“Take-Care packages” support Premium Partners worldwide with the marketing of storage solutions 

Bad Staffelstein / Germany, July 13th, 2017 – IBC SOLAR AG, a global leader in photovoltaic (PV) systems and energy storage, supports its international Premium Partners with new service packages for lithium-ion storage systems. Installers in more than 30 countries are tapping into new business segments with the “Take-Care packages”. 

“We are an experienced partner with more than 7,000 installed storage systems of all sizes worldwide. Our international customers often express the wish to be supported when initially installing a lithium-ion storage system,” explains Albert Engelbrecht, Director Solutions International at IBC SOLAR. The company is now accommodating this request with the new service packages.

“The “Take-Care packages” help our partners with the planning, installation and maintenance of storage solutions and offer them important added value. The packages make it possible for our partners to implement the systems quickly and reliably and also ensure satisfied customers,” adds Engelbrecht. The customer decides which “Take-Care package” is the right one. Three versions are available “Essential”, “Empowering” and “Ensuring”.

The “Essential” basic package is also the basis for the two other packages. It includes an extensive pre-consultation session with technical pre-selection and sizing of the storage system. Fundamental questions about the application and expectations of the system will be resolved. It is important here to determine whether only the self-consumption needs to be increased or whether the storage system should also provide an emergency power supply.  The “Empowering” package involves IBC SOLAR also providing support with an extensive system design, circuit diagrams and parts lists as well as telephone support to help put the system into operation.

The “Ensuring” premium package also includes on-site support with a handover report and an optional workshop for service and maintenance work. IBC SOLAR has been active in the photovoltaic and battery storage sector for more than 35 years. The international partners will benefit from the company's years of experience in the storage segment with the new “Take-Care packages”. 

About IBC SOLAR
IBC SOLAR is a leading global provider of photovoltaic and energy storage solutions and services. The company offers complete systems and covers the entire product range from planning to the turnkey handover of photovoltaic systems. The product range comprises solar parks, self-consumption systems for commercial enterprises and private households, off-grid photovoltaic systems and diesel hybrid solutions.

As a project developer and general contractor, IBC SOLAR implements and markets major solar projects worldwide. The manufacturer-independent system house guarantees the highest quality for all projects and has currently implemented photovoltaic systems with an output of over 3 gigawatts worldwide. IBC SOLAR works with a close network of Premium Partners and supports them with their own software tools for planning and designing grid-connected systems including storage systems. IBC SOLAR offers customised packages for energy providers, municipal utilities and providers of photovoltaic solutions.

The company ensure the best possible output of solar parks through technical management and monitoring. IBC SOLAR was founded by Udo Möhrstedt in Bad Staffelstein in 1982 who has managed the company as the Chairman of the Executive Board to date. The system house is a pioneer of the energy turnaround in Germany and is especially committed to energy cooperatives with its own planned public solar parks. The company is represented internationally with numerous regional companies, sales offices and partner companies in more than 30 countries.

​In partnership with Power Construction, the City of Cape Town and the Western Cape Government Habitat for Humanity is calling on all active citizens to come together and join them in their Desmond Tutu International Build Week in Pelican Park from the 2 – 6 March.  Responding and putting into action the request in the words of their patron Archbishop Desmond Tutu “Do your little bit of good where you are - it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world’.  

Teams from as far afield as the USA and Ireland will be joining the build event together with 18 of  ​Habitat's International Board of Directors from across the 70 countries in which Habitat operates as they have chosen Cape Town as their venue for their Board meeting this year.   Funding provided by the event helps provide valuable funding for Habitat’s Social Facilitation Programme as part of Habitat’s community development work in the Pelican Park project.     

Through their Social Facilitation Programme in partnership with the communities and galvanising the support of active citizens and other stakeholder partners, communities are empowered to take ownership of their communities through leadership, skills development and self-belief to become the champions of their own developments and their communities.  

