RFID also protects rooms

By: Duván Chaverra Agudelo

Las Vegas, Nevada (USA) is recognized as the capital of entertainment and always keeps its arms open to receive the thousands of visitors who visit it daily in search of adventure, games, money and pleasure.

For that reason the hotels of this city, which was created in the middle of the desert, in addition to being designed not to clash with the color and the radiant lights that surround it, also keep in mind the issue of the safety of their guests.

For this reason, HOTEL MANAGEMENT presents below a Case Study carried out by Kaba Ilco in one of the most recognized resorts in the city and that is part of the CityCenter: Aria.

It is important to note that the CityCenter is an urban metropolis of 27 hectares, which was born thanks to a consortium between MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) and Infinity World Development Corp, a subsidiary of Dubai World. The CityCenter features Aria, a gambling resort with 61 floors and 4,004 rooms;  casino-free luxury hotels such as Las Vegas' first Mandarin Oriental and Vdara hotel and spa; the Veer Towers, the strictly residential buildings of the urban complex; and the 46 km2 Crystals entertainment and shopping district.

Locks with RFID
Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology is a data storage system that is gradually being implemented more in security and was installed to improve the lock system of the hotel in question.

"In hotels with thousands of rooms, the reliability of the locks is especially important. For that reason, the CityCenter in Las Vegas took steps to make Aria one of the first resorts in the city to install a system of RFID locks in hotel rooms, whose benefits go beyond eliminating the complaints expressed by users of electromagnetic cards. The hotels of the luxurious complex are reaching high levels of elegance and technological sophistication in guest service with a system of electronic locks that will distinguish them as innovators until well into the twenty-first century," explained Ramiro Gordillo, director of international sales for Latin America of Kaba Ilco.

John Lowes, executive director of guest technology at MGM Resorts International, said he chose these kinds of solutions, as they sought to prevent guests from complaining because their magnetic stripe cards have been demagnetized by a cell phone.

"We selected radio frequency identification technology for our new hotels because it eliminates the degaussing problem we had at other properties. We also recognized the virtually limitless potential that RFID has to integrate with 'smart room' technologies."

The system that Kaba implemented on this occasion is that of Saflok locks, which allows continuous interaction with the rooms through a network, which provides more comfort to guests.

"The new RFID system at the Aria Resort and Casino, the Vdara Hotel and the Spa and Mandarin Oriental Las Vegas, at the CityCenter, is part of the most advanced project in hotel room technology worldwide. All of CityCenter's nearly 6,000 rooms and suites feature locks with radio frequency identification technology, which allows guests to open the door by simply swiping the card in front of a lock reader. Unlike magnetic stripe keys, RFID keys are not demagnetized with cell phones or other items that the guest can carry in their pocket or wallet, and do not require inserting a key into a slot," Gordillo explained.

"When a guest opens the door for the first time, Saflok sends a message over a Zigbee network with wireless mesh technology to the Control4 controller installed in the room, which in turn activates a welcome music, if it is the first time the customer is in the room. The lights come on, the curtains open automatically to show the spectacular landscapes of the mountains and the city, and the TV displays the controls for guests to customize," said the Kaba representative.

User satisfaction
It is worth mentioning that the CityCenter is one of the largest sustainable constructions in the world. It holds six LEED Gold certifications from the U.S. Green Building Council, and lock technology is one of the contributions to this set.

Lowes cited other advantages that this establishment obtained thanks to the implementation of the RFID system and the network in the rooms: "The locks are sealed with fewer moving parts, which reduces maintenance. The battery condition of all locks and devices contained in rooms is automatically monitored for efficient maintenance and virtually zero downtime when managing systems on a wireless network."

Finally, another advantage of this technology for hotels is the ease with which they can assign keys to their customers in advance.

"Since rooms and RFID locks communicate through the property's online network, guests can change rooms without requiring a new key, as the front desk can program any remote door to accept the guest's existing key. This allows property owners to assign keys to groups in advance and even issue them to customers who arrive in advance. These are activated when the room is ready," concluded Ramiro Gordillo.