Hotel Sector Wakes Up To Modular
A fully-fitted hotel room, constructed off-site in the UK, is set to be one of the main attractions at the International Hotel Investment Forum (IHIF) which runs from March 5-7 in Germany.
Elements Europe, using their innovative Roompod system manufactured a prototype hotel room module for Holiday Inn Express, as requested by Kier Construction Group and the InterContinental Hotels Group who are supporting the Boxclever off-site construction solutions. It will be situated outside the InterContinental Hotel, Berlin which is the venue for the event and its 1,600 delegates from 50 countries.
Andy Jones, managing director of Elements Europe, says the hotel market is now starting to wake up to the full range of benefits provided by modular construction.
“Volumetric solutions offer hoteliers, developers and investors the advantages of a faster return on investment and reduced build times combined with cost engineering and customer service focus,” he says. “Products manufactured off-site also create a clear environmental advantage with smaller carbon footprint.”
“We are supporting the InterContinental Hotel Group at this exhibition in order to throw a spotlight on the latest advances in Modern Methods of Construction.”
Elements Europe’s modular construction solutions are already employed by key European and global hotel chains as well as customers in education, retail, commercial and residential sectors. Hotels currently under construction using the full Roompod modular solutions are Premier Inn hotels in Coventry and Ealing the main contractors Leadbitter and Mace, Travelodge in Hemel Hempstead, the main contractor Kier and a new branded boutique hotel located in the Jewellery Quarter in Birmingham, named Bloc.
Other hotel projects have included the five star St Pancras hotel for main contractor Galliford Try, Premier Inn Waterloo for John Sisk and Nottingham University Park Hotel for BAM. These hotel developments saw Elements Europe manufacture and install Lightweight Steel Frame hotel bathroom pods, known as Solopod, a solution which provides kitchen and bathroom accommodation. For those clients looking for solutions (not including Roompod) that can bear loads, Elements Europe offers its Strucpod range, which comprises of fully integrated structural pods whereby the walls, floors and ceilings form the load bearing elements of the structure. In most cases Strucpod forms the bathrooms, kitchens and en-suites and is used in conjunction with Elements Europe’s Strucmet Light steel panel system to deliver the entire structural element of the construction project.
Elements Europe’s Andy Jones adds: “Innovation and investment are the key components at the heart of the company’s ethos with the aim of sustaining a dynamic and forward-thinking business. Meeting specific client needs is the core principle behind the creation of a flexible and responsive manufacturing supply capability.”
“This, added to the latest product and materials innovation and international quality standards, creates a revolutionary business delivery unit for the hotel and other sectors. We are confident that the industry generally is starting to heed the wake-up call and realising the benefits of this type of modular construction solution.”
Elements Europe is well accredited for its products and standards of manufacture including ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001. It has been shortlisted as Manufacturer of the Year for the 2012 building awards, won design awards for its innovative and sustainable products at the NEC Interbuild exhibition for Off-Site Solutions New Product, as well as the Cardiff University Innovation prize.
Berlin event
Elements Europe is at Stand 71 and its hotel room at the venue entrance, 15th IHIF, InterContinental, Berlin, Mon-Wed March 5-7.
