The main challenge for DSSR in this refurbishment project was in ensuring proper ventilation rates were achieved, with a minimum of 6ACH for the general Wards and 10ACH for the specialized Wards.

The existing ventilation plant, which dated from 1995, needed to be stripped out and replaced with new equipment which met current standards. Our designs needed to account for this work being carried out while considering the limited space available in the plant room.

The design also incorporated temporary ventilation solutions for areas that would potentially be affected by the removal of the old ventilation plant.

To ensure that the design was feasible and effective, DSSR conducted detailed surveys of the existing services. The results of our surveys revealed congestion in the services which was not reflected in the ‘as fitted’ drawings.

Based on our findings, the design team was able to make appropriate adjustments in the routing of the services to avoid congestion.

The University Hospitals North Midlands NHS Trust is one of the largest hospitals in the West Midlands, with one of the busiest Emergency Departments in the country, managing an average of nearly 15,000 patients each month across both of sites.

Many emergency patients are brought to them from a wide area, by both helicopter and land ambulance, because of their Major Trauma Centre status and role as the specialist centre for the North Midlands and North Wales.