One of the other desired effects of this program is also to develop a better sense of discipline among management and staff to be energy efficient and environmentally aware, beyond the work place, as Quest Hotel & Conference Center maintains the mentality that it does not need Earth Hour to be environmentally conscious, but rather to make it a way of life, and a way of operation.
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