Hilton Hotel Downtown Miami
CHALLENGE
A New York investment firm purchased and set out to renovate the 30-year-old Omni Complex, a three-city-block complex of buildings that includes the Hilton Miami Downtown as well as a five-story office building and a large shopping center to be converted to mixed-use office and retail space.
As part of the renovation, the property owner needed an experienced elevator consulting company to evaluate internal transportation needs, modernize existing equipment and install new elevator equipment – all without disrupting hotel guests or the functionality of the fully operational parking facility. A key goal was to improve traffic handling to the hotel’s lower conference floors and ballrooms, which needed fast, convenient access when hosting large conventions.
The modernization and installation project was complicated by hidden structural challenges that became apparent during work on the aging facility, requiring modification of installation plans to preserve the existing structure of the complex.
WHAT WAS DONE
The property owner sought an elevator consulting firm with a track record of success with larger projects, and selected BOCA Group to assist with the elevator modernization and new equipment installation.
BOCA Group began by surveying the entire property, then provided specific recommendations for the modernization of existing elevators and the addition of new elevators where needed. In conjunction with the property owner’s design group, BOCA Group created plans for:
- The modernization of nine passenger elevators, one freight elevator, and three service elevators in the hotel
- The modernization of two existing traction passenger elevators in the parking garage, plus the installation of three new traction passenger elevators
- The modernization of two traction passenger elevators in the office complex, plus the installation of four new glass-back observation traction elevators, one new hydraulic passenger elevator, and one new service elevator
- The installation of one new hydraulic service elevator in the mall area that was converted to office and retail space
BOCA Group provided project management services throughout the three-year installation and modernization process, handling the entire bid process, contractor interviews, drawing approvals and construction oversight.
OUTCOME
After the modernization and installation was completed at the end of 2010, the hotel was upgraded to a four-star rating from its prior two-star rating. New elevator equipment made the ballrooms more convenient and readily accessible from the rest of the complex, improving the hotel’s conference business. The parking garage improved its leasing rate from approximately 100 cars a day to near capacity on a daily basis. And the office building had improved its leasing ratio to 75 percent of capacity even before the elevator work was complete.
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