Look what they installed at Maui Ocean Club

[eyedude]

This morning I saw them installing towel dispensers at the Napili Towers. No more having to walk to the main pool to get towels

 

[daviator]

This morning I saw them installing towel dispensers at the Napili Towers. No more having to walk to the main pool to get towels

When you put a dirty towel in on the right, the machine automatically folds it and moves it to the left to give to a new guest.

 

[BJRSanDiego]

I've seen them before (Marriott Canyon Villas?). It is a towel vending machine. You use your key card to get a towel. The towel has an RFID sewn in. If you don't bring it back to the machine to automatically check it back in, you're likely to be charged for the loss of the towel.

 

[mjm1]

We saw these today as well. Hyatt Maui has been using these as well. Nice feature.

 

[jmhpsu93]

I've seen them before (Marriott Canyon Villas?). It is a towel vending machine. You use your key card to get a towel. The towel has an RFID sewn in. If you don't bring it back to the machine to automatically check it back in, you're likely to be charged for the loss of the towel.

They're at Grande Vista and Royal/Imperial Palms in Orlando as well. Thankfully we haven't yet put them in where we own at Cypress Harbour. I'll fight that tooth and nail.

 

[dioxide45]

I've seen them before (Marriott Canyon Villas?). It is a towel vending machine. You use your key card to get a towel. The towel has an RFID sewn in. If you don't bring it back to the machine to automatically check it back in, you're likely to be charged for the loss of the towel.

That is what they want people to think. Makes them more likely to return it to the bin. I assure that it doesn’t work like that. Interestingly at Canyon Villas, Lizard Lagoon just has a bin for clean towels and a bin for dirty towels. No Towel Tracker there.

 

[dioxide45]

They're at Grande Vista and Royal/Imperial Palms in Orlando as well. Thankfully we haven't yet put them in where we own at Cypress Harbour. I'll fight that tooth and nail.

These machines are incredibly expensive. Something like $50K per machine. I don’t know if they would really ever save the HOA that much in missing towels or paying someone to go around and pick up towels left on the chairs. Which still happens.

 

[eyedude]

I spoke with an employee this morning. He confirmed no jobs would be lost. For the time being this will be the only one installed at MOC. I think the towel dispensers will help improve the overall experience for guests. We have been here 5 days and we have only seen the towel hut open two days. This morning at 11:30 the towel hut was closed and the Napili pool was mostly empty. Guests on this side have to go to the main pool and get their towels and end up staying over there which makes that pool congested and this pool empty. With the towel dispenser on this side, I think guests will be more inclined to stay at this pool.

As an aside, the employee said the dispensers were invented and made by someone on Maui and they should be working within the next few days…they still have to program the card reader.

 

[davidvel]

These machines are incredibly expensive. Something like $50K per machine. I don’t know if they would really ever save the HOA that much in missing towels or paying someone to go around and pick up towels left on the chairs. Which still happens.

But MVC makes $5,000. So bonus for them!!

 

[tahoe]

But MVC makes $5,000. So bonus for them!!

Willing to bet that machine comes with its own maintenance fees....

 

[Pamplemousse]

I spoke with an employee this morning. He confirmed no jobs would be lost. For the time being this will be the only one installed at MOC. I think the towel dispensers will help improve the overall experience for guests. We have been here 5 days and we have only seen the towel hut open two days. This morning at 11:30 the towel hut was closed and the Napili pool was mostly empty. Guests on this side have to go to the main pool and get their towels and end up staying over there which makes that pool congested and this pool empty. With the towel dispenser on this side, I think guests will be more inclined to stay at this pool.
View attachment 103206View attachment 103207As an aside, the employee said the dispensers were invented and made by someone on Maui and they should be working within the next few days…they still have to program the card reader.

We found that towel station pictured to be opened sporadically during out week stay last month.
We walked right by it practically every time we left our unit.
Twice the worker simply handed us towels when we asked and the last time we went we had to give our unit number to sign them out.
Agree the Napili pool was much less busy than the other, makes sense since it’s pretty basic. Mostly older folks. It was nice to have a choice of atmosphere.
I’m sure there is plenty for employees to do at that resort other than man a towel station.

 

[dioxide45]

I spoke with an employee this morning. He confirmed no jobs would be lost. For the time being this will be the only one installed at MOC. I think the towel dispensers will help improve the overall experience for guests. We have been here 5 days and we have only seen the towel hut open two days. This morning at 11:30 the towel hut was closed and the Napili pool was mostly empty. Guests on this side have to go to the main pool and get their towels and end up staying over there which makes that pool congested and this pool empty. With the towel dispenser on this side, I think guests will be more inclined to stay at this pool.
View attachment 103206View attachment 103207As an aside, the employee said the dispensers were invented and made by someone on Maui and they should be working within the next few days…they still have to program the card reader.

That is my problem though. We pay to install an expensive machine that may mean fewer employees are needed. I know when Grande Vista manually issued towels there were almost always two people working the little hut at the main pool handing them out. It probably also required more staff to clean up soiled towels throughout and at the end of the day. Adding a Towel Tracker should reduce staff requirements at least at some level. That should mean the added cost of the machine is offset with less staff. Perhaps simply through attrition and not someone being laid off. But that isn’t have MVC operates. They just keep piling on the costs. I feel our resorts suffer from bloated staffing and could operate in a much more streamlined fashion. Though that doesn’t serve MVC well either.

As for Towel Tracker, it was developed by a company in Michigan.