New Theatres, James Paget University Hospital

Constructing Excellence

Described by the Trust as the most complex project they have ever delivered, a huge challenged faced the team at the beginning of the project. Not only did the project need to be delivered absolutely on time to meet the demand of day case operations, the team had to deliver the scheme at the heart of the hospital. This meant the construction of a two storey extension on top of an existing, and live, pathology ward, whilst landlocked on either side by a live cancer ward, and live children’s ward. Business as usual, including careful linking with the main hospital services was absolutely critical. Especially made air sealing systems were installed in the cancer care ward to meet infection control requirements keeping cancer patients safe throughout the works. The team also engaged the children’s ward, bringing them beautifully made MDF animal cut outs for them to paint – over the life of the project, the hoardings separating the site from their ward, were decorated with colourful animals that the children had painted themselves, ensuring that outward views from their beds were adorned with murals of their making! Complex logistics were another huge challenge – working collaboratively with the Estates team and our supply chain partners, a huge tower crane was installed, helping to get materials safely into the site compound. One way delivery routes were set up, with off-site holding bays ensuring large loads only approached during the early or later hours of the day – outside of key blue light times.