Case Study: VAR Cooks Up E-Menu For Holiday Inn
While developing a prototype for a new Holiday Inn, parent company InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), met with numerous Tablet PC and mobile-device vendors to explore the idea of creating an electronic-menu solution. IHG was referred to Ameranth, a provider of wireless hospitality and health-care solutions.
"I had a series of conversations with vendors. Immediately, people thought I was nuts. They were still looking at handheld devices that would take the order, not a menu-driven device," said Jim Bailey, director of hotel technology at IHG, which has its international headquarters in Windsor, England. "I called Keith [McNally, CEO of Ameranth] and we got together. He said, 'Jim, I think you're nuts, but it's worth getting on a plane and meeting you.' "
San Diego-based Ameranth designed the E-Menu solution and launched version 1.0 in time for the new hotel's unveiling in January 2004 in Duluth, Ga., followed by version 2.0 in a Holiday Inn in Norcross, Ga. Based on feedback from customers and staff, Ameranth has been improving the software and next month plans to install E-Menu 3.0 in 10 additional Holiday Inn locations nationwide as well as the two current locations. If customer reception continues to be strong, more locations may follow.
Each hotel's restaurant is equipped with the E-Menu software installed on Motion Computing M1300 and M1400 Tablet PCs, custom-designed arms to mount the Tablet PCs on tables or at the bar, a Dell server, a WLAN, wireless pagers for restaurant staff and a Dell laser printer in the lobby to allow wireless printing of documents. All of the products were sourced through Round Rock, Texas-based Dell.
"This allows us to provide a turnkey package under Dell care," McNally said. "That's important. As we start deploying nationwide, if a problem occurs, we need to have someone fix the problem immediately. Dell is a great partner. It's not a surprise they've been as successful as they have been."
The largest benefit of the solution is the improved customer experience, both McNally and Bailey said. Patrons not only can peruse the menu and see detailed nutritional information, but they also can send an order directly to the kitchen or page their server when they are ready to order. Consumers can also use the solution to play computer games, access flight information, surf the Web or check their e-mail.
On-screen text can be adjusted to various sizes and can even be translated into multiple languages. E-Menu also can convert the price of menu items into the user's native currency.
The E-Menu solution has also yielded monetary savings and upsell opportunities for the hotels, Bailey said. The software is able to be easily updated, allowing specials to be added or menu items to be changed, avoiding the high cost of printing new menus. Through E-Menu, travelers can order room service directly from their room, and restaurant orders can be placed in advance from one of the hotel's meeting rooms or from outside the building. The solution can also recommend a wine to go with a dish.
While Ameranth and IHG encountered and solved numerous problems, such as making the software secure and designing a platform that could be accessed by users of all ages, some technology pitfalls remain. The size and weight of the tablet PCs remain issues, and wireless coverage needs to be improved--all of which would improve the user experience by allowing the tablets to be more transportable, Bailey said.
ANATOMY OF A SOLUTION
COMPANY: Ameranth Wireless, San Diego
FOCUS: Wireless solutions for hospitality and health care
PROBLEM and SOLUTION: Holiday Inn wanted an electronic menu solution for patrons in its restaurants. Ameranth developed a custom solution installed on Tablet PCs.
PRODUCTS USED: Ameranth's E-Menu, Motion Computing M1300 and M1400 Tablet PCs, Dell OptiPlex SX270 server, Dell laser printer and Microsoft Windows Server 2003
LESSONS LEARNED:
> User feedback essential when developing new device.
> Sourcing all products through one company could ease repair woes later on.