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Four hospitality projects show how the selected flooring helped fire up the venues' personality.

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Words by David Tarpey

The Aloft Hotel, Liverpool

Falconer Chester Hall converted Liverpool's iconic Grade II-listed Royal Insurance Building into a stylish 116-bedroom hotel for the Starwood Hotels Aloft brand.

Unused since the late Eighties, the 1903 Edwardian baroque building was suffering from advanced water ingress and dry rot, and was even on English Heritage's Buildings at Risk register.

Architects from the FCH practice were keen to retain, repair and reconstruct as many original features as possible within a building of such heritage and interest. One of the most recognisable elements was the large amount of original marble still present in the columns, walls and floors. But damage and disrepair were widespread, especially with the flooring in the rotunda area by the main entrance. The challenge was therefore to suggest a way to recreate the grand mosaic piece below the rotunda but with materials that were cost-effective and easy to manipulate into complex design, while also reflecting the tones and marble textures of the surrounding walls and columns.

Amtico was able to supply vinyl flooring to complement the existing marble in the Edwardian baroque building

This was achieved by using a vinyl tile collection from Amtico. The Signature range has a wide colour choice and includes a green and brown vein marble-effect vinyl tile, and so harmony with the vast decorative columns was assured, as well as with the cream/grey tones on the surrounding double-height walls.

FCH used the three tones, taken from the original surroundings within the main mosaic, and used its design instinct to assess the marble shades from original black-and-white photographs available. From these historic records, the designers were able to redraw the original pattern as closely as possible and liaise with Amtico to recreate this delicate and important feature.

Throughout the design process FCH worked closely with conservation, taking large sample pieces to site to assess the colour and quality in such a grand space.

Alston Bar & Beef

Carved from the earth beneath Glasgow's Central Station is the Alston Bar & Beef. Having opened in mid- 2014, it specialises in steak and gin and sports a down-to-earth attitude with the emphasis on honest fare, local artwork and a look of industrial chic aimed at urbanites.

Now at 79 Gordon Street, this was originally Alston Street but demolition in the 1870s took away all the original buildings to make way for Glasgow Central Station. Little wonder then that forgotten underground caverns such as this one were waiting to be rediscovered. Even now, there's a sense of discovering where the steak and gin thing is going on.

Overseeing the project was James Dilley, head of interior design & hospitality at Jestico + Whiles. He tells FX: 'It wasn't even evident that there was a basement down there at all. But people do like to discover new places. For us though, the biggest challenge was coping with the constrained space and working around the giant, old brick vaults. We couldn't touch them. The brief was to keep the look robust and honest.'

A single stainless-steel staircase leads down from street level. But what a staircase -- the gaps between the treads house tiny, sculpted, translucent lenses. These are frosted and illuminated to give a translucent effect underfoot. And these light fittings change colour according to the time of day, meaning you might descend in a hue of purple, blue or white. Downstairs in the evening, you'll encounter whitewashed brick walls, blue back-lighting and a floor of hexagonal solus (ceramic tiles) with a black accent.

Dilley states: 'The choice of these tiles was more like for something you'd use in an institutional setting. The brief we had was very loose, but emphasised the need to present something robust and workmanlike that was about being honest and authentic.'

Ageas Bowl by Hilton

Overlooking Hampshire County Cricket Club is the 171-bedroom Ageas Bowl by Hilton hotel, which opened in May and whose Lakeview Sports Bar typifies this venue's stylish vibe. Falconer Chester Hall wanted to give the flooring a 'classic look', and this is represented by a chevron patterning.

The original intention was to put down a light-timber natural finish. But this threw up problems as it wouldn't meet the R10 slip-rating and pendulum test. So, FCH opted for BluePrint Ceramics' timber-effect tile. This is very durable and requires less maintenance while giving the same feel and appearance of actual timber.

The tiles are bespoke for this project and the floor was assembled from different boxes to produce a variable and random effect for the finished surface. Hilton was keen to avoid the feel of a High Street cafe or bar, so FCH used crisp blues to lift the design with on-trend graphic tiles spanning 40 different classical patterns.

Director of FCH Mark Doohan tells FX: 'The client brief was to create an ageless and welcoming design whose feel, quality and attention to detail would enhance the international Hilton brand. So that included the sharp contemporary design in the floor finishing. I love the idea that the design creates a dynamic and light space, and that the sporting environment is addressed throughout, sometimes obvious and dynamic, sometimes muted and subtle. This creates an element of movement akin to taking part in a sporting event where ebbs and flows are common dramatic action mixed with low-key strategic play.

Zuri Zanzibar

Off the coast of Tanzania on Zanzibar's exotic archipelago, the 11ha luxury resort of Zuri Zanzibar is slowly taking shape, complete with a growing spice garden and in harmony with nature. And all this just below the Equator amid the warm winds of the Indian Ocean.

But only by winning an international design competition, did London-based Jestico + Whiles bag the commission to provide its architecture and interior design services for this exquisite but alternative paradise. The client's brief was to create an ecologically and socially sensitive resort that would also appeal to international visitors seeking an 'African Chic' experience.

Jestico + Whiles says of this project: 'Our design responds to both the geographical and cultural context and achieves a true sense of place. At one level, this is a response to Zanzibar's context, and at a more detailed level, the context of this specific location is distilled and layered into the guest experience. The response to the geographical context encompasses the climatic environment that is of particular influence in Zanzibar.

And the response to the rich cultural and historical context is sensitive and respectful and avoids a thematic pastiche. References are subtle and oblique, even subliminal, led by exciting local materials, spatiality, the heritage of craftsmanship and the talents of human touch.'

Funding this €27m project is a Czech-based private equity firm that simply wanted something 'authentic', says the project's lead architect and director at Jestico + Whiles, Sean Clifton. 'We came up with something that we describe as "really Zanzibar". That means a big emphasis on hand-made and hand-crafted, and involving people from local villages. In fact, the lay-out reflects a Zanzibar village. There are a series of cabanas (Spanish for hut/cabin/shelter) that house the rooms and the restaurants, linked by sand walkways. And on the floors throughout we used a lime render finish called tadelakt. This involves tadelakt lime from the Moroccan Plateau. Traditionally, black olive soap is rubbed in to create a lime plaster, and this is used both internally and externally. It's a very cool material and ideal for the tropics. We wanted to get away from an air-conditioned environment and have lots of natural ventilation and cool materials.

'On the restaurant and bedroom floors, we've employed natural, sustainable teak from around the island and mainland Tanzania. Around the pools on the external terraces we've also used this wood, but left gaps to allow the water to flow through. And everywhere we've also used makuti (palm leaf) for the roofs, which is in keeping with local building traditions. There are other, more detailed, touches such as the use of small paper beads (made by local women for necklaces) as dividers in bathrooms, local coral in the exterior walls and waste water bottles that are adapted for light fittings,' he explains further.