“Our five-year goal through our community development process is to meaningfully transform the lives of at least 100, 000 fellow South Africans living in communities across South Africa.  Help us achieve this by joining our team build event, helping to build homes, communities and hope” said Adrienne Burke, Habitat’s Marketing Manager.  If you or your company are interested in getting involved contact Habitat’s Head Office on 021 657 5640.    

Editors notes

Founded in 1996, Habitat for Humanity South Africa is the national organisation of Habitat for Humanity International and part of Habitat’s Europe, Middle East and African region. Habitat South Africa is entirely self-funded and works in partnership with all stakeholders to serve the poor and marginalised in our country. Based on the firm belief that decent shelter provides the greatest opportunity for families to break the cycle of poverty, Habitat works with all people to give a hand up in building homes, communities and hope.    

This press release has been distributed on behalf of our client, Habitat for Humanity South Africa.  

Top tips for saving and celebrating a greener Christmas 

Load shedding is a fact of life for the foreseeable future in South Africa and a little planning and creativity can alleviate a lot of the unpleasantness during the holidays. This is according to Evan Schiff, event director of the annual African Utility Week and Clean Power Africa conference and expo in Cape Town.

He says furthermore that higher electricity prices in South Africa have become an increasing strain on consumers’ monthly expenses and that “Christmas is a great time to introduce energy saving habits into a household as many easy and simple changes in the way we live can end up putting extra money into your pocket.”

Practical tips to plan for and cope with load shedding this holiday:
•    Be prepared, keep a regular eye on websites with information on load shedding schedules and print these out.  http://www.loadshedding.eskom.co.za/
•    Create a Whatsapp group for your neighbourhood and keep each other informed.
•    Make sure that there are enough candles, matches, torches, batteries and so forth for load shedding periods after dark.
•    Be ready for it! Make sure all cellphones, tablets, laptops and toys are fully charged before the lights go out. This way you can keep the kids entertained with a movie, or at least be able to use the phone.
•    Have fun activities ready for when the lights are off such as board games and family time around the barbeque.
•    Keep a gas burner as a back-up in the kitchen to be able to heat water and do essential cooking.   

An energy efficient holiday season
“There are a variety of ways we can use a lot less electricity this holiday season”, says Schiff, “such as using LED* Christmas lights which use 90% less electricity than regular Christmas lights. Consider investing in solar powered outdoor lights which can also be used on the Christmas tree and only come on at night.”

He continues: “up to 40% of all batteries are purchased during the holiday season so try to buy toys and gifts that don't use electricity or batteries. Gifts made of recycled material are also a great environmentally friendly gesture.”

More handy energy saving tips for the holiday season:
•    Don’t use the tumble dryer unnecessarily – it is summer, so take advantage of solar powered drying.
•    Turn off the room lights when the Christmas tree lights are on.
•    Set a timer to Christmas and outdoor lights to limit the time they are on.
•    Create a romantic and intimate atmosphere by using candles instead of lights.
•    Enjoy the weather and celebrate the holidays outside with a braai instead of cooking on a stove!  Or enjoy cold meats and salads during this summer season – it’s healthier and saves on power.
•    If you’re going away, turn off/ the geyser, empty and unplug the refrigerator.Advice for improving energy efficiency in your home during the year:
•    Invest in a geyser blanket. Unless the geyser is properly insulated, switching it off does not save electricity.
•    Insulate the roof to make the house cooler in summer and warmer in winter and thereby saving on seasonal heating and cooling.•    Switch off appliances at the wall plug when not in use.
•    Replace CFL (compact fluorescent lamps) bulbs with LED.
•    Use cold water to do laundry, it saves electricity and is better for the clothes.

Gathering thousands of energy professionals
For the past 14 years, the African Utility Week and Clean Power Africa conference and exhibition has helped to reduce the energy consumption of commercial and industrial large power users and has assisted in African utilities providing electricity and water to all of Africa. The event brings together thousands of utility professionals from across the globe to learn, share knowledge and debate the key topics that will secure the future development of Africa’s power industry. These include energy efficiency, improved service delivery, renewable energy, collaboration across the continent and investment in new power projects. South Africa’s state utility Eskom has been a key partner for many years.

