Is this one more reason why suites are often not available for early check-in?

If I don't check out on the TV, I usually check out at the front desk. If there's a wait required at the front desk but I don't need another copy of the bill, then I will sometimes interrupt to say, "I'm checking out of room NNN."

It frees the room up so that housekeeping can clean it and get it ready for the next person.

Years ago, I worked in an independent hotel. When anyone checked out, the front desk clerk radioed the vacancy to the housekeeping manager. There was frequent communication between the front desk and the housekeeping manager to keep tabs on the status of room readiness. I have often wondered whether many other hotels have that much communication to keep on top of things. Does anyone here know much about how this tends to work in most Starwood hotels? Does the housekeeping manager use a reservation system computer to see when rooms have been vacated?