Ibn Battuta hotel now ‘Green Gate’

Ibn Battuta hotel now ‘Green Gate’


Ibn Battuta Gate Hotel -Dubai scores international environmental accreditation; strong focus on hotel guest and community engagement to drive home stakeholder sustainability message


The Ibn Battuta Gate Hotel, managed by Mövenpick Hotels and Resorts, is the latest five-star property in the Middle East to be accredited by the internationally-recognised Green Globe, the premier worldwide certification and performance improvement programme developed specifically for the travel and tourism industry.

The 396-room business and leisure hotel underwent an exacting and comprehensive sustainability audit, scoring consistently across an extensive series of operational criteria and marking another milestone achievement in its first full year of operation.

“Hotels are, on occasion, unfairly accused of ‘talking the talk’ when it comes to sustainability, so receiving a stamp of approval from an impartial and credible international organisation is very pleasing. Our aim is to spearhead positive change by implementing long-term environmental initiatives that will hopefully inspire others to push their own green envelope,” said Philippe Bonnot, General Manager, Ibn Battuta Gate Hotel.

The hotel has developed a multi-level sustainability programme designed to impact the entire operation from back-of-house areas to guestrooms and public spaces.

The hotel has invested in ground-breaking INNcontrol II™ software, which is designed to help the hospitality industry maximise on energy efficiency and make substantial cost savings through a highly individualised hotel-specific programme.

“The system allows us to measure the temperature in each guest room, rather than per section or floor, with the ability to monitor consumption via a live update that shows which rooms are performing at peak operational efficiency as well as highlighting problem areas,” said Rohit Salunke, Director of Engineering.

“This helps us set specific air-conditioning parameters for each room, and initiate target temperatures to ensure that we are controlling air-conditioning demand, and thus controlling our energy costs,” he added.

The hi-tech system also tracks annual energy savings by charting actual consumption against a ‘worse case’ scenario in the absence of an effective energy management system, as well as tracking guest room user trends.

Paper, plastic, aluminium and waste cooking oil are all recycled with hazardous waste material collected by a specialist recycling company in Dubai. The hotel also organises regular outdoor cleaning drives and has taken the unique step of siting a used clothing recycling bank within the property, in association with Gulf State Recycling.

“Engaging our employees was a crucial first step in securing buy-in ahead of rolling the programme out to our other key stakeholders, and we have developed a hotel-wide sustainability training programme which is a requisite for each individual team member from the top down,” remarked Bonnot.

The hotel was audited by UAE-based Farnek Avireal, which currently holds the exclusive rights to utilise the Green Globe brand, the premier worldwide sustainability stamp for the tourism industry, in 20 different countries throughout the Middle East.

“The Ibn Battuta Gate Hotel has successfully completed Green Globe certification, and the hotel could see annual carbon emissions drop by up to 6,250 tonnes per year as well as make substantial savings on utility costs equivalent to around US$5 per room night,” said Markus Oberlin, General Manager, Farnek Avireal.

For room booking enquires kindly contact the reservations team at 00971- 444 0440 or send an email to reservations.ibnbattuta@moevenpick.com .

Photo caption: (L-R) ‘Green Gate’ - Philippe Bonnot, General Manager, Ibn Battuta Gate Hotel and Rohit Salunke, Director of Engineering, Ibn Battuta Gate Hotel with the Green Globe Award.


Notes
As the global hospitality industry continues to ponder the pace of business, Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, in partnership with real estate developer, Seven Tides, opens more than 1,200 rooms over four properties in Dubai, UAE.

The 396-room Ibn Battuta Gate Hotel, is cleverly inspired by the journeys of the 14th century Arabian explorer, Ibn Battuta himself. The hotel is located in ‘New Dubai’ opened its doors to business and leisure travellers in October 2010.

The 216-room Mövenpick Hotel Deira opened in January 2011. Situated in the commercial hub of Diera, close to the Dubai Creek and Dubai Airport, the hotel is perfectly situated for business visitors and short stay leisure guests as well as weekend shoppers and small meeting groups. .

2012 will also witness the opening of the contemporary Oceana Hotel & Spa. Seven Tides’ second property located on Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah will open 324 rooms at the Oceana Beach Club, which has already opened a popular restaurant-bar venue, West 14th, the New-York Grill and Bar. Both the club and the restaurant opened for business during the summer of 2010 and like the hotel are set to deliver great family entertainment.

About Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts:
Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, an international upscale hotel management company with over 14’000 employees, is represented in 25 countries with 71 hotels and resorts currently in operation. A further 30 properties are planned or already under construction in Ankara (Turkey), Dubai (four projects – United Arab Emirates); Abu Dhabi (three projects – United Arab Emirates), Shanghai (China), Dharamshala (India).
Focusing on expansion in its core markets of Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia, Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts specialises in business and conference hotels, as well as holiday resorts, all reflecting a sense of place and respect for their local communities. Of Swiss heritage and headquartered in Zurich, Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts is passionate about delivering premium service, culinary enjoyment and sustainable environments – all with a personal touch.
The hotel company is owned by the Mövenpick Holding (66.7%) and the Kingdom Group (33.3%). For more information please visit www.moevenpick-hotels.com.

Meanwhile, established in Dubai in 2004, Seven Tides is an international-oriented holding company currently focusing on hospitality and real estate sectors.

About Farnek Avireal:

Farnek Avireal is a joint venture company between Khalifa Juma Al Nabooda Group of the UAE and Avireal AG of Switzerland. With 7 offices through the UAE, the company has grown into one of the region’s foremost property and facilities management outsourcing companies.

With a skilled workforce of more than 1,500 people, Farnek Avireal maintains over 1,000 properties on behalf of international and regional companies, including the world’s tallest tower Burj Khalifa.

For more on Farnek Avireal's energy saving solutions, please visit www.farnek.com

About Green Globe International, Inc.

Green Globe International, Inc. is the worldwide owner of the Green Globe brand, which includes the leading sustainability certification and benchmarking programs, carbon footprint calculation and offset programs, and a broad range of consulting services. Green Globe International has been admitted as an affiliate member of the United Nations World Tourism Organization. The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), the business leaders’ forum for the travel and tourism industry, is a 5% common stock owner of Green Globe International. For more information on the company and its programs, please visit www.greenglobeint.com or call +1 310-984-6807.