Belvedere Hotel
Belvedere Hotel
Hotels gather detailed information about guests upon arrival and check-in. Historically, this has always been collected manually at the front desk when guests check in. As manual methods are both time-consuming and subject to human error, many hotels seek a better solution.
The Belvedere Hotel in New York City is a premier lodging destination for travelers around the world. Located on West 48th Street in the midst of the city’s theater district, the Belvedere provides a beautiful 1920’s Art Deco exterior as the entryway to luxury rooms that are just a short distance from major theaters and other attractions of Broadway. The hotel attracts guests from around the world, including the United States, Canada, England, Europe, Australia, and Brazil.
“Manual methods of collecting personal guest data always proved to be an inefficient way of getting information that has become increasingly important for hotel operations,” shared Michael Link, the Belvedere’s general manager.
“In the past, manual information gathering upon check-in was prone to errors or being incomplete,” said Link. “This becomes critical in situations, for example, when a person’s visit to the hotel is charged to a credit card and then the guest disputes the bill. More and more, credit card companies are putting the onus on the merchant to provide detailed evidence to resolve a dispute. And detailed guest information is important for security, as we sometimes get requests to assist in law enforcement efforts.”
Our solution uses optical character recognition (OCR) to capture relevant data from IDs and disperse that information into appropriate fields. If desired, a digital image of the entire ID or the facial photo can also be extracted. Scan2PMS connects easily to a property management system, so information can be pulled up in seconds. The data is also easy to archive.
Working with TTI Technologies, a solution provider based in New York, the Belvedere deployed ID and passport scanning software called Scan2PMS, which interfaces with most property management systems. It integrates with the fi-65F flatbed scanners, which are compact devices capable of producing highly detailed images and text from documents such as passports, drivers’ licenses, and credit cards.
“Our solution uses optical character recognition (OCR) to capture relevant data from IDs and disperse that information into appropriate fields,” explained Alex Lerner, President and Chief Technology Officer of TTI. “If desired, a digital image of the entire ID or the facial photo can also be extracted. Scan2PMS connects easily to a property management system, so information can be pulled up in seconds. The data is also easy to archive.”
Belvedere Hotel benefit snapshot:
- fi Series scanners integrate seamlessly with their property management system
- Reliability and easy access to new scanners enables solution provider to deliver a complete solution
- Streamlines key information-gathering processes for hotels that need to collect information for security or marketing tasks
fi-65F
With the fi-65F scanner and TTI Scan2PMS, the Belvedere developed an easy-to-use, effective information capture solution that delivered a number of benefits.
“We now have fast access to detailed evidence in cases where someone is disputing a charge,” said Link. “There are more practical uses as well, like when a guest returns late at night and says they lost their key and ID. It’s simple to bring up their information with a picture attached to confirm their identity and let them into their room. And it’s equally easy to provide information in the event that law enforcement needs it.” Hotels have also found the information collected through such solutions useful for building targeted marketing campaigns based on a guests’ country of residence and specific region.
Lerner noted that his company’s solution is now marketed across many different countries, most of which are required to provide detailed guest information within 24 hours to law enforcement agencies. TTI recommends fi Series scanners to customers.
“It’s easy to acquire fi Series scanners in most of the markets where we do business,” Lerner shared. “We recommend them because of their reliability, and the seamless way they integrate with our software. We can count on them working, the hardware is easy for hotel staff employees to use, and they help us provide a complete solution for our customers.”