New York City (TAN): American hospitality major Marriott International is going to change the way hotel buildings are constructed with its upcoming property in New York City, touted to be the world’s tallest modular hotel.
The 26-storied structure, scheduled to be stacked in late fall with ‘prefabricated and pre-furnished guestrooms’ ‘inside and out’, could open in late 2020 as the AC Hotel New York NoMad.
Marriott International’s Chief Development Officer, North America, Select and Extended Stay Brands, Eric Jacobs said: “In North America, the construction process hasn’t changed significantly in 150 years and it’s ripe for innovation.”
“The world’s tallest modular hotel in one of the world’s greatest destinations will act as a game-changing symbol to ignite even greater interest in modular among the real estate and lending industries,” he added.
The 360-foot tall tower will take 90 days to build and cost Marriott USD 65 million, the company said. located at 842 Sixth Avenue, the hotel will feature 168 rooms, along with a modular roof and modular rooftop bar. Each module will comprise a fully-equipped guest room, complete with beds, flooring and toiletries. However, public areas including the restaurant and lobby could be built ‘using traditional methods’.
It is being looked at as part of Marriott’s effort to ‘encourage hotel developers in North America to embrace modular for new construction projects’. Marriott believes prefabrication saves time, cuts down waste and noise, and produces better quality finished product with ‘factory level precision’.
Marriott started exploring modular construction in 2014 to bring down time to erect a structure, and has opened 31 Marriott-brand low-rise properties along with its development partners in North America since. Some of them are Fairfield by Marriott Inn & Suites in Folsom, California, and dual-brand Courtyard and TownePlace Suites by Marriott property in Hawthorne, California, among others.
The company in fact launched modular versions of its prototypes of four of its brands, consisting of Fairfield by Marriott, SpringHill Suites by Marriott, Courtyard by Marriott and TownePlace Suites by Marriott.
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New York-based architecture firm Danny Forster & Architecture designed the venture, whose owner Danny Forster said: “This is the moment where modular construction takes center stage. This hotel takes every advantage of off-site manufacturing, as you might expect. But it does so in a way that defies expectation.”
“We wanted to demonstrate that modular building can do more than just harness the efficiencies of the factory. It can produce a graceful and iconic tower. And yes, it can do so at the rate of an entire floor a day,” he added.
