Skip to main content

NEMACOLIN HOSPITALITY INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY LAB

Nemacolin Hospitality Innovation and Technology Lab is a platform for both industry and academia to come together to solve the problems of the hospitality and tourism industry.

HitLab Resources

Our Purpose 

The purpose of the Hardy Family Hospitality and Tourism Management Program is to prepare future business leaders and managers for the hospitality and tourism industry. We offer hospitality expertise and experience with a strong foundation in business administration. The hospitality program at WVU seeks to be known as a technology and innovation leader in the education of hospitality students. To fulfill this purpose and vision, hospitality program offers an experiential learning component built into the curriculum, real-life projects in every course, finding solutions to the industry problems and trends.

The purpose of the Nemacolin Hospitality Innovation and Technology Lab will be to foster innovation and hospitality technology at WVU.

  • The Nemacolin Hospitality Lab will be used to develop, test, and evaluate new and emerging information technologies and to conduct research, training, and development for students and the workforce in the hospitality industry.
  • The lab will feature state-of-the-art interactive technological tools and devices, such as Internet of Things (IoTs), Augmented Reality (AR), and Virtual Reality (VR) devices, and users will be able to access several kinds of hospitality software and applications. Additionally, cutting-edge analytical tools and statistical software will be available for students to collect, analyze, and review data in the hospitality industry.
  • The HIT Lab will be designed to evaluate new and emerging technologies, conduct testing of various software applications and devices, and engage in hospitality-focused research projects for both academia and the industry. The customers of the HIT lab are students, faculty, and industry professionals. 

3102 REYNOLDS HALL

Ajay Aluri
Director of the HIT Lab 
Phone:  304-293-1048 
ajaluri@mail.wvu.edu 
Office #: 115 Business and Economics Building

Current Projects

people looking at content on a tablet

Director of the Nemacolin Hospitality Lab, Dr. Ajay Aluri is currently working on the following projects:

  • Partnered with 5th Gen Wireless LLC to examine the current and future use of guest room entertainment technologies and applications in independent boutique hotels in the U.S.
  • Working on a project with an innovative company, LISNR, started by a WVU Alumni, Rodney Williams. LISNR uses the world’s most advanced audio ultrasonic technology, the Internet of Sound, to transmit data through sound waves.
  • Collaborating with the Business Bureau of Economic Research (BBER) and the Greater Morgantown Convention Visitors Bureau (GMCVB) to review the economic impact of tourism on the area.
  • Invited to join the advisory board of an advanced and innovative technology start-up that uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning to predict and fix communication infrastructure failures before they happen at hotels and hospitality and tourism enterprises.
  • Developing a revenue management model for a top hotel brand in Morgantown, WV.
  • Studying the use of Internet of Things (IoTs) in the restaurant industry with the Fresh Hospitality group.   

HIT Lab Industry Projects

LEVEL 2 : Expert/ LEVEL 2: Advanced/ LEVEL 1 Basic (inverted pyramid chart)The HIT Lab will work with industry partners on four levels to offer valued solutions to real-life problems. 

  • Expert Examining a significant problem submitted by a client, particularly one that required collaboration with other faculty and experts within the university or outside the university.
  • Advanced Investigating and finding a solution to a problem where faculty in the HTOR team directly with the client to develop a solution.
  • Intermediate Exploring a problem as part of the student individual and/or group project in one or two courses.
  • Basic Exploring a simple problem from a client as part of an individual or group project in a HTOR course.