Award of Merit Health Care: VCU Health Community Memorial Replacement Hospital

VCU Health Community Memorial Replacement Hospital
South Hill, Va.
Award of Merit

Owner: VCU Health
Lead Design Firm: SmithGroupJJR
General Contractor: DPR Construction
Civil Engineer: Timmons Group
Structural Engineer: McMullan & Associates Inc.
MEP Engineer: Atlantic Constructors Inc.
Electrical Engineers: Wayne J. Griffin Electric Inc.; Leach Wallace Associates Inc.
Medical Equipment Planning: IMEG Corp.
Owner’s Representative: Jones Lang LaSalle
Design-Assist Consultants: SteelFab Inc.; WJGEI

The team behind this 170,000-sq ft, 70-bed hospital says the project delivered state-of-the-art health care services to a largely rural area in less than two years. The team also says the project showcases the advantages of design-build and lean construction practices. Communication and collaboration were supported by BIM and other virtual design and construction technology tools as well as through extensive consultations with physicians, nurses and support staff. The result is a compact, efficient, flexible layout that minimizes long-term operating costs and accommodates adaptation to evolving health care technology, according to the team. Even as the program scope grew during the schematic design phase, the team preserved the project’s original footprint and $64-million construction budget without extensive rework.

The collaborative effort allowed contractors to synchronize installation activities better and achieve a higher-quality product, the team states. Offsite prefabrication of identical med-gas patient room walls, boiler and chiller plant equipment skids and mechanical and plumbing networks saved more than 10,000 onsite staff hours, providing for a safer, more efficient jobsite, the team says. Nearly 420,000 staff hours were invested in the project without a lost-time accident.