Usable Experiences: The Ritz Carlton San Francisco
I spent a few days at the The Ritz San Francisco, a well needed rest after the Evernote Conference this past September. The hotel was super-comfy, gorgeous, palatial and what I thought must have been a massive energy-sucker with every entertainment luxury you could think of. I instantly become a green snob when hitting San Francisco soil. However, what I found was the opposite. The Ritz Carlton San Francisco has a real awareness of green standards and seems to be an industry leader.
Hmm, some members of old industry do understand that technology/ going green can help to create an efficient, productive and healthier bottom line for us all… Here are some steps the Ritz Carlton is taking to lead the hotel industry into the green (literally):
- In the beginning of 2008 the hotel implemented a state-of-the-art energy management system at a cost of $500,000, which has reduced the hotel’s energy usage by 12 percent compared to 2007. This reduction is the equivalent of removing 277 tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. In 2010, it was reduced by 8.09 percent compared to 2009.
Sixty percent of hotel lighting has been converted to LED, reducing the electrical consumption by 230,000 kilowatt hours per year as well as a waste reduction of heavy metals found in fluorescent light bulbs.
If linens are not reused as rags, they are donated to nonprofit organizations such as Glide Memorial, to local animal shelters, or to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) International. Old towels are cut, re-seamed, and transformed into reusable rags by on-site seamstresses.
Lindsey C. Holmes
