Green Projects 2022

Driven by Ellen Deboeck, General Manager, the team has worked on different projects to limit its environmental impact. And the least we can say is that she has no shortage of ideas or ambition! “The pandemic was an excellent reason to review our daily operations. Two years ago, we opted for a new centralised technical management system that allows us to keep a constant eye on our gas, electricity, water and air production consumption. This allows us to react quickly to any anomaly that arises and thus limit energy waste.” explains the hotel manager.

But Ellen Deboeck’s battle does not stop at technical technical aspects. She wanted to get not only her staff but also guests to buy into her ambitious vision! “We decided to share the best practices implemented at the hotel with our staff, so that they can reproduce them at home. This is an excellent way to gain their support. This involves a series of good reflexes, but also original projects. For example, we have installed insect hotels around the building and solar panels on the roof. These are initiatives that make our staff very proud,” continues Ellen Deboeck.

The hotel’s Chief Engineer, Alain Gérard, has had his work cut out for him: all the lighting has been fitted with LED bulbs, automatic taps have been installed in the public toilets, and there are aerators in the bathrooms in order to limit water consumption. These are all concrete measures supported and supported and encouraged by Pandox, the group of which the hotel is a part. Ellen Deboeck also took the opportunity to do away with chemical cleaning products in favour of natural detergents that offer convincing results, such as Raypath and Enozo.

Even the customers are asked to do it! And how? By means of humorous messages messages that aim to limit waste at breakfast. At check-in, they now receive a wooden key (no more plastic!) while at check-out, invoices are sent by email and no longer printed out. All these initiatives encourage everyone to be more concerned about the well-being of our planet!

Thanks to all these projects, Hilton Brussels Grand Place was selected by Visit.Brussels for the “Sustainable Initiative award 2021”, an award recognising the initiative that, in the context of the health crisis, has best contributed to the reduction of its environmental impact by questioning the way it operates.

Hilton Brussels Grand Place is also certified Green Key (read more here); the first quality label that promotes sustainable travel, business meetings and leisure. Green Key establishments are committed to a more sustainable world. Anyone staying at our hotel is helping to make a difference on an environmental level, without compromising on comfort or affordability. Green Key rewards establishments that contribute to the development of a more socio-environmental just society. Green Key operators are already compliant with the high environmental standards in future legislation, which is becoming more and more strict. Sustainability becomes essential for future profitable business models. This creates already today an advantage and a unique selling point for the Green Key establishments.

Being green and meeting environmental standards is always on the top of our criteria of all our projects and we will keep working hard to be a responsible and sustainable hotel and encourage our guests to join these eco-friendly practices.

Plus for the guests? When staying at a Green Key hotel, guests can pay with eco-cheques for their stay (know more here). A perfect way to treat yourself and it’s guilt-free for your wallet and the environment.