70 THE WORLD OF HOSPITALITY
EDITOR’S CHOICE
Totally Disappearing Pools!
An emerging trend in the hospitality industry
Providing guests with a laid-back activity
option, pools have always been an integral
feature of hotels. But it can be a waste of
space to have so many square feet dedicated
to just one purpose, especially considering
that pools are not in use all day long and often
occupy prime spaces which are otherwise
perfectly suited to special events. Enter the
newest solution: movable pool floors.
SPACE-SAVING TRANSFORMABLE POOLS
Appearing a few years back in private
residences, they became sought after for
their safety and flexibility by means of a
highly secure floor, usable for a full range
of activities once raised above the water’s
surface. They made a somewhat later
entrance into hospitality facilities since
fewer available technologies meet their high
standards in terms of capacity – 500kg/m2
versus 250kg/m2 for residential projects.
in both private and commercial projects in
United Kingdom, Switzerland, Hong Kong,
Canada and the United States. Over the past
six years, the firm has become the leading
North American design and manufacturing
specialist in robust fully customizable
movable pool floors.
HOW IT WORKS
The AKVO Spiralift system uses a series of
compact actuators to automatically raise an
entire pool floor up to ground level. With
its multiple support points beneath the
floor, it can be adapted to any pool shape,
size or capacity as well as any architectural
environment. A full-depth pool can be
transformed into a gym or lounge area… in
about 10 minutes at the touch of a button!
For the Holborn Group, an international
award-winning real estate developer and
property manager, these capabilities give
hotels extraordinary flexibility: ‘’One of
the main innovative features in our hotel
building [Vancouver] is how the pool bar
facility is designed to function as the hotel
pool during the day and transform into a
nightclub during the evening. Having this
flexibility allows the same space to be used
for completely different functions during
different operational hours, making the space
efficient and innovative. Additionally, unique
venues are created for hosting exclusive pool
party events.’’
Definitively, transformable pools are
becoming more widely recognized in the
hospitality industry as an efficient way
to resolve space issues… and generate
meaningful ancillary earnings!
Designed by Paco Group, a Canadian
company with over five decades of expertise
in engineering projects, AKVO Spiralift®
Movable Pool Floors have been installed
WEBSITE:www.galasystems.com