ISJ Exclusive: Safer guest stays and a supported sector

The HALO Smart Sensor from IPVideo Corporation is a cost-effective solution capable of improving hospitality operations whilst enhancing safety.

As the hotel industry rebounds from the COVID-19 pandemic, many hotel brands or hotel management groups are feeling the tension between delivering superb guest experiences, while also managing their costs. Many look towards modern technology to assist with the strains and needs of the hospitality industry, such as building security, ways to cut costs and anything that will assist in creating a great guest experience.

An emerging category of internet-connected smart sensor devices has the potential to help the industry deliver on these seemingly contradictory goals of excellent hotel guest experience while keeping costs down.

The HALO Smart Sensor achieves optimal health and safety monitoring while maintaining cost effectiveness through its multitude of sensors. IPVideo Corporation, the manufacturer of the HALO Smart Sensor, has created a ‘one-stop shop’ device that serves as a multi-function security, health and vape detection solution. While it serves the hotel and hospitality industries, IPVideo also offers the HALO Smart Sensor to the education, healthcare and commercial markets.

The use of multi-sensors in the HALO Smart Sensor offers a cost-effective foundation for the hospitality industry to ensure that their facilities are as safe and healthy as they can be. The adaptation of this smart technology also provides guests with peace of mind that their stay will be comfortable and safe.

Utilising over 14 sensors, HALO can provide security for guests and staff with keyword alerting, a panic button and gunshot detection features. The system can also send alerts on prohibited in-room vaping, smoking, THC use, audible disturbances and it can also manage energy efficiency and air quality. Best of all, HALO is designed for privacy areas and does not have a camera or record audio conversations.

Health, safety and security monitoring

Hotel security is an industry that often goes under the radar due to the expectations of privacy which restricts what security technology hotels can use. The HALO Smart Sensor bridges the gap in the hotel industry between having optimal security and also maintaining the privacy of hotel guests.

The HALO Smart Sensor aims to help meet the new expectations guests and clients have regarding health, security and safety. Health and safety is of top concern for all industries because of the pandemic. This is especially true of the hospitality industry, as those traveling and staying in hotels want to ensure their health and safety are the hotel’s number one priority.

A way this issue is being tackled is through indoor air quality monitoring. By monitoring the air quality and health of the hotel building, guests and staff can be sure they are breathing the healthiest air possible. Monitoring indoor air quality also helps the building’s HVAC equipment run more efficiently, thus saving the hotel facility money. The HALO Smart Sensor can provide health index readings and indoor air quality index readings for hotels to easily monitor the air quality in their rooms.

Another major issue in the hospitality industry that HALO tackles is the use of e-cigarettes, vaping and smoking inside hotel rooms. In most modern day hotels, smoking of any kind is prohibited within the building, including in guest rooms. However, sometimes guests do not adhere to these rules, leaving behind a room that needs extra cleaning due to residual smoke odours.

When this happens, this also alters the number of available rooms for guests, as these rooms are put out of commission until the smoke or vape damage is dealt with. Traditional smoke alarms also do not work at detecting vape products as their focus is on fire detection. With smart sensor technology like the HALO Smart Sensor, smoking and vaping can be detected almost instantaneously, allowing personnel to act accordingly.

Like smoking and vaping usage, humidity poses a lot of challenges for many facilities, especially hotels. Humidity not only affects air quality but also can cause interior damage to buildings as well as issues of mold and mildew. Hotels, especially when located in humid climates or sea resort environments, must take extra precautions to control humidity in their buildings and rooms. This not only causes damage but also creates a perception to guests that the hotel does not maintain the property well.

HALO can monitor humidity in every room to prevent the potential of mold and damage. If personnel are alerted to high humidity in a room or corridor, an investigation can occur to determine if there is an issue with their HVAC settings or if other environmental factors are the problem.

High levels of carbon monoxide and certain chemicals can have fatal consequences. Facilities must ensure their buildings do not have high levels of carbon monoxide or chemicals so that there are no potential risks to guests or staff. Smart sensor technology such as the HALO Smart Sensor has carbon monoxide detection and chemical detection built into its health sensors and can alert the proper personnel when levels get too high.

In hotels, chemical detection can be particularly useful to ensure rooms are being cleaned thoroughly, as HALO can also detect cleaning chemicals in a room and has been tested in other industries such as healthcare.

Effective communication in emergency situations

Should a large scale emergency occur, HALO can also act as a communication system, ensuring all guests are alerted swiftly. Every facility in every industry must think of ways to communicate with occupants of a building in the event of an emergency. Hotel occupancy can vary depending on how many rooms are occupied at the time. A method of mass communication is essential for hotels to communicate an emergency as fast and efficiently as possible.

HALO can assist with this through features such as a panic button and escape and alert lighting. HALO 3C comes with a HALO of LED-coloured lighting options that can be programmed to show escape routes for safety, such as a red, yellow and green pattern. There is also the ability to create unique colours for different alerts, such as purple for air quality alerts or blue for health alerts. The lights themselves are projected onto the ceiling around the HALO for extended visibility.

With a big facility such as a hotel or resort, one may think, how can everything be monitored at once? HALO Cloud brings all the HALO devices in a facility onto one platform for staff and personnel to easily manage and review. With HALO Cloud, multiple devices can be managed, real time alerts can be sent to the appropriate staff and reports and historical data can be generated to better manage the facility. The HALO Cloud platform also provides a live view map of all sensors in the building, providing faster resource allocation.

To learn more about HALO, visit: www.HALODetect.com

This article was originally published in the April edition of International Security Journal. To read your FREE digital edition, click here.