Strand Hotel wins top honours in API Awards

The Strand Hotel was recently awarded the Best Hotel Development accolade in the 2017 Africa Property Investment (API) Awards, for its innovative design and outstanding achievements in services. The awards were announced during the API Summit & Expo last week.

Launched at this year’s Summit, the API Awards are aimed at providing a distinguished platform for developers, suppliers and owners in the African real estate industry – beyond South Africa – to showcase their best projects and services from across sub-Saharan Africa; giving special recognition to the best that Africa has to offer.

Located in Namibia’s premier seaside resort of Swakopmund, the Strand Hotel has become a landmark in the area and a popular holiday destination, with its beach location and being close to the town’s amenities. The hotel is owned by O & L Leisure, and was developed by Mirage Developments and Leisure (Pty) Ltd., where construction of the hotel was completed in 2015.

WSP in Africa – one of the largest multi-disciplinary engineering consultancies on the continent – was commissioned by the developer to design the Rational Fire, piped services (gas/plumbing and drainage), mechanical ventilation and air-conditioning for the hotel.

“The main objective of the system’s design was to contribute towards sustainable development by means of utilising resource efficiency in the design, careful selection of equipment that can withstand the harsh corrosive environs and provide robust reliable operation. Plant and materials were also selected of a suitable quality to last for a design life span of between 20- and 25-years, without major refurbishment during this period.” said Peter Hodgkinson, MD WSP, Building Services, in Africa.

The project entailed the development of a 4-Star Hotel with three food beverage facilities to the Hotel’s public areas. The total size of the project was 11 630m² consisting of 87 luxury suites and 28 upmarket apartments, 610m² promenade retail space, more than 1000m² of conference, business and banqueting facilities as well as 1000m² of health and spa facilities and a restaurant.

In a statement from API, the award panel also indicated that the design of the hotel met the requirements of the local heritage council and that it responds sensitively to the existing indigenous landscape – through a functional and contemporary design approach that provides a unique aesthetic.

More information from Elaine Porter, Tel: +27 11 300 6095 email: elaine.porter@WSPGroup.co.za