Why technology is not a simple solution for the future of hotel projects
This article was originally published in Line Shape // // Space of Autodesk as “Service with a Smile: Why Hotels of the Future Are High-Touch, Not High- Tech. “
Although it opened in 2011, YOTEL New York looks like it belongs to the year 2084, the same year that passes the science fiction film Total Recall. Essentially futuristic, the cult classic starring Arnold Schwarzenegger presents police robotic agents, flying cars, implanted memories and cell embedded in the skin. Its protagonist, Douglas Quaid, a construction worker is obsessed to spend their vacation on Mars.
one can easily imagine Quaid in an advanced Martian station in YOTEL, a hotel with “minimum service” modeled after the hotels Japanese capsule, which provide a large number of extremely small modular rooms for travelers willing to give up all services a conventional hotel in exchange for convenient and affordable accommodation. These types of automated service hotels may be a trend in the 2020s, but they are really the hotels of the future?
Localizado in Hell’s Kitchen , near the Times Square , the main property of YOTEL has 669 “cabins” spread across 60 floors, each cabin with a futon style bed occupying most its little square footage. It has a super contemporary design all white shining radioactively with purple neon lighting; Automated check in via self-service kiosks; and Yobot, a robotic luggage handler that stores and retrieves guests’ luggage.
When most people opt for YOTEL is believed that we are witnessing one of the future hotels. But when Ron Swidler, director of hospitality design firm the Gettys Group, based in Chicago, Stayed there saw something completely different. for starters, no one was actually using the Yobot;.. although it looked cool, it looks more like a gimmick of a service This was also the case of the automatic check-in, which failed when he found a software error and the two days in which Swidler stayed at the hotel, he never came into contact with a person who works there
“there I was in an environment that was designed to be representative at one end hotel experience, but was missing an important component: the hospitality.” , Swidler says. “the future of technology and the role it plays in hospitality should allow personalization and customization that matches the power of computing. What we have to consider is how we can use technology to improve the guest experience while still in is allowed a human connection. “
In 2015, The Gettys Group designed the AC Hotel Chicago, which has wireless service buttons called “Kallpods “guests can use to easily call a member of staff when they need service; the Grand Ballroom at the Marriott Manila with its 176 programmable lights on the ceiling that can switch to any one of 360 different colors to match the moods of meetings and events; and The Godfrey Hotel Boston where guests can use their personal mobile devices to stream photos, videos and music directly to 55-inch TVs in their rooms. (All three hotels were designed using AutoCAD).
“I believe that technology should be used to help in the hospitality service experience and not replace this experience,” says Swidler, who describes himself as ” innovative and technophile. “
He is not alone. Although the accommodations as YOTEL will continue to open the premise that technology is an end, not a means – Japan, for example, recently opened Henn in the hotel ,, first hotel in the world composed entirely of robots – many hotel designers are focused on the integration of technology and hospitality so that enhance the service rather than simply automate it.
“If you spend a lot of time reading TripAdvisor reviews like me, you know that the aesthetic is rarely mentioned as an important point to stay for someone, “says Swidler.” instead, the comments are mainly concentrated in service. So if you look at the expectations of the guests in relation to the design, it is a result of global experience and differentiation of a hotel is to deliver this experience. “
A property whose design perfectly embodies this ethos is the Renaissance New York Midtown Hotel, which opened in March as the first ‘experience’ interactive in a New York hotel. Designed by Jeffrey Beers International in collaboration with the digital design company Réalisations Inc. Montréal, which uses innovative technology to enhance the guest experience in support of the Renaissance brand’s mission: “. Helping the next generation of business travelers to discover unexpected cultural experiences”
highlights include a four-story LED sign on top of the building that displays a digital clock on the Garment District , an elevator bank that provides digital images set to change with the opening and closing of doors , and a “digital tapestry” that takes advantage of a reflective wallpaper, as well as motion detectors, projectors and 3D cameras to capture the movement taking place in the hall a patchwork of digital artwork that spans the length of an entire city block between. main entrances of the hotel, the tapestry becomes in response to human movement and touch.
The centerpiece of the tapestry is the Discovery Portal , a digital niche with hologram projections on the floor and a large screen on the wall. The guests are represented in various holograms that activate the content on the screen assisting in the exploration of the area around them: Being in a hologram, for example, will unfurl a menu of attractions located within a 10 minute walk from the hotel; or reveal the attractions nearby which are open at night. For more information, guests only need to raise his arm and point to the desired content on the screen.
“Every time they come to our hotel, we want them to experience something they have not experienced before” , explains the manager of the Renaissance New York Midtown, David DiFalco. . “The technology is a catalyst for this”
Discovery Portal does not replace human receptionists; instead adds them. For guests who want personalized recommendations and a human touch can visit the lobby of the sixth floor and refer to “Browsers.” – Experts in the hotel neighborhood trained to make recommendations on restaurants, bars and attractions that only locals would know
“For a hand, you have the technology that makes you feel like you’re in an innovative space and completely new, with great features, “says DiFalco.” But at the same time, there is so much technology as to prevent you interact with folks. Because our employees are always the most important we have within our hotel. No matter how cool your technology is or how good your design is; If you do not have good people to take care of their guests, they will not come back. “
When talking about the Discovery Portal , YOBOTs, or any other emerging technology such as automatic lighting, entrance hall Keyless or virtual reality in the room – the relationship between high-tech and personal service is constant.
“While a lot of technology has great PR value, we do not know if there will be guest satisfaction as a result of their integration,” concludes Swidler. “So anything more than the more conservative solutions requires a certain boldness. “
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