The 15th edition of African Utility Week is expected to again attract more than 5000 attendees and feature 250 exhibitors, 190 speakers, eight conferences, free technical workshops on the expo floor, three high-profile plenary sessions and the coveted industry awards gala dinner. Stakeholders from across the industry and continent are represented, from Ministers of Energy through to power and water utilities, municipalities and regulators to investors and technology and service providers.  

Attending the African Utility Week and Clean Power Africa exhibition is free when registering in advance and it showcases energy saving technologies and services for the industry and features hands-on demonstrations and workshops on the exhibition floor.

*LED=light-emitting diodes

Eskom’s 49M campaign encourages all South Africans to take the 49M pledge to save at least 10% electricity.  http://www.49m.co.za

African Utility Week and Clean Power Africa are organised by Spintelligent, leading Cape Town-based trade exhibition and conference organiser, and the African office of Clarion Events Ltd, based in the UK.

The dates for next year’s African Utility Week and Clean Power Africa are:  
Exhibition & Conference: 12-14 May 2015
Industry awards: 13 May 2015
Site Visits: 15 May 2015
Location:  CTICC, Cape Town
Website:  www.african-utility-week.com, www.clean-power-africa.com 

Contact for interviews:
Event director: Evan Schiff
Mobile: +27 83 415 3534
Email:  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Communications manager:  Annemarie Roodbol
Telephone:  +27 21 700 3558
Mobile:  +27 82 562 7844
Email:  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

www.african-utility-week.com/pages/detail/15725

5000+ power and water professionals to meet for 15th annual industry meeting

Regional collaboration in the power and water sectors, the untapped potential of renewable energy and investment challenges will be top of the agenda at the 15th African Utility Week and Clean Power Africa conference and exhibition, returning to the CTICC in Cape Town from 12-14 May next year. The event is expected to again attract more than 5000 attendees and feature 250 exhibitors, 190 speakers, eight conferences, free technical workshops on the expo floor, three high-profile plenary sessions and the coveted industry awards gala dinner.The event brings together utility professionals from across the globe to learn, share knowledge and debate the key topics that will secure the future development of Africa’s power and water industries.

Africa is open for business
The new event director for African Utility Week Evan Schiff says: “Based on consultations with the industry, we have extended the conference and exhibition by an extra day, so we now offer three days of conference sessions, networking and an extra plenary session. The theme of our opening plenary session is: ‘Africa is open for business’. We have a few surprises up our sleeves in terms of keynote speakers and at this stage we can confirm that the Rockefeller Foundation’s Managing Director for Africa, Mr Mamadou Biteye, is part of our high-level line-up.”

He continues: “our most important aim is to remain relevant by providing the best industry insight and knowledge to attendees. To ensure we are plugged in to the most up to date information, we work very closely with leading and pioneering individuals and companies in the sector. Our high-level advisory board is a veritable who’s who of the power and water industries and our conference and technical workshop programmes reflect this with topical, up-to-date discussions and presentations.”     

Industry challenges
With regards to challenges in the industry, the African Utility Week director says “there is a growing need for regional collaboration: establishing a regulatory framework for the entire region and cross-border power supplies and exchanges. Furthermore, there is vast untapped potential in solar PV, wind, and geothermal that can be used as power generation sources.”

Another major challenge is access to finance for investment in energy projects and infrastructure development. To address the calls for more information on this key sector, African Utility Week 2015 presents a new Finance & Investment conference track that will create a unique forum for utilities, governments and project developers to meet with international, regional, local and alternative financiers to explore new opportunities arising from the utility industry, address relevant challenges, and answer some of the thorny funding questions. It will have the objective of encouraging funding and revenue inflows into the utility sector by engaging leading decision makers on the global finance and investment arena.

