Starwood and the Westin Palace, Madrid Advance Environmental Sustainability Efforts

People want to feel good about the company behind the brand. That’s why our promise to do the right thing and respect our environment is so important to us.  We consider today’s business environment a call to action as we deepen our commitment to environmental sustainability through a multi-year transformation of how we do business.   Starwood’s environmental sustainability approach includes reducing the environmental impact of our business, developing sustainable products and services to meet customer needs and creating a company culture committed to sustainability.

Reducing our impact on the environment

Starwood is working to reduce carbon emissions and is committed to reporting on progress annually using the Carbon Disclosure Project Survey and Starwood’s Sustainability Report.  To achieve our sustainability goals we have designed a two pronged strategy.   First, we are building greener hotels in collaboration with our owners and developers and have created green building guidelines. Second, we are focused on changing hotel operations to improve the health of the environment across our global portfolio of 950 hotels

Our initiatives were shaped by client needs, shareholder input and hotel best practices.  In addition, our initiatives align with environmental certification programs to help our hotels meet locally adopted certification standards. At present, more than 120 Starwood hotels have either achieved or are in pursuit of a third-party certification including LEED, Green Seal, Green Globe, Green Key and Energy-Star.

Developing sustainable products and services to meet customer needs

Innovation is in Starwood’s DNA and we are putting it to good use to help shape new products and services that meet our customers’ needs while improving the guest and customer experience.   In 2006, we made history with the launch of Element Hotels – Starwood’s green trailblazer and the first major hotel chain to require all its hotels to pursue the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED certification

Starwood will also launch a carbon offset program in early 2009 as part of a partnership with Sustainable Travel International (STI), as well as a new sustainable meetings concept to help our customers achieve their sustainability goals when conducting meetings at Starwood properties. Look for additional sustainable solutions as we continue to develop our environmental program.

Creating a company culture committed to sustainability

Most importantly, we are making sustainability a part of our culture.  We kicked off our sustainability efforts by creating a dedicated Department of Environmental Sustainability and publishing an environmental sustainability policy.   We recently launched the Starwood Sustainability Resource Center, a one-stop-shop for associates to learn more about environmental sustainability and how to execute on program initiatives.  In early 2009 we also made important changes at our White Plains headquarters to support our sustainability efforts.

There are many Starwood Hotels inspiring environmental change. Please see below how  The Westin Palace Madrid is leading the change.

Hotel Overview

The Westin Palace Madrid was built in the former palace of the Dukes of Medinaceli. The construction was realized in a period of time of 18 months and, in this short lapse of time, the biggest hotel of Europe was erected in 1912. Throughout these 90 years it has been and is an active part of Madrid life and is something more than a luxurious hotel inside an emblematic building. It is an exceptional spectator of the life of this “Villa” and “Court” that is Madrid and it is consubstantial with the local, national and international events that take place in this capital.

Answering to the demands of our society, every day more sensitized with the need to protect the environment in which we live and develop our activity, and as par of our policy of constant improvement, the Westin Palace Hotel Madrid has made concrete its actions of respect and protection to the environment in the implementation of a System of Environmental Management according to the European regulation EMAS.

Though the activity of the hotel does not represent a significant risk for the environment, we understand it is necessary to ratify the commitment with our environment from an entity with the prestige and history of the Westin Palace Madrid.

The Westin Palace Madrid has a well-established  System of Environmental Management (SGMA) taking the ISO procedure as a reference 14001 and the Regulation of the European Union (CEE) named "EMAS" n º 196/2006 761/2001 of February 3, 2006. The process of implementation executed during the year 2002, certified the hotel every year from 2003 to 2009.

In 2008, in view of the historical evolution of the hotel consumption, it is necessary to highlight that the decrease of the total consumption of gas and water has been maintained, as has the electrical consumption. On the contrary, due to the decrease of occupied rooms, the indicators of these aspects have deteriorated slightly.

It is important to highlight the drastic reduction of water consumption of 17.4 %. This number is relevant as it is the lowest consumption with a difference since 2002. Comparing to 2003, which was the year of more consumption, the reduction is 66 %. We can attribute part of this reduction in the water consumption to a better maintenance management in the hotel.  

At the beginning of 2009 an energy audit was realized by PHILIPS and in conjunction with them, we are going to proceed to a change of great part of the lighting system of the hotel, installing bulbs of minimum consumption with the latest technology and high lighting quality.

Air conditioning: a procedure has been established to turn off the air conditioning in the hotel offices 7pm to 7am.  Additionally, from 2006 we are working on the reduction of exit temperatures and at switching off the air at night, during certain periods of the year that previously remained on. We have changed one of the hotel towers incorporating the latest technologies in reduction of electrical consumption.

Lighting: It has been established a reduction of the schedule in the lighting of the front of the Hotel and we decreased the intensity of the light in the banqueting rooms by 15%, except in the Cortes and Medinaceli rooms. We have exchanged all possible bulbs in the hotel for bulbs of low consumption.

 Photocellular: We placed photocellular in the entire basement, and in the offices situated on the 6th, 4th, 3rd, 2nd and 1st floors and in the Room Service office.

Raising Awareness Through Engagement

For the year 2009 the established goals are the following:

Ø      Maintenance of the water consumption in the current levels consolidating consumption of 2008.

Ø      To reduce consumption of electricity by 2 % of relative consumption compared to 2006

Ø      To give courses  of audit techniques to allow certain persons to be in charge of the performance of the departments from the point of view of environment, quality and food safety

Ø      Implementation of the Philips program of new low energy bulbs

Ø      Green Council dissemination of good environmental practices: one month, one environmental issue.

Ø      To reduces gas consumption  by 1 % compared to previous year

Ø      Media broadcast of the environmental achievements of the hotel