ABSTRACT
This research study focused on comparative design of e-guest reception system, a case study of Kevino White Guest House, Ikot Ekpene. The research work was necessary because of existing problems such as: Tedious manual method of recording guest information. Difficulty in the retrieval of needed information pertaining to past and current guest check-in and check-out information The objective of the study is to develop a guest information tracking system for hotel to maintain and easily track information about guests that check-in and check-out of the hotel. In every organization adequate information keeping is very important as it will aid easy updating and management of information. In a hotel, so many guests check in and check out on a daily basis. However, without a computerized system it will be difficult to know who has checked in or checked out. A guest information system has been developed to aid easy updating and tracking of guest information and to help to easily query for guests that has checked in and checked out of the hotel. The software development model used is Object Oriented Analysis and Design Methodology (OOADM), the programming language used is pHp Hypertext pre-processor (PHP) and the database used is MySql
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page – – – – – – – – i
Certification – – – – – – – – – ii
Approval Page – – – – – – – – iii
Dedication – – – – – – – – iv
Acknowledgment – – – – – – – – v
Abstract – – – – – – – – vi
Table of Contents – – – – – – – – vii-ix
List of Figures – – – – – – – – x
List of Tables – – – – – – – xi
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.0 Introduction – – – – – – – 1
1.1 Background of the Study – – – – – – 1-2
1.2 Statement of Problem – – – – – 2
1.3 Aim and Objectives of the Study- – – – – 3
1.4 Significance of the Study – – – – – – 3
1.5 Scope of the Study – – – – – – – 3
1.6 Organization of Research – – – – – – 4
1.7 Definition of Terms – – – – – – 4-5
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
- Introduction – – – – – – – – 6
2.1 Theoretical Background – – – – – – 6-8
2.2 Application of ICT in Hotel Industry – – – – 9-10
2.3 Need for Hotel Management Systems – – – – 10-11
2.4 General ICT Usage in Hotels – – – – – 11-12
2.5 Perceived Benefits of ICT use in the Hospitality Industry – 12-13
2.6 Barriers to ICT usage in the Hospitality Industry – – 13-15
2.7 E-Guest Reception – – – – – – – 15-17
CHAPTER THREE: SYSTEM ANALYSIS AND DESIGN
3.0 Introduction – – – – – – – – 18
3.1 Research Methodology – – – – – 18-19
3.2 Analysis of the Existing System – – – – – 19
3.2.1 Advantages of the Existing System – – – 19
3.2.1 Disadvantages of the Existing System – – – 19
3.3 Analysis of the Proposed System – – – – 19-20
3.3.1 Advantages of the Proposed System – – – 20
3.4 System Design – – – – – – – 20
3.4.1 Input Layout – – – – – – 21
3.4.2 Output Layout – – – – – – 22
3.4.3 Algorithm – – – – – – – 23
3.4.4 Program Flowchart – – – – – 24-28
3.4.5 Database Design – – – – – – 29
3.4.6 System Architecture – – – – – 29-30
3.4.7 Use Case/Class Diagram – – – – – 30-31
CHAPTER FOUR: SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION
4.0 Introduction – – – – – – – 32
4.1 System Design Diagram – – – – – – 32
4.2 Choice of Programming Language – – – 32
4.3 Analysis of Modules – – – – – 33
4.4 Programming Environment – – – – – 33
4.4.1 Hardware Requirements – – – – – 33
4.4.2 Software Requirements – – – – 33-34
4.5 System Implementation – – – – – – 34
4.6 Software Testing – – – – – – – 34-35
CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, RECOMMENDATION AND CONCLUSION
5.0 Introduction – – – – – – – 36
5.1 Constraints of the Study – – – – – – 36
5.2 Summary – – – – – – 36
5.3 Conclusion – – – – – – 37
5.4 Recommendations – – – – – – 37
References – – – – – – 38
Appendix A (Source Code) – – – – – 39-51
Appendix B (Output) – – – – – – 52-56
LIST OF FIGURES
Page Number
Figure 2.1: Main Menu Page – – – – – – 7
Figure 3.1: Guest Registration input layout — – – – 21
Figure 3.2: Login flowchart – – — – – 24
Figure 3.3: Main Menu Flowchart – – – – – 25
Figure 3.4: Guest Registration Flowchart — – – – 26
Figure 3.5: Guest Update flowchart – — – – – 27
Figure 3.6: Database Records flowchart – – – – 28
Figure 3.7: System Architecture – – – – – – 30
Figure 3.8: Use case Diagram – – – – – – 30
Figure 3.9: Class Diagram – – – – – – 31
Figure 4.1: System Design Diagram – – – – 32
LIST OF TABLES
Page Number
Table 3.1:Output layout for registration – – – 20
Table 3.2: Database Design – – – – – 29
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.0 Introduction
This chapter presents the introduction to comparative design and implementation of an e-guest reception system. It presents the introduction, background of the study, statement of the problem, aim and objectives of the study, scope of the study, significance of the study, organization of the research and definition of terms.
