Interactive innovation

Case Studies

EcoStruxure™ Building enables an interactive experience for guests at the Evolution Lisboa Hotel

Evolution Lisboa Hotel is not just a new hotel in Portugal, it’s a new concept in interactive and ecological guest experiences. Part of the Sana Hotels family, Evolution Hotel was designed to attract urban and business customers who expect the most modern conveniences and finest comforts.

“It was a dream of our brand to create a technologically evolutionary hotel and a new type of accommodation for traveling guests from around the world,” said João Carlos Gomes, Technical Director of Evolution Hotel.

To deliver this experience, the hotel was designed and built to integrate the most advanced information technologies into a single system that functions as an extension of the city and even of the guests’ homes. Headquartered in Maia, Portugal, the project was managed by Easycontrol, Lda., one of Schneider Electric’s 3,000 EcoXpert™ partner companies around the world. Using Schneider Electric’s IoT- enabled EcoStruxure technology as the foundation, Easycontrol has created an environment that takes guest comfort and control to a new level—while providing powerful tools for efficient hotel management. Building on IoT- enabled EcoStruxure technology EcoStruxure™ Building (formerly SmartStruxure™ solution) provides a collaborative, smart building IoT platform that can integrate many standard systems such as guest room management, room controls, central air conditioning, power, and alarm management.

“Hotels pose a special challenge compared to most buildings, because the guests want to be in control of their own rooms,” said Sergio Miranda of Easycontrol. “At the same time, the owners want to be energy-efficient and ecologically responsible. EcoStruxure is the bridge that connects the various hotel systems and makes it possible to achieve these different goals.” Certified by Schneider Electric in building €35K management systems (BMS), as well as in light and room control solutions, Easycontrol is an EcoXpert partner with full access to Schneider Electric’s offer portfolio and experts. Through this esteemed partnership, combined with the flexibility of the EcoStruxure Building solution, Easycontrol was able to provide a single interface for all hotel operations. Best of all, the guests can control their rooms through their own smart phones or tablets.

Putting it all together

Fernando Ferreira, EcoXpert Marketing Manager for Schneider Electric, said “the innovation of the EcoStruxure Building solution is the way it seamlessly integrates with hotel management systems, especially the guest room management system (Fidelio) and Internet Protocol Television (IPTV). It’s truly a seamless system.” Evolution Hotel’s building systems are now fully operational and consist of software and hardware, enabling management of: EcoStruxure Building Operation* software, enabling management of guest room management systems such as air conditioning units, room settings, energy management and alarm management through a single solution Full integration with the guest room management system (Fidelio) and IPTV Guest control via smart devices or the room TV As a result, hotel managers are now able to easily monitor and control building and guest rooms from the front desk or remotely.

A superior customer experience When you step into a guest room at Evolution Hotel, you quickly discover it’s no ordinary room. By downloading an app, hotel guests can use their personal smart devices to control room settings such as lighting, curtains, and temperature. It is a seamless experience for the guest, made possible by the close integration with the IPTV system.

“The hotel wanted to create an innovative experience for its guests, and Schneider Electric enables us to make that possible,” said João Carlos Gomes, Sana Technical Director.

Better control for the managers Behind the scenes, the hotel staff benefits just as much from the integrated technology as guests do. All operations can be easily monitored and controlled through one application, at the front desk or remotely from any location. Users can access live reports and set controls as needed, based on occupancy. For example, rooms or entire areas can be moved to setback to save energy.

“We are able, in real time and anywhere in the world, to be connected online and understand, floor by floor, the occupancy rate, the average temperature of the floor, how many rooms are booked that day, how many are still to arrive, if the guest is in the room or not,” said Gomes. “This enables us to achieve cost-effectiveness and energy efficiency in the hotel, making it more ecofriendly.”

Positive results for hotel and guests According to Gomes, the hotel’s energy costs are 40% less than estimated. The savings are closely related to the installed air conditioning system that allows the use of free-cooling and free-heating, as well as the control system that enables the manager to partially disconnect areas of the hotel that are not occupied. Yet despite all the technology, Gomes said the total investment in the hotel falls within the average of the Sana Hotels Group.

For Evolution Hotel, the goal of creating an innovative, interactive guest experience has been accomplished. “This integration EcoStruxureTM Architecturewas only possible because of Schneider Electric’s smart building IoT platform and our decision to choose an EcoXpert to handle the installation,” said Gomes.

As for the future, Gomes said, “We want to implement this in more cities around the world. That is our goal. We will rely on solutions from Schneider Electric and the integration expertise of its EcoXpert network to achieve it.”

IoT-enabled system architecture and platform that drives operational and energy efficiency EcoStruxureTM by Schneider Electric is our open, interoperable,

IoT-enabled system architecture and platform. EcoStruxure delivers enhanced value around safety, reliability, efficiency, sustainability, and connectivity for our customers. We leverage technologies in

IoT, mobility, sensing, cloud, analytics, and cybersecurity to deliver Innovation at Every Level. This includes Connected Products, Edge Control, and Apps, Analytics & Services. EcoStruxure has been deployed in 450,000+ installations, with the support of 9,000 system integrators, connecting over 1 billion devices.

Connected Products

The Internet of Things starts with the best things. Our IoT-enabled best-in-class connected products include breakers, drives, UPSs, relays, sensors, and more. Devices with embedded intelligence drive better decision-making throughout operations.

Edge Control

Mission-critical scenarios can be unpredictable, so control of devices

at the edge of the IoT network is a must. This essential capability provides real-time solutions that enable local control at the edge, protecting safety and uptime.

Apps, Analytics & Services Interoperability is imperative to supporting the diverse hardware and systems in building, data center, industry, and grid environments.

EcoStruxure enables a breadth of agnostic Applications, Analytics & Services for seamless enterprise integration.

For more information please visit www.schneider-electric.com/ecostruxure