How Clean are Your Hotel Sheets?

Hotel guests in Wuhan, China, will be able to scan a microchip embedded in laundry to see when it was last cleaned.

From uncovering the reasons why attendees book inside or outside room blocks to studying new approaches to room types, PCMA’s editorial team works to keep a finger on the pulse of the pressing issues around how event organizers and hoteliers work together. Those areas may involve the complexities of contract language and disruptive models like Airbnb, but many of the attendees who stay in those rooms have a very basic question on their minds: How clean are the sheets?

A laundry service in Wuhan, China doesn’t want to leave that answer open to speculation. CNN’s Rob Picheta writes that Wuhan Kunteng Laundry — a company that provides cleaning services for many of the guest accommodations for the largest city in the province of Hubei — is planning to implant microchips in bed sheets, towels, and quilts that will track the most recent cleaning date. When guests check in, they can scan a QR code, and the water-resistant chips will reveal when those linens last saw a washing machine. Guests can rest easy — or depending on the hotel, perhaps they can opt to spend the evening in the bathtub.

Cleanliness-tracking microchips are another indication of the advanced level of technological innovation popping up at more properties throughout China. To get a better sense of how China will impact the future of hotels, check out this article on the Alibaba Future Hotel.