Trade file · Operations
Hospitality Radar follows 5,780 hotel projects in planning, construction and renovation. For kitchens, bars and laundry, about 960 of them are being specified right now, while the products are still being chosen, and about 1,410 are buying. A product that is already in the spec goes into the tender with the best odds.
Hotel projects entering specification for kitchens, bars and laundry, by quarter.
Hotel projects entering the purchasing window for kitchens, bars and laundry, by quarter.
Estimate from each project's opening year and typical lead times for this trade. Later quarters fill up as new projects are announced, so a lower bar further out is not a falling market.
Cities with the most hotel projects being specified for this trade right now. The city file opens with your trade on top.
Projects being specified now or entering specification in the next 12 months, by region.
Share of projects with a known class. Our coverage is strongest in upscale and luxury hotels; midscale and select-service projects are being added.
For kitchens, bars and laundry, specification typically runs from 28 to 16 months before opening and purchasing from 15 to 5 months before opening. There are two ways into a project: through the specification or through the tender. A product that is already in the spec goes into the tender with the best odds.
Kitchen, bar, refrigeration and laundry equipment is typically specified by a foodservice consultant, often an FCSI member, working with the architect, MEP engineer, interior designer and F&B leadership. For branded hotels, the brand's design and construction standards are a binding part of the franchise agreement and take precedence over the designer's own preferences, with a failed pre-opening brand inspection able to force an unbudgeted replacement. The equipment is bought by the owner or developer through the general contractor or a specialist kitchen fit-out supplier, while small operating supplies such as china, cutlery and glassware are purchased separately by the hotel's own operations team.
Kitchen and laundry equipment carries import lead times of up to 24 weeks, so the buying decision is made months before any tender becomes public. Projects entering specification now are quietly setting next year's shortlist.
Induction and other electrified cooking equipment is replacing gas in commercial kitchens, pushed by indoor air quality rules and faster, more controllable heat. Hotel kitchens sit inside that shift because brand and ESG targets increasingly favour electrified cooking lines.
Hotel bars are being planned as standalone destinations rather than a lobby add-on, with WATG reporting that most luxury travellers now pick a hotel partly for its restaurant and bar offer. Hospitality Net describes 2026 as the return of the bar seat as the most sought-after spot in the house.
Source: hospitalitynet.org
Marriott, Hilton, IHG, Hyatt, Choice and Red Roof have committed under the Responsible Stay programme to cut food waste from hotel restaurants and kitchens. That commitment is pulling biodigesters, composting units and tighter waste tracking onto kitchen equipment lists.
Source: hoteldive.com
Middleby's Open Kitchen platform connects cooking, refrigeration and HVAC equipment from more than 50 manufacturers into one remote-monitoring system. Hotel groups managing multiple properties are a direct target for this kind of centralised, IoT-based facility management.
Source: middleby.com
TRSA's own cost-comparison tools show hotels still weighing in-house laundry against outsourcing on a case-by-case basis, with ownership structure and perceived control as deciding factors as much as pure cost. That keeps on-premise laundry equipment a live purchase for a meaningful share of projects rather than a declining category.
Source: trsa.org
Spa, pool & leisure590 specifying now
Outdoor & landscape1,050 specifying now
Fitness910 specifying now
Pre-opening & brand1,040 specifying nowEvery Monday: new signals, a city and a trade in numbers. Free, one click to leave.
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As of November 2026. Figures are estimates, rounded, and recalculated with every update of the radar.