Hicken who is a well known figure across the construction and fit-out communities was a senior business development manager at Mivan for 11 years and was responsible for winning many contracts over this period. Known as a consummate networker, he has an in-depth knowledge across commercial, retail, residential and hotels construction. He also draws upon management consultancy and accountancy experience across a range of international projects from previous senior roles with international companies.

McAleer & Rushe has delivered more than 12,000 hotel rooms across 60 hotels throughout the UK for a range of hotel operators including Starwood, InterContinental Hotels, Jurys Inn, Arora Hotels and Premier Inn and has an impressive portfolio of office and residential developments. A recent flagship project was Starwood’s W Hotel in London’s Leicester Square which McAleer & Rushe developed and built. The mixed-use scheme which included prime retail and luxury apartments was recently sold to a Qatari investor for £200m.

McAleer & Rushe’s existing business development team has become increasingly focused on London and the South-East and has recently expanded into a new London office at 100 George Street, W1.

Eamonn Laverty chief executive of McAleer & Rushe said:

James has a great track record of delivering business and has a very impressive set of skills and a fantastic contacts book which we are very keen to utilise. I’m sure he will play a key role in increasing our market share and growing knowledge of our brand.

Hicken said:

This is a wonderful opportunity to join a dynamic and successful team who bring traditional values and attitudes coupled with ultra-smart construction methods. I love the Northern Ireland mentality of ‘can do’ and ‘whatever it takes’ and I feel very much at home already, and very proud to be wearing the McAleer & Rushe hat. I look forward to working with my existing friends in the industry and to making many more new ones.

The new nine-storey hotel, will employ close to 200 people during its construction and create further jobs as part of its on-going operation. It will replace the former Grosvenor Casino on Queen’s Road just outside Brighton railway station. Work on-site will continue until June 2013.

During the regeneration of the site, McAleer & Rushe will be working closely with Brighton & Hove City Council to ensure that any disruption to traffic and pedestrians is kept to an absolute minimum, with all works designed to minimise the potential impact they may have. The project has been registered with the Considerate Contractors scheme.

Martin Magee, Construction Director, for McAleer & Rushe said:

“We are delighted to be involved in this exciting regeneration project on this key site. The new hotel not only will create a considerable number of new jobs during its construction and operation, but will also help meet the strong demand for more hotel rooms in the city.”

Thomas Dubaere, Managing Director, Accor UK & Ireland, commented:

“We are very excited to be opening a new hotel alongside McAleer & Rushe in the vibrant city of Brighton & Hove. It is an important destination for the Ibis network of hotels and continues Accor’s strategic and ambitious expansion in the UK to increase our presence to 300 hotels by 2015.”

McAleer & Rushe has been appointed as the main contractor on the scheme, and will manage the demolition of the old building and the construction of the new hotel.

McAleer and Rushe staff members Stephen Davey, Stephen Surphlis, Brigid O’Donnell, Marian Connolly and Patrick Mellon aim to raise as much as possible through their marathon efforts.

Stephen Davey said

“The specialist care and support provided by Marie Curie nurses is delivered free of charge and the charity depends on fundraising through events such as this to keep their nursing service going. This incentive has spurred us on, especially at times when training has become difficult.
We hope that as many people as possible will choose Marie Curie Cancer Care when signing up to the Marathon. Their nursing service does a fantastic job in improving the quality of life for terminally ill patients and their families at such a difficult time”.

Ruth Hope, Regional Events Fundraiser for Marie Curie Cancer Care said,

“From running the full 26 miles to taking part in the Fun Run or walk, this is a fundraising event that all ages and abilities can get involved in. On joining the Marie Curie Cancer Care Daffodil Team entrants receive a fantastic fundraising pack including a Nike Pro Fit running vest, a training guide, hints and tips for fundraising & a yellow Marie Curie poncho!”

