Robot Co-worker Arrives at Homewood Suites to Tackle Hotel Labor Challenges
The workload just got lighter – literally – for staff at a Homewood Suites in Del Mar, California, thanks to a new robot designed to transport laundry and support other back-of-house operations. , TechForce Robotics installed its autonomous logistics robot, dubbed Things in Motion – Everywhere (TIM-E), at the hotel.
The robot is intended to reduce manual labor and improve operational efficiency, particularly as the hospitality industry continues to grapple with staffing shortages. TechForce President Ried Floco explained to Hotel Dive how the subscription-based model works and why robotics are becoming increasingly relevant to hotel operations.
Addressing the Physical Demands of Housekeeping
TIM-E is a modular, autonomous service robot designed to move items like linens and waste throughout a property with minimal human intervention. The robot utilizes autonomous navigation to avoid obstacles and integrates with elevators and doors, enabling continuous operation across multiple floors.
According to Floco, TIM-E works alongside housekeeping staff, streamlining their workflow. Traditionally, housekeepers collect dirty laundry and waste from each room, transport it to a central location, and then carry clean linens back. This process, he explained, is “very long, inefficient and hard work.”
TIM-E eliminates this physically demanding task by delivering collection bins to rooms and transporting filled bins to the laundry room or trash dumpster. The robot can travel up to four miles per day, operating around the clock. “Instead of a human having to move several hundred pounds throughout the day, the robot does that task,” Floco said. “A housekeeper who has to clean, let’s say, 16 or 18 rooms in a day, who normally would also have to move a lot of their trash and linens throughout the day, no longer has to do that, so they can focus more on the task versus the heavy lifting.”
Floco emphasized that TIM-E is designed to augment staff, not replace them. “TIM-E was developed to seamlessly integrate into the daily operations of hospitality venues like the Homewood Suites, augmenting staff rather than replacing them,” he stated.
A Subscription Model for Robotics-as-a-Service
TechForce handles the entire integration process, including mapping the robot’s route, training the hotel team, and providing ongoing maintenance and operational support. The hotel team has access to an app that allows them to override the robot if necessary, but the system is designed to operate autonomously with minimal intervention.
The company offers a subscription-based model, costing approximately $150 per day, which includes all installation, maintenance, and support services. This contrasts with the traditional model of purchasing a similar robotic system outright, which could cost upwards of $50,000, plus the expense of in-house coding, mapping, and staff training.
“The goal is for the robot to be cost-neutral on the property,” Floco said, allowing staff to focus on tasks that require human interaction and expertise. The subscription model aims to provide a cost-effective solution for hotels looking to improve efficiency without significant upfront investment.
Robotics as a Support System in a Challenged Labor Market
The timing of TIM-E’s deployment is particularly relevant given the ongoing challenges in the hotel labor market. According to Floco, the robot alleviates “routine, heavy pressures” on the team, which is especially valuable when hotels are understaffed or dealing with employee absences.
“What the robot does is put a backbone support system in place every day of the week,” Floco explained. He stressed that the technology is not intended to eliminate jobs, addressing a concern that has been voiced by hospitality workers in recent years. “The robot should really be a tool,” he said, adding that hotel owners and operators “owe it to their team members to give them the tools to be successful.”
The installation at the Homewood Suites in Del Mar expands TechForce’s presence in the hospitality sector. The company has been operating TIM-E at a Hilton Garden Inn in Rancho Mirage, California, for approximately one year, demonstrating the robot’s ability to integrate into existing hotel operations.
The rise of robotics in hospitality, as highlighted by sources like Robophil and HospitalityNet, reflects a broader trend towards automation in the industry, driven by labor shortages, rising costs, and evolving guest expectations. The integration of robots like TIM-E represents a step towards a more efficient and sustainable future for hotel operations.