1.1 Background of the Study
In the recent years, tourism industry used information technology to provide entertainment and service, and this practice has been widely accepted in the tourism sector. Page (2011) asserted that hotels are part of the hospitality industry that has not been immune to change. According to Walker (2010) technology has a great impact on the hospitality industry in recent years, and this will continue to increase the uses of computers and the growth of information technology in general. Furthermore, the sophistication of information technology has made it possible for patrons/clients to sign in and check out from their rooms by using a keyboard linking the hotel’s computers to the bedroom’s television set (Walker, 2010). Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is defined as the use of digital tools for business function and processes. ICT includes the use of hardware, software, groupware, telecommunications, net ware and the intellectual capacity also known as human ware to develop programmes and preserve equipment.
Advances in information technology have changed the way of doing business in many industries including lodging. Hospitality technology applications employed in hotels are credited with providing a basis for competitive advantage, productivity improvement, enhanced financial performance, and guest service expansion. Technology adoption has significantly increased hotels’ offerings to their guests (e.g. in-room technology amenities, on-line reservations and payments). It has also made an impact on the hotel front- and back-office operations including different spheres such as reservations, check-in/out, guest accounting, housekeeping, payroll, recruiting and others.
Hotel information systems are available to assist management retrieving needed guest information when needed. The nature of hotel operations requires them to obtain a lot of guest personal information for reservation purposes and for supporting customer loyalty programs. It is important to note, that information is one of the most valuable resources and assets that a company can possess.
An e-guest reception system is a hotel information system that enables management of hotel to easily search and retrieve needed information of guests when needed. The system is important because the manual register record system makes it difficult to search or track guest information when needed.
1.2 Statement of Problem
The problems faced by many hotels include:
- Tedious manual method of recording guest information.
- Difficulty in the retrieval of needed information pertaining to past and current guest check-in and check-out information.
- Time consuming method of processing guest information.
1.3 Aim and Objectives of the Study
The aim of this research work is to develop ane-guest reception system. The following are the objectives of the study:
- To design a software solution for guest record information that maintains a database of guest records.
- To implement a system that will be used to register and compute guest billing information.
- To design an automated system that will facilitate easy tracking of guest record information by querying the database.
- To implement a system that will be used to easily determine check-out date of guest.
1.4 Significance of the Study
The study is significant in the following ways:
- It will help provide the hotel management with a more efficient method of managing guest information.
- It can complement or replace the manual way of managing guests information in the hotel.
- It will provide solution to the problems of getting needed reports pertaining to hotel guests.
1.5 Scope of the Study
This study covers comparative design and implementation of an e-guest reception system using Kevino White Guest House, Ikot Ekpene as a case study. It is limited to managing the check in and check out information of guests that visit the hotel.