Having been long standing supporters of Marie Curie Cancer Care, McAleer & Rushe have raised £530,000 over the past ten years. This equates to 26,500 hours of nursing care in their local community. To support the McAleer and Rushe team in their marathon efforts, consider donating at www.justgiving.com/mcaleer-rushe.
The Belfast City Marathon takes place on May Day Bank Holiday, Monday May 7.

For more information log on to www.belfastcitymarathon.com to find out more about running for Marie Curie Cancer Care contact 08700 340040 or visit www.mariecurie.org.uk/running.

The company, set-up in 1967, a specialist design and build contractor, has continued this growth since March 2011 and is on track to deliver turnover of more than £105m in its current financial year to March 2012 with comparable levels projected for the year to March 2013.

Recent highlights have included the handover of both the Maldron Hotel in Central Cardiff (May 2011), Jury’s Inn Gateshead (Aug 2011), the UK’s first ALOFT hotel, at the key Olympic venue, the Excel Exhibition Centre (Oct 2011) and the 400 bed Premier Inn, T5, Heathrow (Dec 2011) completed within 11 months of going-on site.

Key current projects include a £46m office/retail/residential contract in London’s West End and 3 further Premier Inns, including a flagship 630 bedroom hotel linked to Gatwick Airport’s North Terminal.

The company is a specialist in the hotel and office sectors having completed in excess of 12,000 bedrooms for 14 national operators over more than 40 projects and 1.5m sq. ft. office accommodation. The company looks forward to the continued expansion of its client base with several projects being actively negotiated at present for site starts in early 2012.

Group Finance Director, James Higgins commented:

“Despite challenging market conditions we are proud to demonstrate our improved trading performance and look forward to maintaining our current growth across a broad range of projects and clients without compromising our unique approach.”

The new Premier Inn hotel is set over five storeys and totalling 128,650 sq ft (11,950 sq m) in size. Practical completion of the project was achieved in 46 weeks, against a scheduled timeframe of 59 weeks.
Martin Magee, construction director of McAleer & Rushe, comments:

“To reach practical completion on a project of this scale and complexity a full three months ahead of scheduled handover date is testament not only to the McAleer & Rushe team, but also to the seamless working relationship we have with Grove Developments and Premier Inn. With any project such as this, the end user requirements are paramount. Premier Inn have clearly defined brand standards and rigorous specifications to be achieved, but their straight forward approach together with a clear brief from our client Gove Developments allowed us to deliver an efficient high quality hotel building.”

The on-airport location led to some unique challenges, with bespoke specifications employed to meet the scheme’s requirements. Premier Inn offers customers a Good Night’s Sleep, Guaranteed, so reducing or eliminating external noise was a key requirement for protecting this unique customer promise. Construction methods were devised to achieve the necessary acoustic quality, while careful consideration had to be given to landscaping, car parking and external lighting proposals.

The hotel, located to the north of the airport and accessed via the A4 Bath Road, takes on a ‘doughnut’ form, centred around an inner courtyard and designed to provide an acoustic ‘buffer zone’ for guests’ comfort. The inclusion of a restaurant and bar on the ground floor – with four floors of bedrooms above – creates the impression of a rainscreen-coloured box hovering on a glazed and solid masonry base, with colours chosen to create a dynamic façade and complement the landscaping.

McAleer & Rushe was appointed at the outline planning stage, allowing the firm’s design and build team to implement the amendments necessary to achieve a more efficient building. Workmanship on the scheme also had to meet the standards demanded by Premier Inn, with build quality surpassing the operator’s expectations.

Martin Magee adds:

“This has been the first of four buildings to be constructed on behalf of Grove Developments and, with the success achieved on this project, we look forward with confidence to completing the other properties in the development programme in a similar fashion. We are very appreciative of the excellent relationship we have with Grove, and hope this relationship can be extended beyond the existing contracted properties.”

Sinead Hughes, Head of Grove Developments commented:

“We were delighted to work with McAleer & Rushe on this turnkey project. Completing the project ahead of time, within budget and to the exacting standards that we set from the outset augers well for the remaining properties in the development programme.”

