Waterfront Hotel Wins National MBA Award

Fairbrother Construction has been recognised at this year’s Master Builders Australia National Excellence in Building and Construction Awards for the construction of the Devonport Waterfront Hotel (Novotel). 

The prestigious awards ceremony, held last night in Perth, celebrates the best of the Australian construction industry across the residential, commercial, and civil/infrastructure sectors. 

“It’s really special to be recognised on the national stage for the quality of our projects,” Fairbrother Chief Executive Officer, Kurt Arnold said. “We’re proud of the amazing work that our people produce across both Tasmania and Victoria, but to highlight this project on a national scale from North West Tasmania is significant.” 

The Devonport Waterfront Hotel took out the Master Builders Australia National Excellence award for New Construction (Commercial) $20-$50 million. 

“To win in this category against strong national competition really shows our strength as a construction company,” Mr Arnold said.  

Built as part of the Devonport Living City urban renewal initiative, the 187-room hotel features a restaurant as well as office space and meeting rooms. The hotel stands out as a feature of the area, greeting visitors to the state as they arrive on the Spirit of Tasmania and serving as a backdrop to the open space and parkland at the entrance to the Mersey River. 

Commencing in March 2020, the project was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, bringing about challenges with supplies and labour, including the need to bring in subcontractors from out of state. It also, though, provided opportunities for innovation, with the bathrooms for 173 of the 187 rooms being prefabricated module pods that were manufactured in New South Wales, arriving on site as complete units and only requiring the connection of services.  

“Despite all of the challenges, we were absolutely determined to deliver a top-quality project that we’re all very proud of,” Mr Arnold said. “That’s what we’ve done. We’ve delivered a high-quality, national award-winning, $41 million hotel that sits as a landmark in our hometown of Devonport, and we’re pretty proud of that!” 

The Devonport Waterfront Hotel opened earlier in 2023 as the Novotel.