29 Jul 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic changed hotel housekeeping. A combination of opt-in cleaning policies, guest preferences, and staffing shortages prompted many hotels to scale back housekeeping teams and room cleaning frequency. In the past, daily, in-room housekeeping visits were integral to enforce no-smoking policies. With reduced housekeeping teams, hotels are relying on technology-based solutions to quickly and accurately detect unauthorized smoking. FreshAir provides a cost-effective and discreet solution to enforce no-smoking policies amidst changes in housekeeping norms.

Housekeeping teams used to be the primary source of the photographic evidence needed to prove that smoking had occurred in a hotel room. Many hotels relied on the physical evidence found by housekeepers to successfully charge the smoking fee. FreshAir’s novel technology uses patented polymer sensors to monitor for, immediately detect, and prove tobacco smoking and marijuana smoking. With a FreshAir Smoking Alert, physical proof is no longer necessary to charge a smoking fee. As housekeeping practices evolve with new hospitality norms, FreshAir allows hotels to continue enforcing no-smoking policies by providing novel and reliable ways to prove smoking occured.

FreshAir’s monitoring and alert system connects housekeeping, front desk and maintenance teams on one platform. Connecting these teams with FreshAir’s easy to use mobile app and web portal removes the burden from housekeeping to inspect all rooms. The FreshAir system facilitates communication between hotel teams and provides a tool to effectively streamline no-smoking procedures and follow-up, including an online archive of all Smoking Alerts.

FreshAir Smoking Alerts are timestamped and sent immediately to hotel staff members’ email or mobile device. In the past, hotel staff learned about smoking violations from guests’ complaints and daily housekeeping visits. The timestamped alerts provide the details necessary for today’s hotel teams to follow up with guests in the time and manner they see fit.

The evolution of the hospitality industry includes a move towards more technology-based, contactless customer service. Less frequent housekeeping visits mean that hotels are looking for new ways to keep rooms clean, detect smoking, and enforce no-smoking policies. The FreshAir monitoring system accommodates changes in the hospitality industry by providing an automated, reliable tool to immediately detect tobacco smoking and marijuana smoking. As the hospitality industry pivots to new housekeeping and maintenance standards, FreshAir provides an effective solution for no-smoking policy enforcement.

For more information on the scientific basis of FreshAir Sensor, please view the supporting documents on our Sensor Technology page.

26 Apr 2022

Unauthorized smoking in multi-family apartments and public housing authorities proves costly for owners and property managers. Tobacco and marijuana smoking can cause catastrophic events like fires, and turning over a smoke damaged apartment can be expensive.

According to the United States Fire Administration, an estimated 7,000 smoking-related fires occur in residential buildings each year in the US. Additionally, fires caused by cigarette smoking in apartments result in over $300 million in property loss each year. The National Apartment Association reports that property managers spend between $3,000 and $15,000 to get an apartment ready for a new tenant after excessive smoking.

Property managers and public housing authorities are turning to FreshAir Sensor to detect smoking, reduce risks, and save money. FreshAir offers the only technology that can monitor for and specifically detect tobacco and marijuana smoking. FreshAir’s novel and patented sensors bind only with specific molecules that are present when someone is actively smoking tobacco or marijuana. The 24×7 monitoring catches unauthorized smoking and quickly provides scientific proof of tobacco smoke and marijuana smoke.

By maintaining smoke-free buildings with FreshAir Sensor, property managers and public housing authorities save money and reduce the risk of losses. Certain property insurance companies offer discounts for buildings with smoke-free policies. During a FreshAir visit to a New Hampshire apartment complex with 1,800 rental units, the property manager mentioned that they experienced three fires in 6 months. They are looking to install FreshAir smoking detection devices in all units and work with their insurance company to reduce premiums.

In addition to financial costs, the health risks of smoking in multi-family housing are especially troublesome. According to the CDC, 45% of multi-unit housing residents in the U.S. who do not allow smoking in their homes are involuntarily exposed to secondhand smoke in their units. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, 99% of children in multi-unit housing showed levels of cotinine, a nicotine byproduct, in their blood. Smoking and secondhand smoke are detrimental to children’s health, especially with regards to developmental milestones and respiratory health.

Using FreshAir to enforce no-smoking policies saves money and reduces risks. Property managers can save money on building insurance and maintenance by maintaining smoke-free properties. Property managers and public housing authorities around the country rely on FreshAir to mitigate risks associated with smoking.

02 March 2022

In 2016, the United States Federal Government announced that each public housing authority would need to adopt a smoke-free policy by the end of July 2018. The mandate banned smoking inside or within 25 feet of any public housing structure. While the policy has been an essential step to ensure healthier and safer housing for millions of residents, property managers find enforcement of the policy to be challenging. To improve smoke-free compliance, many property managers have turned to FreshAir Sensor as the primary solution to effectively detect smoking, enforce the federal smoking ban, and keep tenants safe from secondhand smoke.

FreshAir offers the only technology of its kind to accurately monitor for and detect tobacco and marijuana smoking. FreshAir’s novel and patented sensors bind only with specific molecules that are present when someone is actively smoking tobacco or marijuana. The 24×7 monitoring catches unauthorized smoking and quickly provides scientific proof of tobacco smoke and marijuana smoke.

According to the CDC, 34% of multi-unit housing residents in the U.S. who do not allow smoking in their own homes are involuntarily exposed to secondhand smoke in their units. Secondhand smoke causes developmental delays and respiratory problems in children. There is no form of safe secondhand smoke, and unchecked smokers in multi-family units pose health risks to everyone in the buildings.

