Assa Abloy Global Solutions debuted its latest enhancements in staff safety technology, its Vostio Location Solutions platform. Internet of Things and Bluetooth Low Energy technology are leveraged to ensure the rapid arrival of response teams to the precise location of an emergency or when a hotel employee is in distress.
With the U.S. hotel industry announcing its commitment to providing employees with safety devices and as more cities, such as Chicago and Miami, pass ordinances requiring the adoption of such technology in hotels, Vostio Location Solutions with its staff-alert portal ensures that hoteliers are able to meet and exceed these property safety regulations, both now and in the future. This is accomplished through the ability of Vostio Location Solutions to instantly pinpoint the exact location of a staff alert signal by floor and even room number.
With each employee equipped with his or her own alert device, the solution functions through the presence of BLE-based gateways, with the closest gateway receiving an alert signal the moment that a button is pressed. Via the cloud, first responders then are sent a text message with relevant room and floor information, ensuring the ability to react faster and arrive as quickly as possible. Designed on a modular platform, Vostio Location Solutions are capable of serving as a complimentary component of Vostio Access Management or as a standalone solution.
“The landscape of hospitality security is changing faster than ever, and with governments increasingly passing legislation that mandates stronger hotel safety procedures, we were honored to unveil an advanced platform at this year's HITEC that can keep pace with evolving requirements and that, just as importantly, reassures guests and staff that help is always moments away,” Markus Boberg, global president, hospitality at Assa Abloy Global Solutions, said in a statement. "While enhancing hotel security already makes this technology a worthwhile addition to any property operations, Vostio Location Solutions also represent Assa Abloy Global Solutions' commitment to scalability, flexibility and the need anticipate future trends within the hospitality industry.”
As a cloud-based and fully scalable platform, Vostio Location Solutions ultimately will be able to operate on the same network as an array of expense-reducing and revenue-enhancing functionalities. These include tracking the precise location of amenities, such as housekeeping carts, baby cribs, roomservice trays or audiovisual equipment, in real time. Others include the offsetting of operational costs by autonomously overseeing the performance of motorized systems, such as elevators; heating, ventilation and air conditioning units; escalators; and refrigerators. Through the use of artificial intelligence and BLE sensors, this can provide hoteliers with ample time to identify and correct any maintenance issue before it becomes a greater financial liability or guest-facing concern.
Vostio Location Solutions is also set to be subsequently enhanced to maximize guest satisfaction by identifying a guest's specific location within the premises or as they arrive. With the simple download of a hotel's app onto a guest's device, BLE beacons will be able to determine whether a person is located near a property's entrance, restaurant, bar or spa, and send promotional messaging relevant to their instant needs.
This functionality also can increase the possibility of earning additional revenue by enticing guests to make purchases they may otherwise overlook. For larger properties, guest convenience can be further enhanced with a later enhancement that will offer the ability for guests to use BLE beacons as a wayfinding feature, with directions seamlessly transmitted to their device in real time, similar to automobile GPS user experiences.