- The Company has reviewed all its procedures and made nearly 700 adaptations to its operating standards, which will be progressively implemented in its 364 hotels to preserve the health and safety of travellers and employees worldwide
- Grouped under 10 main lines of action and endorsed by specialists in different fields, the measures encompass the digitalisation of hotel services, the adaptation of sanitation processes, the incorporation of social distancing policies into the operations and the use of personal protection elements, among others
- The recently announced collaboration agreement with SGS, a world leader in inspection, analysis and certification, will allow the monitoring of the implemented measures and assessments to verify that the Group’s hotels are clean and safe environments
NH Hotel Group, one of the leading urban hotel companies in Europe and America, has launched a new set of measures to address the current health crisis. Feel Safe at NH is designed to preserve the safety of travellers and employees, through various initiatives and adaptation of nearly 700 operating standards, completely redesigning the customer journey.
Endorsed by experts, these measures will be implemented in each of the Group’s 364 properties. Feel Safe at NH follows a comprehensive review of all the Company’s operations and concentrates all the initiatives under 10 lines of action, in response to the needs of travellers in the new social reality brought about by COVID19. From cleaning and sanitisation processes, to new digital solutions, processes and protocols for restaurant management, social distancing policies, and control of air and water purification, the measures will allow the Company’s hotels to reopen with maximum safety assurances for customers and employees.
Advanced digital services
NH Hotel Group offers its clients advanced technological solutions that allow interactions between people and contact with surfaces to be minimised, such as:
FASTPASS: the combination of three innovative services -Online Check-in, Choose Your Room and Online Check-out – that put all the control over their stay in the client’s hands.
Mobile Guest Services: a mobile platform through which guests will be able to access all the hotel’s information and services, order room service, mini bar, or book a table for breakfast in order to guarantee the necessary social distance in this service, among others.
Instant Communication Channel: based on the Mobile Guest Service application, it allows instant chat with the hotel’s team to answer any question or request that the client may have.
Upgraded cleaning and sanitising protocols
The Group has reinforced hygiene and cleaning protocols in its hotels in line with World Health Organization guidelines, following local regulations and inspired by medical practices. These protocols have also been reviewed and adapted to the new reality by SGS. According to these standards, common areas with high traffic such as lobbies, the reception desk, halls and restaurants will be sanitised more frequently and with a specific type of cleaning and disinfection products based on advanced medical practices. Finally, kitchens and kitchen appliances will be sanitised following hospital protocols, always ensuring the correct disinfection and decontamination.
Food & Beverage services
The Food & Beverage (F&B) area has also undergone a reorganisation that affects everything from logistics to preparation, delivery, consumption and payment methods. NH Hotel Group will require that its suppliers have health certifications and a delivery process with strict control protocols. Furthermore, food handling standards and serving options have been updated to minimise human contact and services such as room service, a la carte or take-away will be reinforced. In the case of events, there will be menus and processes adapted for this service.
Social distancing rules
The common areas of the hotel will be equipped with signs delineating areas in order to avoid crowds of people and contact between them, and always marking the minimum distance required by local regulations. Furniture and spaces will be redesigned to comply with social distancing standards. In addition, hotel teams will be trained to help clients comply with these requirements at all times.
Protocols and personal protection material
Employees will always have equipment to protect themselves and the health of customers such as masks, gloves and authorized hydro-alcoholic gels. In addition, elements to help preserve the safety and hygiene of meeting and event spaces – such as plexiglass screens at the reception – will be available for employees, customers or suppliers if required.
Water purification & air quality protocols
Surface and handling areas will be kept extremely clean and air and water purification systems will be controlled more than ever, reviewing and reinforcing, among others, HVAC (Heat, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) protocols. Hotels will increase the frequency of inspections, the control of water disinfection and, most important in view of the coming summer, the quality of the water in the swimming pools and outdoor areas.
City Connection advisory service
The hotel teams in all destinations are trained to help clients locate hospitals, medical centres and pharmacies, among others. They will also be able to recommend methods of transportation based on local sanitary criteria and regulations. Moreover, clients will be able to use sanitary services available in other NH hotels within the city in which they are staying, such as the use of gels or protective equipment as well as accessing F&B services of other hotels, endorsed by the Company’s processes.
Health & Safety protocols for employees
In compliance with all necessary legal requirements, and in order to protect everyone’s health, NH Hotel Group employees will receive constant training in health protocols and procedures. In addition, the Company will implement early detection protocols and action plans in the event that a customer should be considered a patient. In this case, the hotel will isolate the guest, provide protective equipment to avoid transmitting the disease, contact local medical services and organise the transfer to a medical centre if necessary.
Hotel Health & Safety manager
Each of the Company’s properties will have a designated expert in the new Feel Safe at NH operating process who will be responsible for leading the implementation of the plan, as well as the training of employees. Finally, that person will be responsible for monitoring the environmentally friendly and responsible use of protective materials.
Health inspection certificates
Recently, NH Hotel Group and SGS announced their collaboration on a project that redefines and extends the health protocols applicable to the operations of the Group’s hotels which will enable them to be assessed as clean and safe environments with a view to their reopening. The new processes, which will include the revision and adaptation of all hygiene and disinfection protocols of the facilities, specific training for employees and control and monitoring of the measures, will be implemented so that the hotels are ready to receive their assessment seal as they resume their activity. Effective immediately, the NH Collection Barbizon Palace hotel in Amsterdam and the NH Nacional in Madrid, will be the first establishments where the Company and SGS will apply these health standards for them to be monitored.
