Creating a comfortable environment for smart hotels

Contributing to building a comfortable environment for smart hotels

Benefits

• Enhanced guest comfort through efficient air conditioning control
• Stable communication with a reliable and high-quality system
• Seamless and fast integration for easy deployment and operation

X1Studio: Innovative Solutions for Building Smart Hotels

X1Studio is a system integrator focused on enhancing value through IoT technology for large-scale facilities such as hotels, commercial buildings and data centers. With a vision of ‘‘transforming customer value through global standard systems for Japan’s intelligent building industry’’, they provide IoT design, consulting, development, and integrated solutions to support the creation of smart hotels, buildings, and data centers.

In April 2024, Six Senses Kyoto, a 5-star luxury hotel, opened in Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto, featuring a smart hotel system built on the Lutron’s room management system ‘‘myRoom’’. This system automates control of room keys and in-room devices to create a comfortable environment. HMS Networks’ Intesis AC gateway for Lutron was selected as the interface connecting Lutron myRoom to the air conditioning units, playing a key role in realizing the hotel’s intelligent automation.

No other product offers one-to-one communication and is also wired, which was highly appreciated by the client for its ability to create a stable communication environment.”

Takuya Furukawa, Project Management Division

Reasons for adopting the Intesis AC gateways

For hotels, guest rooms are not only products but also essential services. The optimal environment for each guest varies, making it necessary to provide room-specific control systems rather than floor-based management commonly used in building automation. Hotel room management systems must handle the individualized control of facilities such as room keys, lighting, and air conditioning, ensuring comfort tailored to each guest.

While room facilities like lighting, AV systems, curtains, and blinds can be easily networked via 2.4GHz Wi-Fi, air conditioning control presents a unique challenge. In many hotels, air conditioners are standalone units controlled separately from the room management system, often using remote controls for household air conditioners.

However, the Intesis gateway offers solutions by supporting protocols from leading global air conditioning manufacturers, such as Daikin, (used in this project), and home & building automation systems like Lutron, enabling air conditioning units to be networked and centrally controlled. It seamlessly integrates with BACnet, KNX, Modbus, and 2.4GHz Wi-Fi IP-based home automation systems, making it ideal for establishing independent control systems for each guest room in smart hotels.

Intesis AC gateways are available for both multi-unit control and one-to-one communication. Its wired models provide stable communication and excellent control responsiveness.

For Six Senses Kyoto, a top-class luxury hotel requiring a highly reliable and high-quality system, HMS Networks’ Intesis AC gateways were chosen for their ability to meet the hotel’s stringent standards. The Intesis chosen gateway provided one-to-one connections, stable wired communication, and was developed by Intesis, a specialist manufacturer wellknown for meeting such critical requirements.

According to Takuya Furukawa, X1Studio Project Management Division Manager: “There are no other products that offer one-to-one communication with wired support while ensuring stable communication. This feature greatly impressed the team and allowed us to build a reliable, stable, and efficient communications environment.”

Trouble-free delivery on schedule

A mock-up system was built in April 2022, and after customer verification and evaluation, the system was officially ordered and delivered in February 2023. X1Studio then installed the system, and the hotel opened in April 2024.

“Most projects encounter both large and small challenges, but this time everything proceeded smoothly with minimal issues. We are pleased that Six Senses Kyoto was able to open on schedule.”

HMS sales representative

Aiming to Expand Sales by Strengthening Relationships

HMS successfully collaborated with X1Studio to transform Six Senses Kyoto into a smart hotel. ’’X1Studio understood the effectiveness of Intesis products in achieving room-level management, and we’ve already secured our next smart hotel project”, said an HMS representative, marking the partnership’s first milestone.

Looking ahead, HMS plans to deepen its collaboration with X1Studio. “X1Studio is also expanding its data center business, and we offer a range of products, such as protocol conversion gateways, that are ideal for this sector. We will leverage this opportunity to strengthen our relationship and support their growth,” the representative added.

With the rise of inbound demand, especially for luxury hotels, HMS expects to see growth not only in Tokyo but also in regional and suburban areas. “We will continue to present tailored solutions to meet the increasing needs of these markets,” the HMS representative concluded.