On Tuesday night, London’s exclusive Grosvenor House hotel was the glamorous backdrop to design magazine FX’s International Awards. The W Hotel won both the Hotel Award and the Lighting Design Award.

It follows last week’s news that Spice Market London at the W Hotel London won the Restaurant Interior Design of the Year Award at the European Hotel Design Awards.

The W Hotel also won the best UK Project at MIPIM, the international property exhibition in Cannes, France.

The judges said of the Jestico + Whiles designed hotel:

“Besides the striking visual effects on the façade, stunning interiors by [Amsterdam-based designers] Concrete also assisted the hotel in the heart of the Capital’s West End to become the winner of this year’s Best Hotel Award.”

It saw off tough competition from other hotels including the Five Star Fairmont, Cairo and Le Meridien in Philadelphia.

The W Hotel also received the Lighting Design Award for the lighting concept by Morris Brill Lighting Design. Judges were particularly taken by the lighting in the glamorous WYLD bar which features a 2m- diameter mirror ball which is lit by Erco projectors to create a vivid impact from outside on the Square.

Eamonn Laverty managing director of McAleer & Rushe said:

“The array of awards that the W Hotel has now won are a fitting tribute to the hard work put in by all who were involved in the project.”

The Glockenspiel that rang out from the corner of the Swiss Centre has been returned by the Cookstown-based developer and contractor, as a redesigned free-standing unit. It was formally inaugurated today (28 November).

Eamonn Laverty, managing director of McAleer & Rushe which funded the Glockenspiel, said:

“McAleer & Rushe as the developer of the W Hotel has been very pleased to have played a leading role in the restoration of the Glockenspiel to Leicester Square. The new installation is a fitting symbol of Anglo-Swiss co-operation which fuses the best of British engineering and Swiss craftsmanship.”

The original Glockenspiel – consisting of 27 bells, an astronomical clock and a procession of 23 farmers herding their cows to Alpine pasture – was given to the City of Westminster on its 400th anniversary in 1985 by Switzerland and Liechtenstein as a token of centuries of friendship.

In 2008 McAleer & Rushe began its redevelopment of the Swiss Centre into the stylish W Hotel which opened in February. Part of the demolition process entailed the removal of the iconic clock, but it was a condition of planning approval that the Glockenspiel should return to the square.

The rebuilt Glockenspiel features a procession of 11 moving Swiss figures against a traditional Swiss alpine backdrop, the coat of arms of the 26 Swiss cantons, 27 bells, and 4 Swiss Jacomas representing the 4 different regions with their individual language. Sliding shutters protect the figures from rain, and there is a clock with two faces at the top of the structure.

The faces are inspired by the Swiss Railway Clock which was designed in 1944 and has become a famous design icon. One side of the clock faces Piccadilly Circus and the other Leicester Square.

The bells will chime and a five-minute performance takes place five times a day Monday to Friday (at 12.00, 17.00–20.00), and eight times a day at the weekend (12.00 and hourly between14.00–20.00).

Work to bring the Glockenspiel back to life has been a collaboration between artists and craftsmen in England and Switzerland.

The historic world-leading clock making company Smith of Derby was asked by McAleer & Rushe and Switzerland Tourism to design and create the clock from a basic concept. The brief required it to retain a strong Swiss identity and harmonise with the surrounding buildings and urban context.

H. Rüetschi of Aarau, producer of the former Glockenspiel, was given the challenge of blending the traditional elements with modern wireless technology, as well as co-ordinating art and design elements and the music. It has re-tuned the 27 bells and installed new magnetic hammers, which allow the sound of the bells to be adjusted.

The well-known Swiss artist Adalbert Fässler of Appenzell restored the wood figures, originally hand-carved by the sculptor Fritz Buchs in Brienz, and the music has been written by the Royal Academy of Music in Westminster and the University for Music and Art in Berne.

