Top players address challenges facing global hospitality industry

The one-day Siemens Hospitality Innovation Summit, held at Nad Al Sheba, Dubai, saw industry leaders examining the latest trends and important issues currently affecting the industry, both in the GCC and across the globe. The Middle East hospitality industry is currently valued at EUR200 billion (AED836 billion), with the UAE hosting over 5.5 million guests last year.

The prestigious, industry-specific conference and unique exhibition brought together some of the high-profile names from the international hospitality operator chains, developers, investors and consultants.

Prominent speakers at the conference included Rudi Lamprecht, Member of Siemens AG Managing Board; Ruud J. Rueland, General Director of Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne; Thomas Gertz, CEO of Bavaria International; and Peter Fuchs, CEO of Siemens LLC. The speakers presented an insight into the current industry trends and illustrated how infrastructure technology could address key issues such as security and life cycle costs, whilst maintaining and improving the customer experience.

During the summit, Siemens also demonstrated its leading-edge technological solutions for key hospitality areas such as building management and control, guest services, communications, lighting and appliances, via an unusual exhibition. The highlight of the exhibition was a purpose-built virtual or model hotel, which included a reception area, guest room, conference room and back office, allowing visitors to experience Siemens' innovative use of technology at close quarters.

Speaking about the event, Rudi Lamprecht, Member of the Siemens AG Managing Board observed: "Such a distinguished gathering of speakers is an indication of a defining industry event. By uniting experts and industry leaders, the conference will examine ways of supporting the regional and global hospitality industry. The exhibition introduced the latest and most sophisticated technologies that can strengthen and streamline operations, whilst maximising guests' overall experience."

Peter Fuchs, CEO of Siemens LLC, explained "With the GCC witnessing a rapid growth in new hospitality ventures, here in the UAE the hospitality industry grew by 37 percent last year, Siemens is in an enviable position to support this positive trend and consolidate its presence in this region. This summit was a unique opportunity for us to demonstrate our capabilities as a total solutions provider for the hospitality industry."

Michael Hartmann, Senior Vice President of Hospitality Corporate Sales at Siemens, explained that the conference was an important opportunity for participants to understand how the technologies can boost their environments. "Siemens remains committed to helping hospitality professionals meet the challenges they face by simplifying their operations and boosting the ultimate comfort of their guests," he added. "We also see this summit as an occasion to network with some of the leading names in the business and to introduce them to our research and development of the latest innovations."

The exhibition showcased the recent technological advances in the fields of lighting; security (cameras with back light intelligence, video surveillance, biometric solutions, perimeter access control); Internet-enabled kitchen appliances; guest comfort (video on demand, hosted solutions); Back Office applications (service tracking, wireless LAN); and infrastructure (safety solutions for fire detection and fighting), amongst other innovative technologies.