CASE STUDY that would provide staff with uninterrupted access to mission-critical applications with impressively high levels of performance and reliability , irrespective of their location or movement around the property .
Jacob Chacko , Regional Director – Middle East , Saudi and South Africa , HPE Aruba
To meet this objective , Wael Othman , Corporate Director of IT and Business Solutions at Rotana Hotel Management Corporation , and the corporate IT team decided to standardise on Aruba wireless and switching portfolio at more than 30 hotel properties in the UAE . The project has enabled the brand to provide its guests and employees with uninterrupted access to mission-critical applications with impressively high levels of performance and reliability .
“ My role is to present to the management and the company president a business case . This entails preparing the business side of the company to embrace any IT project undertakings through the eye of innovation , bringing new initiatives and developments that impact on guests in a positive way and the group ’ s bottom line ,” he said .
The network performance and reliability made possible by Aruba ’ s solutions has enabled Rotana ’ s IT Team to introduce several innovative guest experiences , most notably , Rotana Rewards – a single App through which guests can avail a myriad of services .
“ We now offer an intuitive app that puts key experiences at our guests ’ fingertips . Everything , from booking to check in , making restaurant reservations and even managing their loyalty programme benefits , is delivered via Rotana Rewards ,” he said .
In the post-pandemic era , this paves the way for allimportant contactless experiences . Having decided and settled on Aruba , Othman explained that the company has been rolling out Aruba ’ s high speed connectivity technology across various brands over the last few years . “ I would say over the last five to six years , we have full compatibility with Aruba Wi-Fi and wireless connectivity solutions that have been implemented across the group to improve guest services and experiences ,” he said .
The implementation has enabled an increase in allocated bandwidth per session from 8mbps to 25mbps resulting in a 25 % increase in guest satisfaction with wireless services and saving an average of 35 % of man-days required for solution management and administration . reliable , efficient , and secure connectivity for Pointof-Sales ( POS ) terminals critical to conveniently billing guests , the technology has enabled the introduction of Chromecast Solutions that offer guests high-quality media streaming . The company is also leveraging its Aruba network to deliver a host of IP-based services .
“ Aruba has given us the confidence to route some essentials guest and employee services through the wireless network . This has ensured that we run critical services such as POS terminals , HD-video streaming devices , and our GSM system , with complete confidence in the performance and availability ,” he said .
Furthermore , Aruba ’ s integration with Zigbee has made it possible to consolidate IoT gateways with the network . Doing so has allowed the Rotana Hotels and Resorts group to leverage smart sensors and devices such as digital locks that make the guest experience more convenient and effortless .
“ Digital technologies and services will increasingly define operations and guest experiences in our sector , and IT will become ever more embedded across all functions . Through our partnership with industry-leaders like Aruba , Rotana Hotel Management Corporation will ensure it stays at the forefront of this digital revolution in the hospitality sector ,” he said .
Benefits
With the implementation having gone smoothly and to plan , Rotana Hotel Management Corporation has already started to reap the benefits of the Aruba implementation .
In addition , full wireless access to guest services management ( GSM ) has greatly enhanced staff mobility and flexibility , thereby improving their efficiency , and productivity . The technology provides
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