The official inauguration
The Glockenspiel was formally inaugurated at 12.30pm on Monday 28 November by Councillor Susie Burbridge, the Right Worshipful the Lord Mayor of Westminster, HE Mr Anton Thalmann, Ambassador of Switzerland to the UK, and Mr Urs Eberhard, Executive Vice President of Switzerland Tourism. A past President of the Swiss Confederation, Mr Adolf Ogi, also honoured the occasion with his presence.

Stephen Surphlis (Property Director, McAleer & Rushe) speaks to BBC Business

The ceremony included a demonstration of the way that the Glockenspiel has been designed so that it can be played live by plugging in a keyboard. It also included six Alphorn players placed on various roofs around Leicester Square. At street level traditional bell-playing folklore groups from various parts of Switzerland will parade towards the Glockenspiel and create a circle around the guests. The Glockenspiel will give solo performances and in unison with the bell-ringers.

HE Ambassador Anton Thalmann said:

“It is an honour and a privilege to witness the return of the Glockenspiel to Leicester Square, which has been the epicentre of the Swiss presence in London since the 18th century. This magnificent restoration is a tribute to the best of Swiss and UK engineering and cooperation. I hope that as the bells chime, they will strike a chord with the thousands of people who pass through Leicester Square every day and remind them of the enduring friendship between Switzerland and the United Kingdom.”

Jürg Schmid, CEO Switzerland Tourism, said:

“The idea of dedicating a Glockenspiel to the people of the City of Westminster as a token of friendship between the City of Westminster, Switzerland and Liechtenstein in 1985 came from Albert Kunz, the former Director of the Swiss National Tourist Office for the UK/Ireland. With today’s rededication of the new Glockenspiel, this symbol of friendship and the original idea of Albert Kunz lives on, and it makes the worldwide Switzerland Tourism team very proud. Our hope is that the Glockenspiel is a constant reminder of Switzerland and the many tourist assets our country offers: the beautiful mountains, the quaint cities, the sparkling lakes and the panoramic ains.”

Jim Foster, Sales Director for Smith of Derby, said: “This was a fascinating project in so many ways; as experts in clock engineering we faced a series of challenges to ensure that the Glockenspiel met a number of requirements relating to the design, fabrication and installation. We collaborated very closely throughout with Swiss experts to ensure we kept a very strong element of ‘Swissness’ running through the design. We are delighted with the result and hope that the Glockenspiel can once again become a great attraction in the area; a place for people to meet and enjoy this captivating piece of engineering.”

Factbox – Swiss Glockenspiel.

• Standing at over 10 metres high and 3 metres wide, it is the tallest Glockenspiel in the country.
• In 1944, Hans Hilfiker, a Swiss Engineer and Designer and employee of the Federal Swiss Railways, created a clock, which has become known as the Official Swiss Railways Clock. It is amazing just how long this design has endured and now it appears to take a place in the eternal hall of fame along side other well known design icons such as the Coca-Cola bottle, the Mercedes star or the Toblerone packaging.
• The clock features a unique Swiss time movement. The second-hand, shaped like a red train despatch baton, reaches the 12 position after 58.5 seconds and waits for 1.5 seconds. In that time, the black minute-hand jumps to the next minute and then the red second-hand begins a new rotation.
• The bells will chime and performances take place 2,132 times a year.
• The design includes a high-frequency distress sound system device to deter birds from roosting on the structure.
• A plaque is installed on the side of the tower giving information about the Glockenspiel, in both the written word and Braille.
• The idea for the original Glockenspiel came from Albert Kunz, the London director of what used to be the Swiss National Tourism Office.
• New tuning methods gave the Aarau makers the ability to tune the bells with a precision five times greater than in 1985.
• Smith of Derby was founded in 1856, and the company’s clocks grace public buildings all over the world.

The Northern Irish company developed and built the stylish 192-bedroom Starwood-operated hotel scheme which also includes 11 luxury flats and a 35,000 sq ft M&M’s store.

