FACE TO FACE with MS CINN TAN

What are the various sustainability efforts undertaken by PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay that set Itself apart from others In the Industry?

The global hospitality industry has an ecological footprint that Pan Pacific Hotels Group is deeply mindful of. In this, we saw the importance of leading the charge in sustainable hospitality, especially with our PARKROYAL COLLECTION brand of hotels. The genesis of sustainable efforts began at the birth of PARKROYAL COLLECTION Pickering in 2013, which has since been recognized widely for its biophilia efforts, including “World’s Leading Green City Hotel” by World Travel Awards consistently.

Here is an excerpt of the interview.

Aligning with this philosophy, the story of PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay starts from its very foundations. In the construction phase, we made the decision to preserve the original structure of the building from 1985. This prevented the emission of 51,300 tonnes of carbon dioxide, which would come with demolishing a typical high-rise. This is equivalent to a forested area larger than all of Singapore’s nature reserves. Preserving the original building is not a common practice because of additional considerations in implementing updated infrastructure, especially with sustainable features in mind. However, we saw this as a chance to creatively incorporate green elements.

We introduced a dramatic “garden-in-a -hotel” concept with more than 2,400 trees, shrubs and the groundcovers – an unprecedented experience that immerse our guests in a lush tropical retreat while indoors. We built the Atrium’s skylight with low-emissivity, double-glazed glass that reduces indoor ambient temperature by 2 ° C, equivalent to a 2% reduction in electricity use. Rooftop solar panels will be installed, reducing the hotel’s overall energy consumption by 1.4%, and motion sensors throughout the hotel regulate energy use as well. Outside the all-day dining restaurant Peppermint lies an extensive urban farm of more than 60 varieties of edible greens, which provides some 20% of produce to the restaurant.

We also involve our guests in our sustainability journey and hope to inspire them through our tangible efforts. Filtered-water taps installed in all guest rooms at our PARKROYAL COLLECTION hotels eliminate the use of more than 360,000 plastic bottles a year at each property. We are also rolling out pumped amenities made from the biodegradable plastics in lieu of travel-sized plastic bottles, and the brand’s F&B outlets have eliminated the consumption of single-use plastics. We also introduced electric vehicles and charging stations. We are honoured that within months of its opening, PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay was awarded “5-star Best Hotel Interior” at the International Property Awards 2021. This is an affirmation to us that our design for sustainability is leading the charge towards a future of ecologically conscious development.

What are some of the challenges of implementing these sustainability efforts and initiatives in Singapore?

One of the challenges as a Group leading the push for sustainability is appealing to consumer mindsets without compromising our brand values. When we consider more traditional expectations, there are guests who do expect their stay to be accompanied by certain luxuries that may not be environmentally friendly, such as single-use bathroom amenities and bottled mineral water.

Our task is to creatively address these needs in a way that aligns with our sustainability agenda. We provide brand-label soaps and lotions that are cruelty-free and paraben-free, dispensed through biodegradable pump bottles. Our guests have also responded well to the glass bottles and filtered-water taps provided, understanding that PARKROYAL COLLECTION stands for environmentally conscious practices.

Our restaurants have also introduced creative cuisine using sustainable food sources, including a plant-based menu at PARKROYAL COLLECTION Pickering’s Lime Restaurant. While these may have been initially radical changes to the traditional luxury hotel experience, such sustainability measures have set the standard across the industry, and we see that a growing majority of guests are supportive of these efforts.

There is also a misconception that sustainable practices compromise the quality of the product. This is where we challenge ourselves to convey that the luxury service mindset focuses on the holistic experience, and we do not compromise on our sincerity in service and the quality of hardware.

In fact, sustainable features demand a higher cost of implementation. Efforts like installing solar panels and double-glazed glass, as well as adopting sustainable food sources and biodegradable materiaIs, are investments that we make as long-term future-proofing efforts. Moreover, green features such as solar panels and double-walled glass can even bring us cost savings in the long run.

The innovations in the sustainability/environmental aspects by PARKROYAL COLLECTION are remarkable. Are consumers in Singapore becoming increasingly conscious about hotels’ efforts in this aspect?

Perhaps brought to light amidst the pandemic, we are seeing that sustainability is a growing concern among consumers in Singapore. A 2021 study by Accenture and the World Wide Fund for Nature in Singapore shared that 80% of consumers care about the environment, with a third of the consumers expressing they would make most purchasing decisions based on product sustainability and environmental impact.

These are clear indicators that Singaporeans are becoming increasingly environmentally conscious and selective in their purchasing patterns including their choice of hospitality brands for stay cations.

