Marina Bay Sands executive director for sustainability, Kevin Teng, shares how the hospitality industry can defy wastage stereotypes.
Eco-conscious event organisers holding conferences and meetings at Marina Bay Sands (MBS) can not only track their energy and water consumption, but can also offer their delegates locally sourced food and beverage options that reduce the emission of greenhouse gases during transportation.
These value-added services are offered at no additional cost by MBS as part of its parent company Las Vegas Sands’ global sustainability programme Sands Eco360°. Since the programme’s implementation in 2011, it has won several sustainability awards.
The integrated resort’s conservation efforts extend to effecting real-world change as well. In February, its ArtScience Museum unveiled a new permanent interactive technology experience, Into the Wild: An Immersive Virtual Adventure, where visitors can learn about endangered wildlife in Indonesia’s Rimbang Baling rainforest, and have a real tree planted there every time they plant a virtual one at the exhibition and make a $38 pledge to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF-Singapore).
WWF-Singapore CEO Elaine Tan says that the augmented reality experience made by Google and Lenovo using Tango technology, and in association with Qualcomm and Panasonic, is a “great example of how brands can come together to drive positive environmental impact”.
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Already within the first few months of the opening, over 800 trees have been planted, says Honor Harger, executive director of ArtScience Museum. “It shows that technology can provide a direct and accessible way for visitors to take real-world action, and do their part to help save a vital section of the Southeast Asian rainforest.”
Measured Impact
Beyond the environmental impact, all these efforts at conserving resources also translate to economic returns. MBS executive director for sustainability, Kevin Teng, says, “We invest in sustainability not only because it benefits the environment and the community, but also because it makes strong business sense. Our sustainability investments in energy, water and waste efficiencies have resulted in direct cost savings with strong returns of investment.”
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Such investments include filtering and recycling 60 cubic metres of condensate water that drips from its hotel’s 3,000 airconditioners daily for use in the water features and for irrigating and landscaping the property; using food digesters and an industrial-grade blast chiller to recycle nearly 2,000kg of food per day; and having art installations that use recycled rain water and act as sun shields for the building.
The resort also leverages on its position as a large hospitality venue to choose suppliers that share the same sustainability vision. “As a large integrated resort, we have the benefit of scale to create and influence demand. In 2010 for example, we launched a reusable plastic basket and pallet exchange programme to help our suppliers avoid the use of carton and styrofoam boxes when delivering supplies,” explains Teng.
