The next time you stay at a Marriott, there’s a possibility that your hotel room was put together many miles away from your actual location. That’s because Marriott International has launched a plan to adopt more modular construction in its properties.

The company is aiming to use prefabricated structures on roughly 13 percent of its hotels in North America through 2017, amounting to 50 new structures.

A Solution To New Construction Obstacles
Driven by a need to reduce building costs and help franchisees cope with U.S. construction labor shortages, Marriott has embraced the advantages of prefabricated accommodations for guests.

With one modular hotel open in California and four others currently being completed, the hotel chain appears to have found a reliable solution to obstacles hindering new construction projects.

Creating Building Elements Systematically 
Through prefabrication, hotel rooms and bathrooms can be created in a climate-controlled manufacturing facility that creates and assembles building elements systematically. Once complete, the prefabricated rooms are transported to the building site, positioned in place by a crane, then equipped with electric, plumbing, and other finishing touches.

The process is considerably faster than conventional construction, where weather and skilled labor and material shortages can amount to expensive delays.

Image Source: Construction Dive

Advantageous For A Hotel Chain
Prefabrication also allows for more predictable outcomes and consistent structures, which is especially advantageous for a hotel chain. Marriott creates about 100,000 new rooms annually and are now hoping to get to a point where 50,000 of those rooms can be built modularly.

More travelers will soon have an opportunity to stay in modular rooms at Marriott properties located in Pullman, WA, Oklahoma City, OK, Louisville, KY, and Chapel Hill, NC., with more locations to follow. Will guests be able to tell they’re staying in a room that was built miles away and lifted in place via crane? Will this approach prove successful for Marriott and further a new trend in the construction of hotels and other structures?

Article Sources
https://www.usatoday.com
https://www.cpexecutive.com
http://www.latimes.com
http://www.constructiondive.com