 The steel frame of the building was made in Germany and is based on a model made in the early 1880s in Chicago to increase fire resistance . It was erected by Messrs Potts & Co. of Oxford Street . Fireproofing of the walls were conducted by the Columbian Fireproofing Company Ltd. of Pittsburgh and London , with steel @-@ ribbed bars allowing for ventilation , while remaining sound proof and free from vibration . The internal walls consist of " hollow , porous , terra @-@ cotta blocks " covered with plaster , and the hotel 's flooring was also made fireproof . At the corners of the pavilion roofs of the Ritz are large green copper lions , the emblem of the hotel . 