In addition to keeping tenants healthier, preventing smoking saves money for public housing authorities. Maintaining a no-smoking policy can prevent catastrophic events like fires. The federal smoking ban saves government housing agencies $153 million a year in apartment repairs and health care costs. According to the National Apartment Association, turning over an apartment which has been smoked in costs $3,000 to $8,000.

In the more than 1.2 million public housing rental units in the US, compliance with the smoke-free mandate is a tall order. Public housing authorities around the country install the FreshAir real-time smoking detection system to comply with the Federal mandate

By turning to FreshAir to prevent smoking and navigate their federally mandated no-smoking policies, public housing authorities reduce the risk of fire, eliminate health risks, and save money. As an ally of public housing authorities, FreshAir is working to keep tenants healthy and safe while helping property managers achieve and maintain compliance.

21 Jan 2022

Now more than ever, hotels strive to prevent the spread of disease and keep hotel guests and staff healthy with enhanced cleaning protocols, housekeeping routines, and contactless technology. Guests have welcomed these adjustments and improvements, as they look for safety as much as comfort in their hotel stays. Building on the progress of the cleanliness campaigns, the hospitality industry has the opportunity to utilize novel sensor technology to keep guests safe from the dangers of secondhand smoke.

No form of secondhand smoke is safe for anyone. According to the CDC, secondhand smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals; 70 of which cause cancer. The carcinogenic elements of tobacco smoke and marijuana smoke can eventually lead to severe forms of lung cancer. In addition to lasting health effects in adults, secondhand smoke causes developmental issues when pregnant mothers smoke or are exposed to smoke. Children exposed to secondhand smoke are especially vulnerable, suffering from increased ear infections, asthma attacks, and respiratory illnesses throughout their lifetimes.

With safety in mind, guests and hotel staff like housekeeping want assurances that their stays and workdays do not include exposure to secondhand smoke. With the on-going COVID-19 pandemic, guests and hotel staff are even more concerned with cleanliness standards that impact their health. New research shows that both smoking and secondhand smoke exposure exacerbate COVID-19 symptoms. In light of guest approval of COVID-related cleaning procedures and the importance of maintaining a smoke-free environment, systems and technology to keep hotels smoke-free are more important than ever.

The FreshAir detection system keeps guests and staff free from secondhand smoke exposure. Hotels across the country are installing FreshAir Wi-Fi devices equipped with patented sensors to detect marijuana smoking and tobacco smoking. FreshAir’s 24×7 monitoring catches unauthorized smoking quickly and deters guests and residents from breaking no-smoking policies. FreshAir’s immediate detection and smoking alerts give no wiggle room to policy-breakers, as the system provides scientific proof of tobacco smoke and marijuana smoke.

Secondhand smoke causes many health problems, including cancer and respiratory illnesses. In light of COVID-19, guests support enhanced cleanliness standards for healthy hotel stays. FreshAir helps hotels meet the responsibilities they have to their guests and staff to maintain safe, smoke-free properties.

For more information on the scientific basis of FreshAir Sensor, please view the supporting documents on our Sensor Technology page.

02 Nov 2021

Hotel cleanliness has long been at the top of the list for hotel guest satisfaction. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, hotels were regularly conducting room cleanliness checks. Commonly, a supervisor or manager would check a sampling of rooms – 10 percent is a typical sample size – to ensure they were properly cleaned. A housekeeping supervisor or general manager might conduct the inspection using a pen and paper system with a checklist or focus on a list of items that are often overlooked. After conducting the inspection, management might fill out the form, usually placing it in a binder or storing it in a stack of papers.

While some hotels have established good tracking processes or transitioned to digital records of the room inspections, the average hotel still has difficulty ensuring compliance with room check policies. Hotel or housekeeping management either skip the inspection altogether or fill out the forms without actually conducting the inspection. When these important verification steps are skipped, hotels will only know of issues with room readiness and cleanliness if guests complain directly. Only a small percentage of customer-facing issues actually result in complaints to the hotel. A majority of room readiness mistakes go unknown to management, while still tainting the guest experience and resulting in little to no staff accountability.

The sheer volume of paper or records that typical room check inspection processes generate is another challenge – think stacks of paper forms, shelves full of binders, but most of all, no method to clearly communicate the results to management or ownership.

How can technology simplify and improve the verification of daily cleaning in guest rooms? One approach is FreshCheck, a new technology that enables hotel management to ensure high levels of cleanliness. FreshCheck Inspection Verification uses connected devices in guest rooms and an easy-to-use mobile app to reliably verify room cleanliness and readiness.

The FreshCheck system is simple, easy, and requires no integration with other infrastructure. The small device (1.5-inch x 1.5-inch x 1-inch deep) is installed in each hotel room in a discreet location. The device electronically marks a specific location, so the inspector must be within close proximity to the device to check in at that location.

The room inspector checks a room and then uses the FreshCheck mobile app to record the inspection. The inspector’s mobile device must be in the room and within 10 feet of that room’s device to check in. That room will then be verified as inspected, and the inspector can move on to the next room.

Hotel management can view cleaning verifications and run detailed daily reports on inspected rooms. Those with multiple properties can receive a rollup report of all inspections conducted, enabling management to compare results across their portfolio and eliminate the need to mail stacks of paper or, if digital, sift through unreliable and lengthy records. The app provides a simple way to accurately verify the daily cleaning of each room, improve cleanliness, and improve guest satisfaction.