Category Archives: Technology

Leading UAE-based technology and sustainability-driven facilities management (FM) company Farnek is celebrating a decade of achievement with international sustainability certification body Green Globe. “With Farnek’s support, the process of Green Globe certification, has enabled members to save over 180 million kWh of energy, worth over $20 million and nearly two million cubic metres of water which would have cost almost $5 million dollars over the last 10 years,” said Sandrine Le Biavant, Director – Consultancy, at Farnek. “A facility can save energy and water consumption by between 5 per cent and 20 per cent and subsequently make significant savings on utility costs, according to Farnek’s Hotel Optimizer benchmarking data — thanks to the guidelines and precise no cost, or low-cost recommendations provided. Potentially an average sized, five-star city hotel can save as much as $100,000 per year and in addition, waste recycling can also achieve up to 51% diversion, generating additional income from waste rebates,” added Le Biavant. Having signed their original partnership agreement in 2009, over the past decade Farnek, working together with Green Globe, has audited and certified 100 hotels and leisure facilities from 24 different hotel chains throughout the MENA region in 38 cities across 14 countries. Farnek has also coached over 2,900 hotel heads of departments about the process of certification, the wider environment and cost benefits of sustainability. As such 85,000 members of hotel staff, responsible for servicing approximately 28,000 rooms, will have received direct training. “To motivate compliance to the highest international standards, Farnek’s role as an independent consultant and auditor over the past decade has been of paramount importance,” commented Guido Bauer, CEO, Green Globe.  

Etihad will be the first airline to trial Panasonic’s new wellness solution, the Jet Lag Adviser, which was developed in collaboration with Detalytics. The solution will be integrated into the airline’s passenger app. One of the biggest challenges air passengers face when travelling across multiple time zones is jet lag. To help passengers combat this, the Jet Lag Adviser takes a range of passenger inputs including chronotype, circadian rhythms, height, weight, the nature of travel, and travel information such as flight times, routes and zones and uses its artificial intelligence engine to produce personalised jet lag plans for passengers with tailored advisories to help them reduce jet lag. Robin Kamark, Chief Commercial Officer, Etihad Aviation Group, said, “With the Jet Lag Advisor, we can now leverage artificial intelligence to improve the travel experience.” Passengers will receive a combination of generic route-based and personalised ‘jet lag impact scores’ which gives them a summary of how severe jet lag may be on that route in general and their own travel specifically, while the personalised jet lag plan incorporates the pre-flight, flight and post-flight phases, and provides a schedule of different recommendations and tips for specific times in each phase on what to do to reduce jet lag, such as sleeping, exposure to light, exercise, hydration, and the type of food to consume. Throughout each phase of the travel experience, the Jet Lag Adviser will send reminders with recommended actions to passengers via the app. Hideo Nakano, Chief Executive Officer of Panasonic Avionics, said, “We are delighted to be working with Etihad Airways to introduce technology that can help their passengers reduce jet lag, and so enhance their travel experience.”  

Opened just over one and half years, TRYP by Wyndham Dubai, a 650-room hotel in Barsha Heights, revolutionized the industry by introducing one of the most sophisticated green initiatives of any hotel in the Middle East. A market leader in sustainability, the hotel has fully operationalised the region’s first ever glass water bottle refilling system, completely eliminating the use of plastic bottles. The water filtration system removes chlorine and contaminants from mains water. The glass bottles, once used, are cleaned, refilled and labeled in-house – often plastic bottle free initiatives still see much waste going in to landfill. Another policy central to the hotel’s green initiatives is that it will be the first hotel in the Middle East to use sustainable paper toweling manufactured from 100% locally recycled cardboard. From toilet paper, to tissues and hand towels, all will be manufactured in the UAE, an initiative exclusively created for TRYP by Wyndham Dubai. The hotel’s investment in the project is part of its LUVE (Love Your Vibrant Earth) initiative, which was introduced in 2018 to reduce waste, re-use materials, and give back to its community and guests. Upon becoming 100% plastic bottle free, Jo-Ella Moore, GM, TRYP by Wyndham Dubai said, “We are acutely aware of our responsibility to the UAE to reduce plastic waste and are delighted to partner with No More Bottles in this ground-breaking initiative; we will be PET bottle free. By phasing out plastic bottled water along with our in-house refilling process and other green initiatives, we aim to raise the bar in terms of environmental best practices in the hospitality industry.”    

