Manchester modular hotel is constructed of shipping containers

Purpose built shipping containers are being used in the construction of a modular 220-room Holiday Inn Express in Trafford City, Manchester, UK.

The shipping containers come with fully factory finished interior fixtures and fittings that are installed before being delivered to the site. Additionally, the rooms have full height windows and are fully furnished before leaving the factory.

In order to make the off-site modular design the hotel uses work, Chapman Taylor, the architect for the project, developed a fully coordinated BIM model to inform the detailed design and enable the off-site works to commence. Chapman Taylor and Bowmer & Kirkland, the contractor, hope to deliver the project in less than 12 months.

Rendering courtesy of Chapman Taylor.

Construction of the ground floor and podium structure is underway on site while, simultaneously, the bedroom modules are being manufactured off-site. Once delivered, the modules will be stacked on top of the podium structure. Each of the 220 guest room modules will be installed within a two to four week period.

One module comprises two fully furnished en-suite rooms that are separated by a section of circulation corridor. Once the modules are in place on site, the external envelope, which consists of prefinished rainscreen cladding and single ply roofing systems, is applied.

The project is a joint venture between Mill Lane Estates, Topland Group, and Marick.