Earlier this year, the Singapore Government also announced an injection of an extra S$68.5m into the Tourism Development Fund for businesses looking to test-bed sustainable tourism offerings. This move towards sustainability in the local tourism sector is aligned with the Singapore Green Plan that was unveiled earlier this year, and is one of the 2030 targets under the green economy pillar. These developments will cast corporate sustainability efforts into the spotlight, and as public awareness of environmentally conscious measures rises, we hope that our efforts will become even more visible to consumers.

In light of the global pandemic and the challenges that hotels are facing worldwide, how does PARKROYAL COLLECTION ensure its sustainability efforts remain impactful?

Despite the pandemic’s impact on global travel and hospitality, we have not eased up on our push for sustainability. Taking care of our environment is equally, if not more, important now. We are maintaining our baseline efforts and these have returned tangible energy and cost savings.

To quantify the impact of our efforts, PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay’s ‘green’ hardware save more than S$60,000 annually in energy costs. The PARKROYAL COLLECTIO N Pickering’s rainwater harvesting tank­ which recycles rain water to irrigate its self-sustaining gardens – conserves an average of 6,000m3 of water a year, equivalent to 2.4 times the volume of an Olympic swimming pool.

Eliminating the use of plastic bottles across both properties has also saved an estimated S$70,000 worth of bottled water. Adopting biodegradable packaging for F&B is even more significant now that online deliveries and takeaways have risen during the pandemic; utilizing eco-friendly packaging is our way of ensuring we remain sustainable when it matters most.

Adapting to Covid-19 has also catalyzed our digitization journey. We are exploring approaches like a keyless check-in system and rolling out digital concierges across our hotels, which help us to reduce our carbon footprint and consumption. We expect to develop even more measures as we shift into a more digitized future.

 On the use of green technology, right now PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay leverages the use of solar panels, among others. How do you see the current initiatives will evolve given the continuous evolution in the green technology space?

With the Singapore Green Plan kicking into full gear and sustainable-tourism incentives pouring into the industry, we are excited to welcome more innovative adoptions of green technology. One of the targets that Singapore hopes to reach by 2030 is an 80% improvement in energy efficiency over the 2005 baseline for best-in-class green buildings; with this in mind, we are likely to see more energy-saving technologies cropping up in both existing and new developments. We can imagine a future city of expanded underground networks, autonomous delivery vehicles, entire rooftop solar power ‘gardens’, and air quality sensors .

We are also gearing up towards a future of electric vehicle-ready towns and 60,000 charging points nationwide . Pan Pacific Hotels Group is already kicking off with our charging stations and new fleet of EVs in our PARKROYAL COLLECTION hotels, ready for our guests to use for transfers. We anticipate expanded efforts surrounding clean vehicle technology and are proud to be one of the forerunners in hospitality on this front.

In your opinion, is sustainable hospitality becoming an important component of success in the hotel industry?

It is definitely growing in importance, especially when we consider the sentiments among the younger generation of consumers. Increasingly, travelers and guests are expecting hotels to integrate green practices into their designs and operations, and a growing portion of them want to stay in hotels that have successfully and visibly integrated green practices.

According to the Deloitte Global 2021 Millennial and Gen Z Survey, 28% of all respondents said they’ve started or deepened consumer relationships with businesses whose products and services benefit the environment. A comparable number of them have stopped or lessened relationships with organizations whose offerings they see as harming the planet. We believe that the sustainability status meets the growing demand and expectations of sustainable hospitality, and at the same time, helps us to build trust and recognition among our current and potential guests.

With business travel, we are seeing more MNCs beginning to include sustainability one the requirements when selecting corporate travel accommodation. This might have been spurred by several countries committing to reduce emissions for instance, the landmark Paris Agreement, where European countries have pledged to reduce emissions by 55%. Closer to home, the Singapore government has targeted to halve emissions by 2050, as outlined in the Singapore Green Plan 2030. These initiatives are giving a strong push for green business travel options.

Environmental consciousness now has greater visibility, and it will only continue increasing in importance. We are already seeing a rising adoption of digital solutions, and a notable shift towards more sustainable practices in the community and hospitality. Effective and tangible sustainability is now a key differentiator that sets our hotels apart.

Finally, as a hotel group, we champion the sustainability movement not just because of consumer sentiments, but also because we want to build a solid bedrock for the industry. Expansion and growth don’t have to come at the expense of the environment and our surrounding communities, and at the same time, there are methods to operate the sustainably without compromising on quality. Our sincere service and consistently high standards are a testament to this, and will continue to define our success in the long term.