The Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne and Siemens sign a Partnership Agreement

Lausanne, The Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) and Siemens announced the signing of a Partnership Agreement today during a Round Table on the new “Business Models” for the hospitality sector. Professors and students will share their knowledge of the hospitality industry with Siemens who, active in new technologies, will bring all its expertise to the installation of its latest products in the School’s demonstration rooms, like the “CyberWall”, a precursor of innovations to come.

The Partnership Agreement provides for joint research projects, mutual participation in seminars and a continuous exchange of « savoir-faire » between Siemens and EHL. Siemens will benefit from the EHL Faculty and students’ knowledge in the area of the hospitality industry. For example, via Student Business Projects in which a group of five or six final-year students are responsible for managing a «real» project for a principal. In this case Siemens could set out its needs, define its objectives and present them to the student group.

Furthermore, Siemens has installed a demonstration universe of the latest technologies applicable to the various enterprises that make up the hospitality sector on the campus. The “CyberWall” – a computerized control wall – that allows a hotel or a medical establishment to be run via a single interface. From room temperatures to TV programmes available, to client requests and even fire alarms, all the systems and staff of the establishment are connected to the “control wall”.

As Michael Hartmann, Senior Vice-President for Siemens MDB Hospitality states, this is a winning agreement for both partners “on our side we need a well-established partner in the hospitality world to draw us closer to this rapidly expanding sector and for EHL, it is important to have the latest industry technologies available on its campus”.

M. Ruud J. Reuland, General Director of EHL adds: “It is vital for the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne to be able to introduce students to the latest technologies and trends of the economic sector that they are called upon to develop. Furthermore, this agreement is a real exchange of « savoir-faire » that will also provide the professors with the knowledge to continue to anticipate the next technological developments”.