HOSPITAL RECONSTRUCTION LEADS TO LAUNDRY RENOVATION
By Clare Adrian

DOVER, Ohio -- Overcrowded ambulatory units are a problem shared by many hospitals. In 1997, Union Hospital faced this situation head on. An overload in their ambulatory unit was putting a strain on the staff, hospital facility and patients. After weighing their options, hospital management decided to expand the ambulatory unit.

But expanding the unit meant other challenges for the hospital. The new unit was to be constructed on what was then the laundry’s roof, making it a two-story building. However, before construction began, the hospital’s laundry needed to be shut down since laundry ventilation shafts for dryers, ironers and washers was located on the roof of the building.

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REBOUNDING - Steady But Slow
By Susan Capparelle

With yet another annual International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show Hotel / Motel show upon us, it seems to be the perfect time to take a look at where the industry is headed. Having faced a slow period, questions on many minds remain: Are travel and tourism back?

It seems so, according to participants at the first American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) U.S. Lodging Industry Summit. In May of this year, they collectively expressed encouraging predictions for the rebounding U.S. travel and hotel industries. Internet travel bookings have increased 30% since 2003 and the average daily rooms sold has increased 1.6%. New hotel construction and hotel reflagging is also on the increase.

Patrick Ford, president of Lodging Econometrics, an industry authority for hotel real estate, factors in better than expected business demand, strong tourist travel and the ability to increase guestroom rates as creating revenue improvements at a quicker-than-anticipated pace. As part of its 2nd quarter report to the industry, Lodging Econometrics forecasts supply side growth for all 50 states and 197 markets in their second quarter 2004 report. It's slow growth but a growth.

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