When
Radisson Blu opened its £22 million luxury 218-bedroom hotel at East Midlands
Airport, it was keen to have some eye-catching and innovative features. To help achieve this, the hotel became the
first building in the country to feature a Mobilane LivePanel Indoor system,
which they installed in their reception area.
The
attractive living wall has helped the building achieve the highest ever BREEAM sustainability
rating for a commercial hotel in the UK. BREEAM evaluations consider a whole
host of desired sustainable features and take into account not only
energy-saving factors but also look at the interior environment. By installing the LivePanel Indoor system in
the reception area, not only is the hotel ticking all the right boxes for the
assessment criteria but it has also introduced a beautiful talking point that
makes it stand out from the crowd.
The
panel used by Radisson Blu is 10sqm and contains a variety of plants which were
grown off-site and delivered ready for installation. The aesthetically pleasing
centrepiece of the hotel reception took just one day to install and the only work
needed prior to its installation was the fitting of some growing lights. Among the many advantages of the wall is that
it has its own integrated irrigation system and is self-contained, cutting out
the need for any damp proofing behind the system. The panel contains a specially developed
substrate which helps the plants to establish themselves and thrive. The
irrigation system is powered by a standard 240v supply and the wall requires
minimal maintenance. Any work that is required is done by Hedera Screens, which
installed it.
We
have been given some great feedback from the hotel on the views that staff and
guests have had about the living wall, all of which has been positive. Our hope is that the LivePanel Indoor system
will fire the imaginations of more interior designers and architects, who will
be inspired to incorporate one into their latest project designs, whether offices,
call centres, health centres, gyms, retail or business centres. Their potential
application is immense.