Industry buy-in
Eskom is again the host utility for the event, Cape Town the host city while the event also enjoys the support of professional industry bodies such as the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers (SAIEE), the Power Institute for East and Southern Africa (PIESA) and Southern Africa Asset Management Association (SAAMA).

Big suppliers of technology and services to the sector have also already signed up as high-profile partners at the event, including global player DNV GL as exclusive diamond sponsor, while Accenture, Building Energy, MarelliMotori and Rubbytad are the four platinum sponsors.  

CEO Forum
The invitation-only Utility CEO Forum is the only African forum where C-level executives from Africa's leading utilities come together to discuss pressing topics within the industry and to accelerate cross-border collaboration, development plans and the advancement of regional centres of excellence throughout Africa. Utility executives from countries such as Nigeria, Uganda, Namibia, Ghana, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa are expected to return.

Awards – Outstanding Woman in Power
The inaugural African Utility Week Industry Awards last year were a sold-out success with companies and individuals in the power and water industry honoured in categories ranging from Lifetime Achievement, Municipality of the Year to Clean Energy Project of the Year. For the 2015 event there will be a total of ten categories, with a new category that has been added, namely Outstanding Woman in Power.

Attending the African Utility Week and Clean Power Africa exhibition is free when registering in advance and it showcases energy saving technologies and services for the industry and features hands-on demonstrations and CPD-accredited technical workshops on the exhibition floor. Log on to www.african-utility-week.com for free registration.

African Utility Week and Clean Power Africa are organised by Spintelligent, the African office of Clarion Events Ltd which is based in the UK. It has become recognised as a highly successful African event organiser and publisher, with flagship projects in the power, mining, agriculture, defence and education sectors such as African Utility Week, West African Power Industry Convention, African EduWeek, Agritech-Expo, Land Forces Africa and the iPAD infrastructure and mining event franchise.

Dates for African Utility Week and Clean Power Africa 2015:
Conference and expo: 12-14 May 2015
Awards gala dinner:  13 May 2015
Site visits: 15 May 2015
Location: CTICC, Cape Town, South Africa
Websites: www.african-utility-week.com and www.clean-power-africa.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AfricaUtilities
Linkedin: African Power Forum

Contact:
Communications manager:  Annemarie Roodbol
Telephone:  +27 21 700 3558
Mobile:  +27 82 562 7844
Email:  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

We, Kansai Plascon, have achieved one of our best B-BEE ratings to date and are recognised as a Value Adding Supplier. Our B-BBEE procurement recognition level has increased from 110% to 137.5%, which is higher than that of a non-value adding level 1 status supplier. So, when tendering for projects, our combined B-BBEE status and Value Adding Supplier position effectively make Kansai Plascon the preferred procurement choice.

Our B-BBEE status now stands at level 3, as of  September 2014, having increased from level 4 in 2013. With a score of 80.27 points, this rating cements our position as the coatings industry market leader.  

There's great news for our customers too. Companies that  purchase from Plascon will  improve their own procurement scores thereby improving their B-BBEE ratings. By partnering with us, customers benefit through improved B-BBEE procurement scores.  

In contrast, if a customer purchases products from a non-value adding level 5 supplier and not Plascon, then their  procurement recognition will amount to a far lesser 80% only. All this renders Kansai Plascon the obvious choice.  

Kansai Plascon has 125-year long history of leading quality assurance, superb formulation and trusted performance – and now, we have also secured our position as the market leader in benefitting our customers.  

- ENDS

About Kansai Plascon Kansai Plascon is a company within the global Kansai Paint group. Kansai Paint is the world’s sixth largest paint company and Japan’s foremost coatings manufacturer. With the backing of Kansai Paint, Kansai Plascon will continue to drive innovation and excellence in the retail, trade and industrial coatings market in South Africa and will further the company’s interests in Africa.  

