Top 15 hot hotel show products
Hotelier Middle East presents 15 of its favourite products found at The Hotel Show 2012 which took place in Dubai.
Indel B launches world’s first motion-activated minibar
Indel B has launched the first ever minibar which is triggered by motion in the room, to help save energy when not in use.
The minibar, K+++, switches off its cooling when guests enter the room as this period is when the minibar is most frequently used. It is then set to come back on after a period of time, resulting in an overall energy saving of around 87% compared to standard absorption minibars, according to the firm.
Michele Crociani, key account manager, hospitality, Indel B, said: “Every part of the hotel is engineered to save energy and reduce waste, except for minibars. It’s not enough to use a compression minibar, you have to still be innovative.”
He added: “A lot of hotels are still even using absorption models, but all homes have compression models, and there’s a reason for that. Yes, absorption used to be quieter, but our German-made compression models are now almost silent.”
Research by the company shows that the K+++ minibar range uses around 0.09kw every 24 hours, compared to 0.71kw for standard absorption models.
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Beau McClellan showcases range of modular chandeliers
Beau McClellan showcased a new range of modular chandeliers at The Hotel Show, designed to be an affordable solution for hotels wanting to make an impression.
The new designs combine a customised top plate, which then allows for hanging modules to be connected via jack plugs. “It’s like painting by numbers,” said Beau McClellan. “Hotels tell us what they want and we create the customised top plate, and then they plug in the modules.”
The components are available in four shapes, and during the daytime, when switched off, create a mirror effect, doubling the installation up as a piece of art.
“The way I have done it means that it can be a lot cheaper to produce and put together,” McClellan said. “It is to combat the recession.”
McClellan also unveiled a new shape of component at the show, soon to be available. The new design is modelled on a drop of water.
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Airstar unveils new lighting remote control technology
Airstar Space Lighting Middle East showcased its modular bar system, at The Hotel Show, and announced a remote control system which operates more than 1000 units at once.
The bar modules are cubes, and can be attached together to create a bar of any size, disassembled easily and can also be used as outdoor seats. They will be available in the region in the coming months.
Managing director Hicham Lalmi also announced the release of its new Kameleon remote control system, allowing the lighting in more than 1000 modules to be altered simultaneously, from brightness to colour.
“No one has ever done anything like this before. It looks absolutely fantastic when you have all of these lights and colours changing all at once, through a remote control,” Lalmi explained.
Each individual module can be altered to any colour, and lasts up to 20 hours on a single charge.
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Dubai Furniture Manufacturing
Dubai Furniture Manufacturing launched the new Choice Elite Box Top model from Serta, which is a turn-free mattress incorporating advanced comfort quilt and zoning in quilting technologies. Advanced comfort quilt blends convoluted layers of quilting in different ratios for different areas. There is a dense zone in the centre for additional spinal support, while layers of polyester wadding pass through mega foam for superb comfort.
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Caddie
The new Lotus trolley range from Caddie provides hotels with a simple, yet innovative, solution to the traditional chambermaid trolley. This sleek and modern update combines a sturdy steel frame with a thick outer layer of dense rubber, eliminating the common marks left on walls and doors from rough and hard edges. It also features add-on modules including a laundry bin, which can be detached and transported separately, removing the need for frequent transportation of the entire trolley. It also features a fifth, central castor, which helps with manoeuvrability, as well as a lockable roller shutter, allowing the trolley to be left with the knowledge that it is safe.
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Walküre Porzellanfabrik
This Dutch porcelain company has released a new teapot range designed to meet the trend of high quality, luxury teas. The new Thea teapots are available in two sizes and two designs – 0.5 litre and 1 litre, and smooth body or with rills. The filters used are glazed porcelain, allowing for no tainting of the natural taste of the tea, unlike common steel filters used in hotel restaurants and cafes.
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Falkenporzellan
Specialising in fine Bavarian porcelain, Falkenporzellan has released a number of new designs which keep one thing in mind – affordability. The company uses high-quality raw materials and hand painted gold and platinum motifs, but produces the tableware in such huge volumes that they can offer great value to customers. One of its latest designs, decorated with platinum, has just sold 65,000 units to Jumeirah at Etihad Towers, and the company is looking to these kinds of volumes on newly released designs to allow them to offer fantastic prices for incredible value.
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Prologix
Prologix has introduced the latest digital long range cordless phone system, the SP922 Pro from EnGenius, to the Middle East market. The system covers a radius of 5km, and allows for up to 90 simultaneous connections. This means that a cluster of hotels are afforded the clarity, flexibility and affordibility of a single cordless phone system. It is perfect for either a large resort or group of hotels within a compact area, and the system also has a frequency penetration of 12 floors, meaning that effectively, people can be up to 10km, and 24 storeys apart, and still be able to communicate.
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Chilewich
Chilewich has unveiled its latest fabric designs for the hospitality industry – lounge and bouclè. The two new designs are available in various colours, and are perfect for walls and flooring in many modern hotels. Bouclè has a rich texture, emulating fine knitwear, where lounge is reminiscent of traditional Japanese simplicity and minimalism. Also launched at the show was the company’s innovative backing, BioFelt, which is PVC-free and can be used with Velcro to keep tiles secure to the floor.
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Locatel
Locatel has released its latest set-top box, STB10, which combines all functions needed in hotel guest rooms into a small package. The new box features the Intel Atom processor, which has 1gb of RAM, meaning it is one of the most powerful on the market. The size has been reduced by removing the need for a fan in the system, as well as making some of the components optional add-ons, such as Bluetooth and wi-fi, which can both be integrated using USB dongles. It is bundled with Locatel’s Eclipse software.
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Teleadapt
The new MediaHub SL from Teleadapt brings you almost all of the functionality of its MediaHub HD big brother, which has been on the market since last year, but in a more streamlined, sleek and cost-effective offering. The new release still provides audio/video, PC, HDMI and USB connections in a wall-mounted package for easy accessibility, but loses the costly bluetooth connectivity. It is also a passive model, which means guests need to switch between inputs manually, but an add-on for auto-detection is available, as well as an iPod docking solution.
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AA Sons
AA Sons has launched Wilmax for the first time in the Middle East. The new English collection of fine porcelain brings high quality and clean, elegant looks at affordable prices. The pieces available are extremely thin, allowing for high translucency, yet still durable and great for heavy usage. They are tested for heat-resistance up to 300°C, and have a water absorption of less than 0.1%.
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Orient Creative Solutions LLC
Orient Creative Solutions brought its range of beautiful furniture to the show, which uses a bronzing technique on wood to recreate the look at a fraction of the cost, and weight. Using a LuminOre spray, which adds to the materials a layer of real metal, woods are instantly transformed into stylish and sophisticated pieces for use in high-end and luxury surroundings. The upholstery is also first-class, with a range of elegant cream finishes which have a subtle sparkle, or more traditional dark orange, purples and reds available on request.
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La Ric
La Ric was showing off its innovative and practical trolley system for manicures and pedicures. The trolley is a fantastic solution for remote makeovers, away from a hotel’s spa, with drawers and shelves which hold everything from moisturisers to nail varnishes. It also features a pull-out stool and sturdy table for an easy and comfortable treatment wherever the guest wants.
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Titbit
A great solution to ever-changing menus that need re-printing is Titbit’s digital menu software for iPads, allowing items to be added or removed easily. Once a customer places an order through the system, it is received by waiting staff and sent on to either a kitchen or bar, and is integrated with the POS system, meaning the guest’s bill can be sent to them.