New Premier Inn tops out
A CEREMONY took place last week to mark the new 12-storey, £10m Premier Inn being built in Manchester city centre reaching its highest point.
The “topping out” ceremony involved placing a Premier Inn sign on the 193-bed hotel, which is being built on the Sarah Tower site at Dale Street near Piccadily Station.
The ceremony was attended by representatives from Premier Inn, contractor Russells Construction, developer Property Alliance Group, designer Roger Stephenson Architects and forward funders British Steel Pension Trust.
A sandwich panel construction technique was used by Russells to build the shell of the hotel, which has enabled the Trafford-based company to erect all 11 upper floors at a rate of one every 10 days. The system, which sees structural concrete panels installed complete with insulation, windows and the brickwork skin, has been hailed for its speed, improved safety and aesthetic finish.
An internal fit-out of the hotel will now begin before it is handed over to client Whitbread Hotels & Restaurants in the summer. Once complete, the hotel will also have a Thyme Restaurant and five meeting rooms. Around 50 jobs will be created once opened.
Gareth Russell, managing director of Russells Construction, said: “This is an 18-month project but, unlike with a traditional build, we are able to celebrate the completion of the entire external structure after just a year thanks to the use of this innovative panel construction system.
“The traditional ‘topping out’ ceremony is usually held once the roof is on and gives us the opportunity to thank the whole team for their work so far. The internal fit-out is on track for handover of the building later this year.”
Dominic Pozzoni, director at Property Alliance Group, added: “The building has attracted significant interest as it has been steadily growing and is already becoming a recogniseable addition to the Piccadilly skyline.”
