Overcoming pandemic delays with innovation The construction of the 976-room hotel, featuring over 300,000 sq. ft., of tile and stone and incorporating 40 unique tile and stone products, faced numerous hurdles due to pandemic-induced delays. These included the late start of the project by a year, condensed construction schedules, and the logistical challenges of 25 containers requiring ocean freight.

Aware of the condensed timelines, the David Allen project team meticulously reviewed the plans to preempt potential issues before arriving on site. Three critical items were identified, all related to the guest bathrooms:

• The team proposed shifting from a 3” sleeve to a more functional 4” sleeve for the drainpipe, improving the system's efficiency.
• It developed templates for trade partners to use for the drain location, ensuring the wall tile could seamlessly direct water into the linear drains.
• Instead of using a traditional dry pack mud shower floor, the team recommended prefabricated foam pans.

This innovation saved months on the schedule and eliminated 240,000 pounds of sand and cement from the building, significantly reducing the project's weight and complexity.

A testament to excellence and collaboration Martin Howard, Executive Vice-President of Operations for Tile, Stone, and Pre-Construction at David Allen Company, expressed pride in the project.

"David Allen Company was honored to be selected by our long-time client, Skanska USA, to perform the ceramic tile and epoxy terrazzo scopes of work in the Georgia World Congress Center, Signia Hilton project,” he said. “Marque projects of this scale don’t happen every day, and we were thrilled to be involved. This project provided an opportunity to showcase skills honed over our 104-year history and has merited David Allen Company an NTCA Five-Star award. Our teams worked closely with Skanska and Gensler to meet and exceed expectations for the first ground-up Signia in the USA market."

The NTCA Five-Star Project of the Year Large Commercial Grand Prize awarded to the David Allen Company is a testament to the power of collaboration, innovation, and the relentless pursuit of perfection in the world of construction and design. The company’s ability to adapt and innovate under challenging circumstances has set a new benchmark for excellence in tile installation.