The Argus Group and its team of contractors, designers and builders celebrated the completion of the new Argus headquarters on Wesley Street in Hamilton with a roof-wetting ceremony.

The traditional pouring of Black Seal Rum on the roof on Friday symbolically bestowed good luck upon the headquarters and signalled an end to the planning and construction of the base building.

The 65,855-square-foot building, which runs from Wesley Street to Trott Road, is three times the size of the current Argus headquarters.

It features a stone, glass and stainless-steel façade, taking full advantage of the natural light, while the steel structure, supported by steel floors and beams bolted and welded to the frame, makes the building one of the strongest in Bermuda.

The building is also equipped with a 750-kilowatt generator that will sustain the building in the event of a catastrophic power failure, supported by state-of-the-art telecommunications, elevators and a computer-controlled building-management system.

The offices will be fitted with ergonomically-designed workstations and lighting that reduce glare on computer screens. Staff will also have access to a new gym, an outdoor lunch space and an after-school facility for children.

Purpose-built spaces have also been created for training, meetings and corporate entertaining. In addition, solar-panel heating, energy-efficient glass and energy-saving air conditioning have been incorporated into the building.

The new headquarters of the Argus Group was designed and built in co-operation with design architects Conyers & Associates, contract architects Butterworth Associates, interior designers Terceira Quarterly, general contractor D&J Construction, stone-cladding consultants Smart Crosby International and consulting engineers LMG.

Gerald Simons, president and CEO of the Argus Group, said: "Today is an historic moment for Argus; this building is a new architectural highlight for the City of Hamilton and we are very proud of it. It has been carefully designed and built to serve our employees and our valued customers well for many years to come."

David Pugh, chief financial officer for the Argus Group, said: "I would like to express our gratitude for the tremendous work and effort by our design and construction teams over the duration of this building project. We are so pleased to be standing here today with this striking, modern building.

"I think I can safely speak on behalf of all my colleagues by saying that we very much look forward to moving in and welcoming our clients here in the next few months."

Argus employees are expected to begin moving in to the new headquarters in March 2009.