Hampton by Hilton hotel in Ashford building continues as 'shipping containers' appear

ajee@thekmgroup.co.uk

Published: 06:00, 22 September 2020

A large stack of 'shipping containers' has appeared as work continues on a town's new six-storey hotel.

Ashford residents have noticed the pods being stacked up on the 120-room Hampton by Hilton site on the corner of Victoria Road and Beaver Road.

The hotel was initially due to open in December, but construction stopped during the Covid-19 lockdown

While the chain has not commented on the nature of the containers, they appear to be prefabricated room modules.

The 'prefab method' is being used increasingly often by hotel chains as a more cost-effective and speedy way of building new sites.

Aldington resident Peter Morris-Kelso, who works nearby at Travis Perkins, said: "Quite a few people have questioned it because they haven't seen it before.

"It certainly looks strange, especially when some of the containers seem to say 'do not stack', but it's a tried and tested way of building hotels.

"If it is what they are doing, then most likely each container will have two rooms and a section of corridor.

Contractors have been lifting the containers into place recently. Picture: Freddie Clements

"They are bolted together and then cladding is built around it; I would say it was more or less maximum height right now.

"I used to work in a hotel nearby which had an extension that was built in that way - by using that method they will have saved themselves about a year in construction I would say."

The Hampton by Hilton has been in construction since December last year, with the firm finally confirming it would run the site in January.

In February, a spokesman said the building was due to open this December, creating 25 jobs, with recruitment due to start this month.

However, construction was paused due to the coronavirus lockdown and it is not clear if it will still open later this year.