HOSPITALITY
Pebblebrook Hotel Trust Hotel Monaco
How an historic and luxury hotel implemented energy and sustainability upgrades resulting in 43% utility cost reduction.
When Pebblebrook Hotel Trust took over the ground lease of Washington D.C.’s historical Hotel Monaco, operations had suffered from years of deferred maintenance. Looking to analyze and implement energy and sustainability upgrades with an immediate payback, Pebblebrook turned to InSite.
The Challenge
A unique challenge presented itself from the onset: as Hotel Monaco is owned by the United States General Services Administration, all energy efficiency improvements had to meet GSA requirements for mechanical design, comply with NAFTA regulations, as well as adhere to strict historic preservation guidelines.
Energy efficiency was one criteria. But equally important was whether recommendations met the artistic vision of the hotel and the luxury comfort level expected by its upscale guests. This required involving interior designers in all energy efficiency upgrade recommendations.
As a first step, InSite conducted an on-site ASHRAE Level II energy and water audit where energy experts dug deep to find creative savings opportunities and smart capital improvements. The team developed a comprehensive list with an estimated ROI within the asset manager’s payback threshold for each component. In addition to meeting the cost savings criteria, guest satisfaction considerations played an equally important role in evaluating the project.
Industry
Use Cases
Continuous Commissioning
Energy procurement
InSite Solutions
Results
InSite’s Organize and Formalize platforms have provided hotel staff with the tools to manage its utility cost budget, reduce ongoing utility expenses, catch erroneous utility charges, and comply with local benchmarking laws.
Savings
Utility cost
Reduction
Energy use
Reduction
Water use
The InSite Solution
InSite worked with the hotel’s engineering team to divide the projects between in-house personnel and vetted contractors. Creative design specifications were built, competitive bids were sought, vendors selected and contracts were negotiated by InSite. The team worked on-site to coordinate all activities involving third-party vendors to reduce impact on staff.
Small projects identified included both back of house and guest-facing upgrades. These included installation of kitchen hood controls, networked guest room thermostats, pump and fan VFDs, water fixture retrofits, air handler repairs, and lighting upgrades.
Major projects included a district steam-to-gas conversion, chiller replacement, and installation of a building automation system.
On the utility side, InSite handled the administration and implementation of incentive opportunities offered by the DC Sustainable Energy Utility which resulted in more than $100,000 in rebates. InSite also took over the hotel’s energy procurement and developed the optimal energy purchasing strategy for the Monaco. It involved securing multiple competitive supplier bids, negotiating terms and securing new, lower rates for the Hotel’s electricity and natural gas contracts.
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The proven process has delivered hospitality companies between 15 and 20% reduction in operating expenses and 2-3x returns on their service investment in just the first year, with equal or better savings as the work marches on.
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