For further information, please contact: Alex Coggins Marketing Executive, Kansai Plascon + 27 11 951 4500

Woman of today have realized that getting their period every month is, well I guess, just the way life goes. In 1996, Instead, Inc. pioneered a new alternative to tampons and pads with the development and release of its innovative Softcup.

Now in 2014, Maybe MOM is proud to announce that they have made this product tagged ‘The Next Generation of Period Protection' available to the South African market. Maybe MOM Instead Softcup gives you 12-hour wear time, comfort and convenience during your period allowing ladies to live life without interruptions.

Softcup is a flexible cup that is worn internally, around your cervix. It collects, rather than absorbs menstrual flow. It's hypo-allergenic, latex-free and completely safe when used as directed. Softcup has gained popularity for its many advantages over traditional methods of feminine protection including greater safety, longer wear-time, and clean sex during “that time of the month. Softcup can be worn during any activity including sports, swimming and sleeping.  Use one reusable Softcup for up to three cycles, which makes it Easy on the Earth and Easy on the wallet retailing in stores for only R49.99.

More than 200 million Softcups have been sold since the product’s introduction in America in 1996, and there has never been a reported incidence of Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS). In extensive laboratory testing Softcup did not promote the growth of the bacteria that causes TSS. Softcup does not change the body’s natural environment nor does it alter the body’s pH levels, natural bacteria levels or absorb the body’s moisture. “It allows me to use the softcup until the last day of my period, even when my flow may be little to none, it’s comfortable and does not cause dryness or irritation” says Amanda, owner of Maybe MOM South Africa.

“Because the Softcup was uniquely designed for the modern-day woman, it has grown tremendously and developed staying power in the American market, proving an excellent alternative to tampons and pads,” said Joseph Pike, CEO of Instead. Women have embraced the concept of the Softcup because of the greater flexibility and control it gives them over their lives.  In fact, when the Softcup is not offered somewhere, women seek it out rather than buy the alternatives.

The Softcup is an FDA-approved, reusable menstrual product made from a non-absorbent, non irritating polymeric material that has been used for over 20 years in health care products such as catheters and baby bottle nipples and contains no latex. It has undergone extensive toxicology, bio-compatibility and microbiological tests as well as human clinical testing, and contains no drying chemicals or fibers. 

12-Hour Period Protection, Instead Softcup is a proven advancement in period protection. Try it and you'll see how it fits into your busy life.  

For more information and to purchase contact (Wholesale enquiries welcome)  Facebook: www.facebook/maybe mom.com / Website:  www.aeadistribution.co.za /Your nearest Checkers and Checkers Hyper stores as well as Medi Rite Pharmacy’s    For Interviews: Amanda or Elie Kouaiky /Tel:   +2783 2928292 / +2782 8881816 / This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. / This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The second development phase at Somerset Lakes, a 42-hectare residential estate in Somerset West, will be released to the market in mid September. The first phase sold out rapidly, with 114 sales being recorded within just six weeks of the launch. Construction of the first phase is well under way and occupation is expected to take place in mid 2015.

The new phase, Waterford Green, comprises 48 freestanding double-storey houses, selling from R1,3 million including VAT, no transfer duty. These two and three bedroom homes offer spacious, contemporary, open-plan living areas and private gardens. All homes include at least two bathrooms, one being en suite, and the three-bedroom design offers a garage and an optional guest toilet.

According to Dave Harris, Sales and Marketing Manager of Somerset Lakes, the new product has been specifically designed to help meet the growing demand for affordable, quality housing in the popular Somerset West area.

“We’ve been inundated with requests from buyers looking for houses,” Harris said. “People want freestanding homes with gardens, views and security, in close proximity to the centre of Somerset West, and that’s exactly what our latest product at Somerset Lakes has to offer.”

Designed by Schabort Associates Architects, the new development phase is located alongside the six-hectare lake that gives the estate its name.