Etihad Airways and Elenium, an automation technology solutions provider, will together demonstrate how a newly developed voice activated self-service kiosk, bag drop and boarding gate facility will revolutionise the travel experience by taking facial recognition technology to new heights. The demonstration will take place at Passenger Terminal EXPO (PTE) in London between March 26-28. Using cloud technology, artificial intelligence (AI), computer vision and natural human interfacing, Etihad Airways and Elenium will demonstrate how they will change the way consumers travel by showcasing the airport experience of the future. Jorg Oppermann, VP HUB and Midfield Operations, Etihad Airways said, “With biometric installations increasing across airports globally, Etihad is recognising the growing demand to streamline not just the passenger verification process but also decrease passenger queues and increase operational efficiency. “As a leading global airline, Etihad’s unique collaboration with Elenium will allow us to use their advanced technologies and expertise to cultivate new ideas for the aviation industry and foster the vision of future travel.” A key area of cooperation involves the use of technologies from Elenium, Amazon Web Services (AWS), the cloud computing subsidiary of Amazon and Etihad Airways. Together at PTE, the three entities will demonstrate a test concept for a seamless travel experience across the entire customer journey from booking to arrival at the final destination. Passengers check-in to their flight and register their biometric data on their mobile device before arriving at the airport, reducing queues at the airport. Using AI, new baggage-drop terminals scan and memorise each suitcase placed on the belt and assign it to the guest reservation, removing the need for tagged luggage. Using biometrics, passengers are identified and offered a personalised duty-free shopping experience …

Japan Airlines and Travelport have agreed to form a joint venture to take ownership of Travelport Japan K K (Travelport Japan) and JAL’s 100 per cent owned subsidiary, Axess International Network. Under the unified Travelport Axess brand, the joint venture will operate a Global Distribution System (GDS) tailored to the needs of the Japanese travel industry. The proposed joint venture, which will operate under the brand name Travelport Axess, will combine Axess’ expertise in Japan and Travelport’s global technology leadership. Yoriyuki Kashiwagi, Executive Officer of International Passenger Sales, Japan Airlines, said, “We believe that the future of travel will be transformed by technological innovation. I am confident that Travelport Axess will be able to help Japanese travel agents to respond to growing global demands by offering services based on state-of-the-art technology.” Travelport Axess will continue to offer travel agents services through Axess’ GDS platform, and enable access to Travelport’s GDS platforms, Apollo and Galileo. The proposed joint venture will provide online, mobile and corporate travel propositions including global booking and expense management tools as well as access to New Distribution Capability (NDC) content, offering Japanese travel agencies and their customers the best of locally developed products with best-in-class global connectivity and capabilities. Gordon Wilson, President and Chief Executive Officer, Travelport, commented, “This announcement and our ongoing partnership with Japan Airlines is a significant advance in the provision of state-of-the-art technology for the Japanese travel industry.”

Ctrip.com International (Ctrip), one of China’s largest integrated travel services companies, has signed an agreement with Millennium Hotels and Resorts (MHR) to develop a global distribution strategy promoting MHR properties to Ctrip’s 300-million strong customer base. The agreement was announced jointly at ITB Berlin by David Zhou, Chief Business Officer—Accommodation Business Unit, Ctrip and Nayan Peshkar, Senior Vice President – Digital, Distribution & Revenue Strategy, MHR. It marks the start of an alliance enabling Ctrip to offer MHR’s iconic portfolio of hotels in the USA, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Australia to its China-based business and leisure travel clients. Zhou said, “Chinese outbound tourists reached nearly 150 million in 2018, and the growth for this year remains strong. By signing this China–focused distribution agreement with MHR, we are continuing to offer 300 million members the best hotel experience worldwide whilst enhancing MHR’s presence and boosting new business opportunities for them in the China market.” Through the aegis of a strategic collaboration agreement, MHR will partner with Ctrip’s membership programme, which will certify its properties as ‘Chinese-Friendly Hotels’ and enable them to benefit from Ctrip’s influential ranking system. MHR and Ctrip will also work towards customer initiatives such as the launching of a flagship store on Ctrip’s digital platforms, joint marketing campaigns as well as knowledge sharing and cross exposure programmes for team members. Ctrip is the number one platform for Chinese nationals travelling overseas. About one in four Chinese citizens use Ctrip to book and search for outbound flight tickets, making it the world’s largest outbound travel platform. Peshkar said, “We are delighted to be raising the profile of our hotel offering in the fast-growing China travel market. Asia …

Dubai-based international incentives provider, the ENTERTAINER, and Wego, the largest online travel marketplace in the Middle East and North Africa, announced a partnership that gives Wego users access to exclusive offers across the dining, leisure, entertainment and beauty sectors. Travellers using Wego’s offers on the metasearch engine’s iOS and Android Apps will now gain access to hundreds of 2-for-1 ENTERTAINER offers. These offers, cherry-picked for their relevance to the MENA traveller, can be redeemed across a number of global locations via the Wego App. Members can benefit from these offers at select lifestyle business outlets in the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UK, Singapore, Malaysia and Bali. Donna Benton, Founder, the ENTERTAINER, said, “Our partnership with Wego only further highlights what we believe in – appealing to all digital travellers. We want to ensure that they experience some of the best restaurants, spas and leisure activities, stress-free and at great value”. Mamoun Hmedan, Managing Director—Middle East, North Africa and India, Wego said, “This partnership is in line with our constant endeavour to give users, from around the world, the best travel shopping experience. Adding the ENTERTAINER bouquet of offers to the Wego offers regular selection of curated discounts and deals whilst reaffirming Wego’s commitment towards deepening its bond and engagement with existing users. Today, these users can avail great offers even when on holiday, rather than just securing bargains on flights and accommodation (which are booked pre-trip). Since Wego is the MENA region’s top travel App, we believe that it is best positioned to act as the natural distribution partner for the ENTERTAINER.” Tony Marshall, Head of Travel, the ENTERTAINER added, “We’re proud to be increasing the …

