Design, technology and service will be the three major features in the serviced apartment of the future, according to the pundits of the industry.

"There is going to be a raising of the bar in design and comfort, it will be the end of corporate bland," says Tracey Stephenson, whose company Staying Cool commissioned furniture for its Birmingham premises and used a mixture of commissioned, retro and refurbished in its Manchester apartments.

And technology will range from entertainment systems to the ability to control lighting and heating remotely. This will also have a green agenda. "Link the Edge provides a brain which controls all electricity remotely and guests will be able to ring a given number and type in a password, which allows them to alter heating and lighting. It is already possible but we have not explored all the implications," she says. This is one step on from the key cards in hotels that allow guests to turn lights and heating on and off as they enter and leave a room.

General Manager of Hyde Park Gate (Cheval Group) Malcolm Broadbent agrees that control of energy use is a serious consideration. "It is getting increasingly expensive and we will need to look at our carbon footprint," he says. "Insulation to prevent heat loss and gain, depending on the time of year, will become more sophisticated, where outside sensors make systems compensate for what is going on outside before anyone has to turn a dial; and more sophisticated than that, respond to when and how people use the building."

And consultant to the industry Elaine Quiroz says the industry is starting to see more RFPs that ask about operators' green policies and programmes for the environment. "This can range from whether we use properties that have conservation-friendly designations to simpler measures such as the cleaning products used. One corporate housing provider is making this a hallmark of all its apartments and programmes. We expect to see more focus on that in the future as well," she says.

Malcolm Broadbent also sees demand for cutting edge entertainment. "TVs are no longer just a TV and in houses worth £2 million upwards, people are installing personal cinemas and concentrating on getting the quality right," he says. "In offering a product to replace the home of an individual when away on business for a period of time, the serviced apartment industry has to reflect this requirement."