“This unique feature is a huge attraction,” Harris commented. “It’s ideal for swimming, canoeing, sailing, windsurfing and fishing, and home to a rich variety of water birds. A magnificent community clubhouse on the shores of the lake, The Summer Club, will enhance the appeal of this fantastic recreational asset, providing residents with play areas, boat sheds, a sandy white beach, and a swimming pool and deck area with stunning views of False Bay and the Hottentots Holland mountains.”

The developers, Omwieco (Pty) Ltd, a consortium of highly experienced development professionals backed by financial giant Investec, have devoted no less than 40% of the estate’s total area to green, open space for the recreation of residents. This includes the lakes and other water features, a mature forest of stone pine trees, landscaped parks and gardens, and kilometres of walking trails and mountain biking tracks.

An indigenous fynbos nursery has been established on the estate, which was recently awarded the prized 2014 SALI Gold Award for landscape design by the South African Landscapers Institute.“No expense has been spared to implement the most technically advanced security system at Somerset Lakes,” said Harris. "These measures include electrified perimeter fencing with 70 high-definition surveillance cameras, which are monitored around the clock from the hi-tech guardhouse, 24-hour guarding and patrols, and an on-site rapid response team. Other advanced features include biometric fingerprint access control."

All homes in the estate will be hardwired with fibre-optic cabling for superfast internet access, DStv and VOIP telephone connectivity, which will allow free telephone calls within the estate.

A Curro Castle School is being constructed on the estate and is due to open its doors in 2015.

Convenient access to the Somerset West village has been provided by the developers through the R16 million construction of Reunion Drive, which links the main entrance of Somerset Lakes to Sir Lowry’s Pass Village Road under a specially constructed railway bridge. Just a few hundred metres from this entrance, an upmarket new shopping centre is now under construction, where Checkers, Woolworths Foods and Clicks will be the anchor tenants.The Vergelegen Mediclinic and the Somerset West CBD are less than two kilometres away, while popular Somerset Mall shopping centre is just 3,5 kilometres from the estate.

“When you consider the amazing lifestyle advantages Somerset Lakes offers, the security, the convenience of the surrounding amenities, and the incredible natural beauty of the estate, I have no doubt our second phase will sell as fast as the first one,” said Harris.“I strongly advise anyone interested to register online for an invitation to a pre-launch sales opportunity, ahead of our public launch in mid September, to avoid disappointment.”

For further information visit www.somersetlakes.co.za or phone 021 202 2200.

Further recognition of the City Lodge Hotel Group’s commitment to sustainability and environmental responsibility

Johannesburg, June 27, 2014

The City Lodge Hotel brand within the City Lodge Hotel Group has been certified  by the Green Leaf™ Eco  Standard, acknowledging the significant improvements that have been made in the important areas of energy efficiency, water efficiency, waste management, responsible procurement and staff and guest awareness of environmental responsibility issues.

While the certification  initially applies only to the City Lodge Hotel brand, the group has largely implemented the same technology and procedures in its Courtyard Hotel, Town Lodge and Road Lodge brands.  Green Leaf™ Eco Standard is an initiative of the Wilderness Foundation, aimed at enabling and certifying the balance between business and nature.

Over the past three years, the City Lodge Hotel Group has rolled out a group-wide energy efficiency initiative across all four of its brands with the emphasis focused on the installation of LED lighting (around 40,000 bulbs) and heat pumps and the monitoring and reduction of energy consumption. The group is also a member of Eskom’s 49M energy efficiency campaign which commits partners to a 15% reduction in electricity usage.

Concerted efforts also focused on water efficiency and responsible waste management 

More recently, the group has embarked on a water efficiency programme across the City Lodge Hotel brand, focusing on efficient flow technology on shower heads and taps, dual-flush toilets and the re-using of towels.  The intention is to roll this out across the other three brands.

Attention has also gone into improving waste management as part of the certification  for the City Lodge Hotel brand. This has included the separation of different types of waste on site, the transport of waste to recycling centres and the transport of non-recyclable waste to landfill sites

.According to Clifford Ross, the group’s CEO, “We’re proud of achieving this latest certification  as it recognises the serious attention we have paid to reducing our carbon footprint and maximizing our effective use of electricity and water and responsible disposal of recyclable and non-recyclable waste,” said Ross. 

