The Assemble Community Partnership brings together the Department of Health and local public sector authorities in Bedfordshire, East and North Herefordshire and Milton Keynes.

Over the next 20 years, the partnership is responsible for a number of healthcare infrastructure projects including the development of the new local general hospital on the QEII Hospital site in Welwyn Garden City.

Challenge
We were appointed by Mansells and Assemble Community Partnerships under the P21+ Framework to provide M&E services for the new approx 5,000m2 hospital.

In addition to several rounds of Value Engineering, in order to comply with Department of Health budgets, the hospital had to reach BREEAM excellent standard.

Solution
Stakeholder meetings were held to establish the exact brief for this complicated building and innovative use of designs incorporated to ensure budgets were met.

We worked collaboratively with the other designers to achieve this but from an M&E perspective we used energy modelling, environmental modelling and water-saving analysis to ensure the BREEAM Excellent rating was achieved.

The large renewable energy requirement of 25% reduction when compared to part L was achieved by using air source heat pumps and very large underfloor heating system for over 200 consulting rooms.

These rooms also utilised exposed thermal mass and natural ventilation with night cooling to meet the reduction.

The Outcome
The new hospital provides many of the services that were previously delivered by the QEII site, plus a number of additional services.

This includes:
 > An urgent care centre open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
 > Outpatient’s services, ante/post natal care and diagnostic facilities.