McAleer & Rushe’s managing director Eamonn Laverty said:

“The design, development, construction and sale of the W Hotel-led development on Leicester Square has been a fantastic international showcase for McAleer & Rushe. I am tremendously proud of our company’s achievements. And I would like to thank all those involved who have made it such a successful project.”

Jones Lang LaSalle and Steerforth Partners advised McAleer & Rushe.

This is the second major award Northern Irish developer McAleer & Rushe has garnered for the stylish Leicester Square hotel it developed and built. The W Hotel also won the best UK Project at MIPIM, the international property exhibition in Cannes, France. Spice Market saw off competition from Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, at Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, London, Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane, Massimo Restaurant & Oyster Bar at the Corinthia Hotel London and Hyatt Regency, Dusseldorf.

In February 2011, internationally renowned chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten and CulinaryConcepts by Jean-Georges premiered the South East Asian-inspired restaurant which is the sister restaurant of the iconic Spice Market in New York’s Meatpacking District.

Designed by Amsterdam-based team Concrete, the venue’s striking opulent interior offers a unique blend of the authentic old world feel of Spice Market NY and the contemporary architecture of the new W London. Set over two floors, warming shades of gold, copper, chrome and wood are used throughout Spice Market and the windows are discreetly screened with gold mesh. Low slung black leather banquettes encircle the rooms and diners will be seated at intimate booths.  Other notable design features include a stunning ‘birdcage’ gold spiral staircase and 600 custom-designed shimmering wok lamps, which cover almost every part of the ceiling giving out an attractive low light.

The rear wall of Spice Market houses a 24 metre-long wall of spices containing all the colours, flavours and fragrances of the South East Asian dishes served at Spice Market.  There are 34 seats downstairs available for dining, a cocktail lounge with 32 seats and a sushi bar.  Upstairs hosts 95 seats with an open kitchen and a private room accommodating up to 40 covers.

Eamonn Laverty managing director of McAleer & Rushe said:

“I am delighted that Concrete got the recognition it so richly deserves for the stunning interiors it created at the W Hotel.”

The first was the emphatically successful W Hotel at Leicester Square which has become the location of choice for celebrities. There was more glamour on Tuesday with the launch party for The Aloft London Excel, at London’s ExCeL International Exhibition and Convention Centre. It marked the UK debut of the Aloft brand from Starwood Hotels & Resorts.

The stylish Aloft hotel with 252 loft-style guest rooms was built by McAleer & Rushe on a Design and Build (D&B) contract. It boasts “industrial” design elements and features, a self-service food pantry and a “buzzing” bar scene. The architect was Jestico & Whiles.

The hotel follows a “serpentine” plan with a convex central spine flanked by two concave wings. Its exterior has been clad in thousands of highly reflective stainless-steel shingles to create a shimmer type effect and change colour to reflect the surroundings throughout the day.

McAleer & Rushe construction director Martin Magee said:

“One of the most fascinating elements of this project in our role as D&B contractor was to help Starwood and the owner to create a brand identity for the UK market because this is the first Aloft in the UK. Aloft is already present in the US and the Middle East. But the brand had to be interpreted to suit the UK market. We are delighted that the end result from our design team has been so warmly received.”

“The completion of The Aloft now takes the total number of hotel rooms built by McAleer & Rushe to more than 12,000 which is a milestone, that few, if any can match. This latest project is a great show case for McAleer & Rushe’s abilities and enhances our strong track record in the hotel sector.”

The hotel is owned by Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company which owns also Aloft Abu Dhabi which was the first Aloft hotel in the Middle East.

McAleer & Rushe developed and built Starwood’s first W Hotel in the UK which opened in February. In September the Northern Irish company sold the stylish 192-bedroom hotel on Leicester Square to Qatar-based investor Al Faisal Holding Company for just under £200m. Also at the end of September McAleer & Rushe completed a 203-bedroom four storey waterfront Jurys Inn on Gateshead Quayside. It sold the Gateshead hotel the previous September for more than £19m in a forward funding deal with Aviva Investors.