“Standards for responsible tourism have also been incorporated into the certification  we have received, further demonstrating our commitment to sustainability and environmental responsibility in our operations,” he added.Andrew Phillips, CEO of Green Leaf™ Eco Standard said: “I have had the pleasure of witnessing the leadership group of City Lodge initiate a responsible tourism mind-set change throughout its hotel brands and to now formally sign-off on core certification under the Green Leaf™ Eco Standard certification programme is recognition well deserved.”    

Significantly, City Lodge’s Green Leaf certification  ideally complements the City Lodge Earth Day initiative, which was launched on social media platforms at the beginning of June.The core message of this campaign is that every day is Earth Day. The pay-off line is “no planet no you; no you, no us.”Marketing collateral is being developed to communicate this messaging to guests within hotels enabling them to participate in the campaign in a practical way.

Green is our favourite colour!

City Lodge is big into helping to protect the environment. ‘Sustainability’ is the buzzword around here and accordingly we’ve been busily greening our practices, like installing power-saving LED light bulbs in our hotels as well as providing dual-flushing toilet systems.

As of today we’re also launching our City Lodge Earth Day campaign, which is about promoting green practices amongst our staff and guests. It’s just one more step in trying to reduce our impact on the environment.The idea behind City Lodge Earth Day is that every day is a good day to focus on the environment.

So you will be seeing many educational and encouraging messages on our social media channels and within our hotels about ‘going green’ and how you can be part of the movement. Because the thing with green practices is that the more people you can get on board, the more beneficial they are. Together, we really can make a difference!

Small changes that together make a big differenceThere are many small changes we can each make in our daily behaviours, especially in the context of our own homes, to reduce the impact of man on the environment. But let’s take a look at just a few that you could embrace when staying at a City Lodge Hotel…

Actions that save energy include:

1. turning off lights whenever not in the room
2. making sure windows are closed when the air-con is on
3. unplugging electrical equipment when it’s not in use
4. dressing warmly in winter so that you don’t need to turn the heat up as high
5. not filling the kettle up to the top when you only need hot water for one or two cups.

Actions that save water include:

1. choosing to shower instead of bathing
2. turning off the tap while soaping your hands
3. only using the little button on the dual-flushing system when appropriate
4. always making sure all taps are properly turned off.

Other actions that help protect the environment include:

1. using environmentally friendly shampoos and soaps, like those supplied by City Lodge Hotels for our guests
2. using towels for longer than a day – this saves both water and power as fewer towels need washing.

LED lights up our world!

LED light bulbs and lamps are far more energy efficient than their incandescent or fluorescent equivalents. They are also vastly more ecologically friendly, as they contain no toxic materials and are 100% recyclable.

Knowing this, we at City Lodge Hotel Group have over the past year installed roughly 40,000 LED globes in our hotels, 26,000 of which were within hotels that are part of the City Lodge Hotel brand. In addition, over 4,000 other lights were also converted to more energy-efficient options.

Speaking about all the green changes that have been taking place in City Lodge Hotels, Chief Executive Clifford Ross says,“We remain committed to the journey which we embarked upon some years back to reduce our impact on the planet. Our journey meant that we critically evaluated all aspects of our business to positively influence our planet.”

So as you can see we’re going to be doing things a little differently around here from now on and we encourage you to do things a little differently with us!

{pp}The Natural and Organic Exhibition held their expo at the CTICC this year with a, according to reports, over 30% increase in visitor attendance. The venue was filled to the brim with ‘green’ products and services ranging from a variety of sectors, including shopping centres, beauty products and fashion items. What excited us was that amongst all the natural and organic products and services on display, where friendly faces from the built environment, including; solar technologies, low VOC paints and waste water management systems.