Taking Recycling to New Heights
Travelodge, an international hotel chain, recently opened a new hotel in Uxbridge, England, on the outskirts of London. While this news isn’t particularly noteworthy, the materials and resultant construction method used are noteworthy. Using Verbus Systems prefabricated shipping containers, the 120-room hotel was completed with an estimated savings of more than 500,000 pounds and 10 weeks of construction. The hotel used 86 containers of varying size, which were retrofitted and bolted onsite. The exterior was clad with windows after installation, creating a seamless-looking hotel from the outside.
But Travelodge isn’t stopping there. Excited by the combination of a hotel that combines building materials that are more durable than some traditional materials and significantly cheaper to install, the chain is building a 307-room hotel in Heathrow. Because of the containers’ modular form, Verbus estimates that installation is 40-60% quicker than traditional building methods and doesn’t require specialized labor, another cost savings for project owners. Verbus also claims a 70% reduction in onsite waste.
Travelodge isn’t the first project owner to construct a project with either prefab or recycled shipping containers. In New Zealand, industrial design lecturer Ross Stevens built a residential house using recycled containers, which are ideal for vertically-inclined projects. And despite the rugged and modular form of the containers, the house still maintains a modern living aesthetic that is offset by balconies and terraces. You can also scroll down the page and check out “Related Posts” for additional projects.