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“This clearly demonstrates the formidable capability of Access Projects as the forerunner in the hotel construction and refurbishment sector. We are fully backed and supported by our Chairman Sumal Perera and our parent company, Access Group. This together with our dedicated and professional staff enables us to complete near impossible tasks,” said Access Projects Executive Director Nishal Ferdinando.
The Sri Lankan Government has an ambitious goal of reaching 2.5 million tourist arrivals by 2016 and as such authorities project 50,000 new hotel rooms are needed to accommodate these tourists, he noted.
Fast track and quality construction
“As one of Sri Lanka’s leading hotel construction and refurbishment companies, we hope to cement and strengthen the Government’s aspiration by means of offering fast track and quality construction to hotel and resort developers in order to achieve these goals,” Ferdinando stressed.
“In fact, the actual construction time was less than six months, and to achieve high quality finishes with such a large scope in such a short time was a tremendous challenge. The actual effective construction time from mobilisation was barely five months, due to holidays and victory day parade road closures. We also had to ensure that other floors in the hotel were fully functional. This too posed a major challenge to us due to controlling of noise levels and limitations of work during night etc.,” added a confident Ferdinando.
Access Projects renovated three floors (7th, 6th and 4th floors) lobbies on each floor and a total of 86 rooms, including one presidential suite, an executive lounge and 14 suites.
Civil work of the extensive renovation initiative included concrete and masonry work, painting, marble and glass works, doors and windows, ceiling works, molding, fixing of fittings and fixtures, fabric and wall papers.
Specialised finishes
The specialised finishes comprise of marble floors and marble walls, tempered curved glass balconies, feature ceilings with moldings, feature walls with moldings and grooves and mirrors.
In addition, the company also is a main contractor, with qualified staff in all mechanical and engineering fields which ensured the installation of all building services systems, including electrical, plumbing, fire, data, and telephones in the three floors of the hotel.
“A special mention must be made of the Taj Samudra Hotel and the support and assistance received from the Taj Samudra General Manager Mr. Rohit Khosla. The Taj project team must also be commended for their support and the sheer dedication for the management of the project. Finally without the commitment of our staff, this task would not have been possible,” opined Access Projects Managing Director Dilshan Ferdinando.
“We employed a labour force of both skilled and unskilled workers exceeding 500 and an on-site technical staff cadre of over 30 headed by Deputy General Manager K.A.C.P. Bandara,” he added.
Some of the flagship projects previously completed by Access Projects are Chaaya Blu Trincomalee, Club Dolphin Waikkal and Chaaya Tranz Hikkaduwa. Access is also currently constructing a luxury resort in Weligama.
An ISO 9001:2008 accredited company – Access Projects is a member of the Access Group of Companies, which is one of the fastest growing corporate entities in Sri Lanka. Access Projects is a C2 contractor for buildings and F1 contractor for interior finishes certified by ICTAD (The Institute for Construction Training and Development), specialising in hotel refurbishment and construction work. Access Projects also specialises in fabricating Sri Lanka’s only tested aluminium door and window system under the world-renowned Italian brand Aluk.
