ATLANTA – In a city known for its southern hospitality, Honeywell (NYSE: HON) is helping one Atlanta hotel virtually eliminate temperature-related guest complaints using the latest in connected technology. Honeywell installed its INNCOM guestroom automation and energy management system in January 2017 at Grand Hyatt Atlanta in the Buckhead district, operated by Hyatt Hotels Corporation and owned by Host Hotels, which has already made a significant impact.

"For hospitality guests, home away from home should be perfect, and few things in a hotel room are more important than comfort," said Thurman Melson, vice president/general manager - commercial control systems at Honeywell.

"Advanced connected building technologies like INNCOM are giving property owners and managers more insight than ever before, and delivering better controls to meet the needs of their occupants and guests in smart ways."

Grand Hyatt Atlanta is a 439-room full-service, city center property that was recently honored with the 2017 Mayor of Atlanta's Award for Water Conservation. For its solar energy use, the hotel received the Good Earth Keeping Award in the Large Property category from the American Hotel & Lodging Association in 2014. Grand Hyatt Atlanta is not only focused on reducing energy, noted Director of Engineering Wes Shirley.

"We installed the INNCOM Energy Management System in January to underscore that we want our guests to have the most comfortable experience possible – and the Honeywell system delivers that," said Shirley. "Our guests are well-traveled and expect a trouble-free stay. Our priority is to give them a perfect hotel experience."

Grand Hyatt Atlanta installed the INNCOM solution suite and Deep Mesh Network to control and monitor guestroom environmental equipment: air conditioning units, fans and heating units. At most hotels, air conditioning or heating is the first issue guests complain about. "We have had virtually no temperature-related guest complaints since we installed INNCOM," said Shirley.

The INNCOM INNcontrol3 total room management system is used by hundreds of hotels and resorts to monitor sensors on guestroom environmental equipment. When INNcontrol3's sensors detect problems with a guestroom unit, it automatically notifies property engineers of the issue. Shirley and his team also use Honeywell for more than supporting Grand Hyatt Atlanta's equipment.

"Honeywell has not just changed how I monitor equipment; it changed our operating philosophy," said Shirley. "The system transformed how we schedule employees to address guest issues. We are not playing defense anymore. Today we proactively schedule staff to address system maintenance before system issues impact guests."

The property's quietest period is Sunday afternoon, so Shirley schedules a larger engineering team on Sundays to address non-critical room maintenance issues reported by INNcontrol3 during the week. "When guests check in Monday morning their rooms are working perfectly so they can have a perfect stay," he said.

Honeywell systems installed by the Grand Hyatt Atlanta include:

• INNcontrol™3 real-time guestroom energy control system
• INNCOM wireless Deep Mesh Network
• INNCOM e528 Smart Digital Guestroom Thermostats
• FastPack API integration with the cloud-based HotSOS service optimization system.

INNCOM communicates guestroom information through its FastPack API (application program interface) to HotSOS, a cloud-based mobile alert solution from Amadeus. If INNCOM detects a room's equipment is not heating or cooling correctly, it instantly sends an alert to HotSOS. HotSOS registers the alert and forwards a text message to Grand Hyatt Atlanta staff. The HotSOS notification enables property engineers to respond quickly to the guestroom and address the issue before the guest is aware of the problem.

"Each staff member has a HotSOS app on his or her mobile device that receives service alerts," Shirley said. "I rely on INNcontrol3 every day. With INNCOM, I know more about what is happening in a guestroom environment than our guests, which leads to higher satisfaction scores," Shirley said.

INNCOM's occupancy sensing thermostats and door sensors also monitor when a room is vacant. This small innovation helps Grand Hyatt Atlanta optimize staffing while it improves guest service. When INNCOM indicates that a room is vacant, a housekeeper is dispatched to service the room.

"This sensing innovation improves productivity and keeps our rooms in better condition," Shirley said. "Of all the new technology we use daily - and there is lots of it - the one that is flawless is INNCOM. And with all these guest satisfaction improvements and productivity gains from the Honeywell system, we are significantly contributing to our ROI."

About Honeywell Home and Building Technologies

Honeywell Home and Building Technologies (HBT) is a global business with more than 44,000 employees worldwide. HBT creates products, software and technologies found in more than 150 million homes and 10 million buildings worldwide. We help homeowners stay connected and in control of their comfort, security and energy use. Commercial building owners and occupants use our technologies to ensure their facilities are safe, energy efficient, sustainable and productive. Our advanced metering hardware and software solutions help electricity, gas and water providers supply customers and communities more efficiently. For more news and information on Honeywell Home and Building Technologies, please visit http://www.honeywell.com/newsroom.

Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 software-industrial company that delivers industry specific solutions that include aerospace and automotive products and services; control technologies for buildings, homes, and industry; and performance materials globally. Our technologies help everything from aircraft, cars, homes and buildings, manufacturing plants, supply chains, and workers become more connected to make our world smarter, safer, and more sustainable. For more news and information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywell.com/newsroom.

Julie Keyser-Squires
Media Contact
404-256-5512