HITEC brings the brightest minds and hottest hotel technologies to one place. It’s a logical consequence that Optii needs to be there!

Optii Keeper is the only housekeeping solution that manages the core aspect of the housekeeping department: Labour! Find us at booth #2247 and see how Optii Keeper assists in improving productivity, quality, turnaround times and more.

Satisfy your curiosity and find out how Optii transforms housekeeping. We look forward to seeing you there!

Optii at HITEC 2012

The May Fair is an iconic 5-star hotel in the heart of London. It is also the first hotel in Europe to propel their housekeeping department into the 21st century with Optii Keeper. Opti’s Ashlee Lindahl, together with Vincent N’Gueyilbe from our European partners Index Hospitality Systems, conducted the training – culminating in a smooth first day with their new tool.

As you can see from the video below – confidence levels and enthusiasm are high!

Click to view video: Claudia Silva on working with Optii.

The May Fair is ready to rumble

Click to read more

The Crowne Plaza Hunter Valley Resort streamlines housekeeping operations with Optii Keeper. How did they do it? You can find out right now by reading the case study.

“We can now manage housekeeping towards clearly defined goals, which was not previously possible.”
Ben Nesbitt, Rooms Division Manager

May takes charge of Optii!

Early October marked the beginning of a new era for the rooms operation at the Crowne Plaza Hong Kong, a member of the Intercontinental Hotels Group. The 5th IHG hotel to deploy Optii, the entire rooms division was involved in learning about their new tool. Ashlee and Gary Chan conducted the training with both housekeeping and front office and were amazed how quickly all staff have taken to Optii, exploiting all features to make their operation the most efficient in the group.

Optii partners with hotels to improve the efficiency of their operations – thus we will be working with the hotel over the next months so stay tuned for an update!

We are very excited to announce the commencement of our newest team member Dean Gabrio. Dean will undertake the role of Client Support Analyst.  Dean will guide new Optii Keeper clients through a seamless implementation and then provide continuing technical support and advice thereafter.

Dean comes to us with more than a decade of knowledge and experience honed in the hospitality industry.  His background in support and Technical Project Management developed whilst working with EZYield and his core competencies in Front Office Management results in a dynamic combination of understanding the challenges posed to Hoteliers today and the ability to provide solutions to overcome them.

For our current clients requiring technical assistance, Dean is your ‘go to’ man. Based in our expanding Sunshine Coast office, Dean can be contacted on 07 3123 5416 or, for our counterparts in the Asia region +852 5804 3422 or support@optiisolutions.com.  Alternatively, for non-urgent questions or queries, you can reach Dean by email dean.gabrio@optiisolutions.com.

Adapt or die. Since first introducing Optii Keeper in 2008 we have been working with and learning from our clients. Consequently our commercial offering has evolved along with the product. Optii Keeper has advanced on several levels keeping true to the adage ‘Adapt or Die’.

The team at Optii understand all too well the complex Owner – Operator relationships involved in purchasing decisions . Many Executive Managers we work with love the Optii Keeper solution, but have an up-hill battle with their owners to secure initial funding, so in response to this we have been hard at work making Optii Keeper a no brainer for all parties at budget time.

Optii on the iPod platform

In January 2011, Optii Keeper launched on the Apple iPod platform.

Optii Keeper on iPod Touch

This latest innovation has several advantages. Most significantly, the hardware cost is reduced by as much as 80% in comparison to Windows PDA’s.  As the initial outlay for hardware is a large component of any technology solution, a saving such of this magnitude is a considerable bonus.

The benefits of Optii Keeper on the iPod platform don’t end there. The iPod Touch proves easier to handle as it is lightweight while robust and the famous Apple simplicity makes it easy to use even for Room Attendants that normally shy away from technology.

With its larger screen and multi-lingual interface, information is deciphered at a glance, and the touch screen technology makes the iPods quick and easy to use.

New Traction for Transactions

Optii is aware of the highs and lows a hotel’s occupancy can experience due to the seasonality of the business. In response to this, we’ve introduced a variable, pay-per-room-sold fee, enabling consistent profits year round.

Re-LEASE the CAPEX burden

Want to side step the headache of the Capital Expenditure process? No problem. Opt for a ‘Total Package Solution’. Essentially, your variable fee incorporates the cost of an operational lease provided by Optii Leasing Services to smooth the path to the CFO.

We’re confident that combined with the profit contributions already achieved by our existing clients, these latest developments will make the decision to do away with your pencil and paper even easier. Bring in the 21st century!

Proven results in productivity improvement and tangible operational outcomes are behind Optii Keeper gaining popularity among hotels around the globe.

Over recent months, hotels from Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau and Australia have adopted Optii Keeper to improve customer service and better manage their housekeeping operation. The Ritz Carlton Millenia Singapore, Banyan Tree Macau, Okura Macau, Galaxy Hotel Macau, Crowne Plaza Hunter Valley, Grand Hyatt Macau and Kowloon Shangri-La are the newest members of the Optii Keeper family.

Galaxy Macau

All hotels installed Optii Keeper on the new iPod Touch platform, chosen because of its reliability, simplicity and low total cost of ownership.

The hotels range in size from 263 rooms to 1,459 rooms and while there may be a difference in their size, the feedback received is unanimous: Optii Keeper has become an integral part of the Housekeeping operation and many wonder how they managed before!