United Airlines will continue its long-standing relationship with Travelport as part of a multi-year agreement that demonstrates a joint commitment to deliver customer support and solutions for the benefit of travellers and travel agents alike. United has already benefited from Travelport’s rich content and branding merchandising solution by differentiating its offerings and dynamically distributing content across the globe. This tool allows customers to easily compare airline offerings and take advantage of United’s comprehensive route network and improved customer experience. Both companies will continue to work together to enhance the delivery of United’s product offering, including ancillaries and fare families, to agencies and corporations through Travelport’s traditional ATPCO and API platforms, including deployment of United content made available consistent with IATA’s New Distribution Capability (NDC) standard. “I’m delighted to announce that our relationship with United has been extended for a multi-year term. United has seen great success with our rich content and branding solution and extended global reach, We look forward to supporting United’s growth, its dedication to providing better experiences for agencies and travelers worldwide and pioneering NDC solutions,” said Damian Hickey, Global Head of Air Travel Partners, Travelport. “While direct volumes through our award-winning website and mobile app continue to grow, we want to be available across a variety of booking channels, and collaborating with Travelport helps us do that,” said Dave Bartels, Vice President of Pricing and Revenue Management, United Airlines. “United is excited to be working together with Travelport on our NDC initiative to provide tailored content to our customers through the Travelport subscriber network, which will allow customers to better customise their travel with different amenities and experiences.”

Travelport has announced the signing of an agreement with United Arab Emirates (UAE)-based Bin Moosa Travels to deploy Trip Assist, its advanced mobile application for travel management companies and travel agencies. Travelport has now secured more than 45 Trip Assist customers across the world. Bin Moosa Travels will benefit from a fully branded mobile engagement solution that allows it to support, engage and connect with travellers at every stage of their journey. Incorporating smart itinerary management capabilities and the ability to create agency defined messages and rich push notifications; the solution will empower the agency to build stronger relationships with its customers. Trip Assist will support Bin Moosa Travels’ customers by allowing them to share and organize their complex travel plans on the go and from one place. It will also give them greater autonomy to self-serve with features that enable airline check-in, the ability to import external bookings and ‘click to call’ support. By giving travelers more control, the solution will also provide the agent with more time to spend on more specialist travel enquiries. Mary Thomas, Managing Director of Bin Moosa Travels, said: “People in the UAE are extremely digitally savvy and fully expect support to be delivered 24/7 throughout their travel journey, across multiple physical and digital channels. By using Trip Assist, we will be able to deliver a new standard of digital service to our customers, while freeing up our consultants to spend more time providing expert advice.” Kathryn Wallington, Travelport’s Country Manager for the UAE, said: “With Cozmo Travel already signed up, we now have two Trip Assist customers in the Emirates. With demand from travelers for best-in-class mobile travel solutions escalating in the UAE, …

Amadeus has announced that it will be repositioning its offerings in Bahrain by transitioning its local customers to a new distributor entity under the name of Amadeus Bahrain. The new company will be the exclusive distributor of Amadeus solutions throughout the Kingdom, providing local airlines, airports, hotels, travel agencies, and other travel players with access to the full breadth of Amadeus technology. Travel companies in Bahrain had previously worked directly with Amadeus Gulf, a regional joint venture that continues overseeing the company’s operations in the UAE and Oman. The new Amadeus Bahrain entity will be headed by longtime industry veteran and Bahrain resident Daniel Naoumovitch, who joins in the capacity of Managing Director. Additional Amadeus support staff will transfer to the new entity, with all Amadeus contracts in Bahrain remaining unchanged and assigned to the new entity, ensuring a seamless transition of operations. Antoine Medawar, Senior Vice President—Retail, Middle East and Africa said, “We are fully committed to the high standards of service and support that Amadeus is known for, and believe this move will enable us to enhance those offerings in the future.” Bahrain’s tourism industry is booming as the Kingdom expects to welcome 15 million annual visitors by 2020 – equivalent to roughly nine times the Kingdom’s population. The sector also accounts for approximately 9.7 per cent of the country’s GDP, with tourism revenues projected to top $1 billion by 2020, according to recent figures from the Bahrain Economic Development Board. Daniel Naoumovitch, Managing Director, Amadeus Bahrain added, “I am thrilled to be part of the Amadeus family and the new organisation being established in Bahrain. We look forward to energising Bahrain’s rapidly expanding travel industry by capitalising on …