Enhancing Hotel Cost Efficiency and Sustainability- Evaluating the Impact of Durable, Cost-Efficient, and Energy-Saving Bath Linen in Hotel Laundry Operations

Abstract

The hospitality industry is a large consumer of fabrics, and bath linen is one of the most essential and the most expensive items of hotel operations. Conventional cotton towels can last about 150 washes and therefore have to be replaced very often, which results in accumulation issues and over-laundering. These issues hike the operation expenses and play a crucial role in environmental impact in the form of higher water consumption, energy consumption, and textile waste. The lack of an environmentally friendly and sustainable substitute has, in turn, placed bath linen as a further financial liability to hotels.

This paper explores a sustainable alternative, namely, Eco-Bath Linen, a recently developed towel, which is a blend of a cotton pile and a polyester base. The innovation has a lifespan of up to 300 washes, approximately twice that of standard cotton towels, and it requires less water; no piles are formed, and the price is 20 per cent lower than the traditional ones. The study tackles the issue of operational cost and environmental degradation, and at the same time, the comfort and satisfaction of the guests are not compromised.

The case study user experience was carried out at Mapakada Village Hotel, in Mahiyanganaya, Sri Lanka, among the staff and guests. The product was tested, and feedback has established that the product is cost-effective, has better performance, and is more comfortable than traditional bath linen. The results indicate that the implementation of Eco-Bath Linen can make the hotel linen management a prototype of sustainable hospitality, where low cost is in line with environmental responsibility.

The study makes Eco-Bath Linen a viable solution to the hotel industry, as it integrates the extended life of products, low costs, and environmentally friendly disposal methods, demonstrating both economic and environmental advantages.