The newly opened 2200-room Galaxy Macau Complex opened its doors in May 2011. After initial training with the Housekeeping team in March, Optii Keeper was fully operational from day one, ensuring that room turn around was maximised and Housekeeping Management had full control of the very large numbers of Room Attendants from all three hotels within the complex.  Furthermore the hotel management team are making the most of the productivity reports produced by Optii Keeper, guaranteeing full transparency of each individual hotels’ Housekeeping operation.

More recently, Grand Hyatt Macau implemented Optii Keeper with a view to improve on their productivity and maintain the already high standard of customer service the housekeeping department provides.  Having seen Optii Keeper in full flight at City of Dreams’ Hard Rock Hotel Macau, the Executive Management team at the Grand Hyatt recognised the potential benefits that could be applied to their operation.

Room Attendants ready to start the day!

The implementation has been a great success as the Housekeeping staff use Optii Keeper to navigate their way through the busiest holiday period of the year. The automation of the housekeeping department has been a bonus for the staff who are eager to use Optii Keeper to its full potential.

The ‘manual’ system of managing housekeeping with paper and pencil has its limitations. All of these hotels are now enthusiastically experiencing the broader horizons of housekeeping management, reaping the benefits in the process. Welcome to a new, better housekeeping world!

Ashlee Lindahl

There is no doubt that Ashlee is a world away from the day to day trials and tribulations of the busy housekeeping department in her beloved Coogee Beach. But swapping the busy Sydney lifestyle for the sun, sand and surf of the Sunshine Coast has proven to be not as relaxing as it sounds!

Since commencing with Optii Solutions as Client Services Manager in February 2011, Ashlee has been busy travelling to our newest clients in Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau and Australia ensuring a smooth implementation of Optii Keeper. Ashlee’s key role is to support our clients  during the initial implementation of Optii Keeper and then work closely  with them on an ongoing basis to make sure that every property achieves the desired results, supported by her Client Services team throughout Asia . To date around 500 Housekeeping staff have completed training under Ashlee’s guidance and are enthusiastically embracing the new technology.

Ashlee is no stranger to housekeeping, having worked through all facets of the department from Room Attendant to Executive Housekeeper. Her knowledge of housekeeping operations is comprehensive and she is able to relate to all members of the Housekeeping Team. These crucial skills will ensure our Clients receive the very best support at every level.

Ashlee says ”This role is a fabulous extension from my previous experience. I am excited to have the opportunity to assist housekeeping departments across the world, with efficiencies and balance stemming from the Optii Keeper system.”

When she is at home, Ashlee and her fiancé take advantage of the beautiful Queensland weather spending time at the beach, going for walks and long bike rides to explore what the Sunshine Coast has to offer.

Ashlee is off again at the end of the month for another installation in Hong Kong so she is making the most of her ‘home time’ by organising visits with family and friends.

We are happy to have Ashlee as an integral member of the Optii Team, her pro-active attitude and penchant for lollies make her a perfect fit for the rest of the Optii team.

Ashlee is based out of Optii Solutions’ Sunshine Coast office and can be contacted on +61 7 3123 5444 or ashlee.lindahl@optiisolutions.com.

After deploying Optii Keeper in late March 2011, Crowne Plaza Hunter Valley has recorded a 21% productivity increase within two months since insallation.  Given that the primary reason for installing Optii Keeper was to achieve additional efficiencies in its housekeeping department, this result was not only welcome but exceeded expectations in very a short time. Building on improved practices introduced by a new Executive Housekeeper in late 2010, the key challenge was to overcome the ‘tyranny’ of distance in a resort property spread over a large area.

“This is a fantastic result to date and credit needs to go to all parties involved.” says Greg Dicks, Financial Controller of the hotel. “Even after making adjustments for changes in our general operating environment, Optii is without doubt a major component in the improvements when comparing housekeeping efficiency against the same time last year. This has facilitated a saving that has already paid for Optii Keeper.”

“Our team took to Optii Keeper like ducks to water.” adds Dianne Vidler, Executive Housekeeper. “Therefore we were able to capitalise on the additional efficiencies straightaway and also take advantage of other operational benefits like a faster turnaround of rooms. Now that we have measurable information on the performance of the department and our colleagues available, managing the department has not only become easier, but also more effective.”

Optii Solutions is all about enabling hotels to achieve efficiencies in their operation and takes pride in working with hotels well beyond the initial deployment. The team at Optii Solutions is naturally thrilled with the results achieved by the hotel. The transparency, automation and ability to remotely manage a team from a single location enables previously unthinkable results.

‘What gets measured gets managed’ truly comes alive in housekeeping in the 21^st century.

The team

Crowne Plaza Hunter Valley will really see the benefit of an automated housekeeping department. The resort accommodation is spread around the rambling 18 hole resort golf course, so hotel staff use golf carts to travel between rooms.  Imagine the logistics involved in managing the daily cleaning processes and keeping track of your room attendants’ progress!

Since deploying Optii Keeper in March, these dilemma’s are a thing of the past.  Using the iPod Touch version of Optii, the housekeeping teams are in constant contact with their Supervisors and live updates on cleaning progress are exchanged throughout the day.

The Executive Housekeeper and Supervisors are enjoying the extra transparency Optii Keeper provides. They can see at a glance where each of the housekeeping teams are and which rooms they are working in.  Productivity ^ quality gets measured and managed, Bottlenecks are easily identified and rush rooms are a thing of the past.

And how did the team at Hunter Valley take to this new technology? Like ducks to water! The whole department are relishing Optii Keeper’s simplicity and easy to use design.

We’ll keep you updated with future posts to let you know how things are going. Stay tuned.