Taken from an article/photo published in the Japan-based weekly magazine, “HOTERES”.
It is the air conditioning system that creates a comfortable room temperature, which is the basis of the comfort of hotel rooms. However, in the 2-pipe fan coil system, which is used in many hotels to switch heating and cooling at the whole building level, complaints about air-conditioning often occur during the lull seasons of spring and fall. Furthermore, in recent years, with the increase in inbound demand, the difference in demand for room temperature is also increasing. PAFMAC air conditioner for hotel guestrooms provided by Nippon PMAC Co., Ltd. is drawing attention as a solution to these issues. This project covers hotels that has actually introduced PAFMAC and looks for their usability and ability. This time, the case of Hilton Odawara Resort & Spa in Odawara City is taken up.
Air conditioning work in conjunction with a guest room renovation
Hilton Odawara Resort & Spa stands on a hill overlooking Sagami Bay. It has a vast site of more than 180,000 m2, and has 163 guest rooms, mainly twin types, all with ocean views. In addition to restaurants, banquet halls, and large hot spring baths, this is a resort hotel with a full range of sports activities such as fitness, swimming pools, and golf driving ranges. The hotel was established in February 2004 and will mark the 15th anniversary in 2019. The hotel has been renovating its building since 2015.
The interior of the guest rooms was designed with pine leaves, and it was finished with a Japanese taste as imagined by foreigners including the installation of a bracket (wall lighting) in the motif of the local specialty from Odawara Sumitomo Lantern. In July, the company is expanding and redesigning its lounge in both men's and women's spaces on large public bath, and is working to increase the value of its facilities. In this large-scale renovation, the company also reviewed air-conditioning systems in conjunction with the renovation of guest rooms. Yusuke Takahashi Assistant Chief Engineer of Mr. Yusuke Takahashi, the deputy general manager of Hilton Odawara Resort & Spa Facilities Management Department, explains the reasons for the review.
"Approximately 20 years have passed since the building was newly constructed. In the two-pipe heating and cooling system(2-pipe fan coil system) that was initially installed, there were no issues with the air conditioning period in mid-summer and the heating period in mid-winter, but there were issues in the mid-spring and autumn.
During this period, the difference between cold and warm weather during the daytime was so large that heating and cooling could not be switched. During such periods, however, the weather was greatly influenced, and complaints were made that the rooms were hot on sunny days and cold on cloudy or rainy days. In addition, there were essentially no international customers, partly because it was a public facility, but after rebranding the hotel, the ratio of foreigners has increased.
Some of our foreign customers, even in the middle of the winter, walk through the lobby wearing a tank top. We feel the differences in their feelings of temperature. Even in winter, customers increasingly prefer air conditioning because of the heat in their rooms. I remember that there were 40 to 50 such complaints about air-conditioning every year. In particular, it seems that Japan's climate has changed recently, and its desire for air-conditioning is on the rise."
PAFMAC manufactured and sold by Nippon PMAC Co., Ltd. was singled out to respond to the need for such air condition needs. Our priority was on enabling cooling and heating throughout the year without involving large-scale construction.
PAFMAC is a system which can make it cooling and heating free, while reusing the existing two pipes for cooling and heating system. The two pipe system is a system in which hot and cold water produced in a heat source room such as a boiler room are carried to the guest room through pipes spread throughout the building and cold and warm air is sent to the room via fan coils installed in the room. Cooling is possible when cold water is flowing in the piping, and heating is possible when hot water is flowing.
PAFMAC incorporates a heat pump that enables both heating and cooling with chilled/hot water in the air conditioning unit called fan coil. Actual installation requires only removing and replacing the existing fan coil unit with a PAFMAC, which means that no large-scale construction is required and there is almost no noise.
"Our hotel is proceeding with all renovation work without suspension of business. As for guest rooms, we divided the 3 to 12 floors into 2 floors for 2 months each to construct taking a total of one year. The renovation of air-conditioning systems is a simple construction process that simply replaces two pipe fan coil unit of fan coil units with PAFMAC, so I think it is also advantageous to proceed with the construction even when the hotels are in operation. There was no problem as long as the window of the guest room under construction was closed even on the day of the wedding ceremony. On the floor where PAFMAC was introduced, complaints about the heat and cold were drastically reduced, and the work of staffs in the accommodation division, such as the delivery of blankets, was also reduced."
PAFMAC plays an active role in the fitness room
The hotel installed PAFMAC in the fitness room as well as in the guest room. The fitness room before renovation was an Aroma Treatment Salon, and it now has a variety of studio programs. Even in these rooms PAFMAC are exerting their power.
"At this studio, we are implementing a variety of programs, such as yoga that moves the body quietly and exercises called Body Combat that involve a little hard exercise. Sensitive temperature also varies depending on the fitness program. It's convenient to be able to change the air conditioning accordingly. Temperature can be adjusted to meet the required temperature, such as keeping the room warm for yoga and cooling for a program with drastic movement. PAFMAC can be recommended in these locations as well as in guest rooms."
In the future, the company thinks it may be better to introduce a centralized control system for PAFMAC and a centralized monitoring board (TACS). TACS is a control system that allows to change the settings of air conditioner inthe guest rooms remotely. Also, it can automaticaly turn on AC to set to the prefered temperature prior to checking in. In addition, the system contributes to energy saving because it is possible to switch on and off the air conditioning after checking in and out.
"Our hotel is characterized that many customers visit the hotel at 15:00, when check-in begins, and stay until checkout 12:00. I think that it helps to save energy to be able to turn on and off by managing check-in and out. In addition, our customers are mostly fall in older age groups, and it is necessary the control panels in the guest rooms are easy to see. For example, when a customer offers that the temperature does not fall or do not rise during the night, the staff usually have to go to the room, but if there is a centralized control system, it is possible to respond without going to the room. There are many cases in which they do not know how to use the panel regardless of AC performance so the centralized monitoring board may become a necessity in the future."
Hilton Odawara Resort & Spa begins a new history by raising the value of its facilities on the occasion of its 15th anniversary. Inbound tourists are beginning to extend their footfall to resorts as well as urban tourism. It may be a time for resort hotels with long stay guests to review air-conditioning and take a step ahead of the competitor.