Josun Hotels & Resorts, LG partner on robot workforce

Food & Travel

Published: 21 Feb. 2024, 18:27

Josun Hotels & Resorts, LG partner on robot workforce

Josun Hotels & Resorts' CEO Lee Ju-hee, left, and LG Electronics' President of Business Solutions Jang Ik-hwan signed an MOU to develop hospitality robots, at the Westin Josun Hotel Seoul in Jung District, central Seoul, on Wednesday. [JOSUN HOTELS & RESORTS]

Josun Hotels & Resorts entered into a partnership with LG Electronics to develop a robot that can streamline hotel operations, announced the hospitality group on Wednesday.

The upcoming robot combines LG Electronics’ logistic robot, called CLOi CarryBot, and Josun Hotel’s manual cleaning carts. It aims to save the hoteliers’ time by transporting supplies for them, including housekeeping materials and food and beverage items to guests.

These cart-type robots will be able to self-drive through narrow hallways because of their compact size and will have plenty of storage space, added the hotel.

They will be tested at the Westin Josun Seoul in Jung District, central Seoul, before the official service launch throughout the group’s nine hotels.

The two companies expect to develop more hospitality robots in the future that can aid beyond room service and housekeeping, like setting up for large-scale parties and conferences or transporting large amounts of food ingredients.

“We hope that this Korean hospitality robot being made through this MOU will increase our efficiency and productivity in operations and allow our hoteliers to better focus on providing prime customer service which is the ultimate core of the job," Lee Ju-hee, CEO of Josun Hotels & Resorts said through a press release.

BY LEE JIAN [lee.jian@joongang.co.kr]