Radisson Hotel Group and Remington Hotels are the latest hotel companies to share the steps they are taking to keep guests and employees safe and healthy in the midst of COVID-19.
Radisson announced its Radisson Hotels Safety Protocol, a new program of in-depth cleanliness and disinfection procedures, in partnership with SGS, an inspection, verification, testing and certification company.
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One of Radisson Hotel Group’s highest priorities is the continued health, safety and security of its guests, team members and business partners. The company has conducted a thorough review of all existing health and safety processes and worked with a team of experts to develop and validate additional protocols. These enhanced protocols, operational guidance and comprehensive health and safety procedures validated by SGS, will be adapted based on local requirements and recommendations, to ensure guests’ safety and peace of mind from check-in to check-out. The Radisson Hotels Safety Protocol will further strengthen the company’s existing sanitation, cleanliness and disinfection guidelines at hotels globally.
These guidelines include hand sanitizing stations at all entrances; the use of personal protective equipment and protective screens; enhanced and recorded cleaning and disinfection frequency; social distancing in all areas of its hotels, including in the meeting and event facilities; training in local, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or World Health Organization recommendations and health guidelines; reiteration of food-safety standards; and comprehensive staff training. Radisson’s enhanced cleaning and disinfection guidelines have been developed in collaboration with global hygiene solutions provider, Diversey, by uniting best-in-class cleaning and hygiene solutions with reinforced protocols and patented technology designed for healthcare.
Radisson will be introducing an official label of cleanliness and disinfection issued by SGS to ensure the highest cleanliness, hygiene and safety standards, as confirmed by SGS through a centralized validation process. Under this program, individual hotels can receive an approval label upon completion of a comprehensive local audit including on-site testing using the latest technology.
“At Radisson Hotel Group, we are committed to delivering a clean and safe environment for our guests and team members,” said Federico J. González, CEO, Radisson Hospitality AB and chairman of Radisson Hotel Group’s global steering committee. “The world has been fundamentally changed by COVID-19 so it is key that we strive to protect all who work, stay and partner with us as we reopen our doors to a new era of travel. To do this we have thoroughly examined all areas of the hotel experience, and we are proud to have partnered with SGS to create our Radisson Hotels Safety Protocol program.”
Remington Hotels
Remington Hotels, a third-party management company that operates 87 hotels in 26 states across the United States, is rolling out new guidelines for all properties that include enhanced cleaning protocols and updated training systems, in addition to collaborating on best practices with multiple brand partners, to protect the well-being of guests and associates in response to COVID-19.
“Remington Hotels is rolling out a multipronged approach to address necessary safety and cleaning measures in response to COVID-19. These measures include enhanced cleaning and safety protocols across all 87 hotels, a revised training program for all Remington Hotels associates and a revamped approach to food-and-beverage,” said Rob Carl, Remington Hotels’ VP of facilities and capital planning and appointed lead for the company’s COVID-19 Response Committee.
As part of the company’s response, Remington aligned with an industrial hygienist to develop a COVID-19 mitigation program for all hotels that outlines procedures in the event of a guest or associate being infected. As well, each Remington Hotels property is now utilizing U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-registered disinfectant products with proven efficacy in killing respiratory viruses, including COVID-19. Additional steps taken to enhance cleaning procedures include:
- Public areas: All hotels have increased the frequency of cleaning and disinfecting public spaces, with an emphasis on disinfecting protocol focused on “high-touch” areas including door handles, public bathrooms, reception, stairwells, lobby furnishings/hard surfaces, guest laundry facilities, elevators and push buttons, corner pantries and bell carts.
- Food-and-beverage: Food offerings have been converted to prepared grab-and-go bags not to be consumed in public areas of hotels.
- Guestrooms: In addition to thoroughly cleaning and disinfecting rooms between guest departures and arrivals, Remington utilizes OpenKey as a “contactless” digital entry tool that limits guest and employee contact. The brand also offers Pure Rooms at all properties, to promote wellbeing in the guest rooms by providing purified air, hypoallergenic environments and allergy-friendly options.
The health, safety and knowledge of Remington Hotels’ associates are imperative to an effective cleaning program, according to the company. To meet these criteria, the company has adopted the following heightened protocol:
- Enhanced protocols for operation and training: With the new procedures and protocols in place, Remington Hotels has developed an updated training program to ensure associates are well versed in the new cleaning and guest interaction protocols.
- Well-being checks: Remington Hotels is instituting mandatory temperature checks of all associates when the associate starts their shift and additional times spaced out throughout the remainder of the shift.
- Handwashing and protective gear: Associates are mandated to wash their hands a minimum of every two hours, following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. Additionally, associates are required to wear gloves and masks at all times.
Remington is supplying each of its hotels with the proper protective gear to ensure associates can safely welcome guests and work together, including reusable masks from fellow Texas-based company, Dallas Wear Uniforms. The company, which traditionally makes uniforms for sports teams, has repurposed its factory to manufacture PPE due to COVID-19.
“We hope that these enhanced measures will help provide both our staff and guests with a sense of ease in these difficult times,” says Stan Kennedy, COO of Remington Hotels. “We look forward to continue welcoming our valued guests to our properties across the country thus allowing us to bring our associates back from furlough.”