CONSTRUCTION has completed in the significant redevelopment of Bro Ddyfi Community Hospital in North Wales, creating an integrated health and wellbeing facility on the site of the former Machynlleth Union Workhouse, initially built in 1860. The project has created a multi-disciplinary facility, housing community and primary healthcare, adult mental health treatment, outpatient facilities, and women’s and children’s clinics, all under one roof. Intended to improve the lives of people living in Dyfi Valley for generations to come, construction is now complete, with the first patients coming through the doors last month. Operating under Perfect Circle’s unique collaboration, leading independent property, construction, and infrastructure consultancy Pick Everard was appointed through the SCAPE Consultancy Framework to provide specialist project management, cost management and CDM advisory services, with Willmott Dixon delivering the design and construction. Alex Dovey, director of project management at Pick Everard, said: “Working with an existing site always brings unique challenges, particularly for older structures. There were several instances throughout the phased project where collaborative efforts across the delivery team were critical to success, such as securing the business case for funding and amendments to the design, born from concerns of the existing timber frame’s ability to bear a second storey load. “To ensure the all-important harmonisation, we implemented a positive, clear and assertive communications strategy. This kept everyone energised and coordinated throughout a three-phased build and helped to minimise any potential disruption to occupied areas of the site. “Working on a project like this, that brings together so many varied stakeholders from across the NHS, social care, third sectors and the construction supply chain, reflects the collaborative approach that we are passionate in delivering for every client. We’re incredibly proud to have been involved in a scheme that will create a true lasting legacy for the people of Machynlleth.” Welsh government funding has been crucial to the viability of the project, with robust designs being key to the initial business case, securing the necessary backing. Combined with the finished facility incorporating a variety of health services, engagement formed a central pillar to project strategy, coordinating the various requirements and expectations across stakeholders. The scheme responded to targets set out in the Welsh Government’s publication Prosperity for All: A Low Carbon Wales, with a decarbonisation report developed by the design team as part of the Full Business Case (FBC) documentation. Additional funding was made available by Welsh Government to develop a number fabric and Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing (MEP) interventions that successfully impacted the CO2 emissions of the building. This resulted in initiatives such as solar panels fitted between the natural slate roof tiles, helping the building conform with the planning constraints of being in a conservation area. The insulation in the building fabric was also enhanced, with triple glazing helping to improve acoustic as well as thermal performance. Electrical vehicle charging points were also introduced at the site, with the containment infrastructure futureproofed to allow for additional points as demand increases. With the hospital holding such a prominent position within the local landscape, the project team worked closely with the community to respect and build upon the site’s history, while also achieving the maximum benefit for people in the future. To provide further positive social impact to the community, the project engaged with schools in the local area, with students helping to design the therapeutic gardens by agreeing a list of features to be included within the final design. Wayne Tannahill, associate director of capital, estates and property at Powys Teaching Health Board, said: “Pick Everard has worked very closely with the Health Board to offer professional project management and cost advice services, which have played a significant role in the collaborative effort to steer this complex and challenging refurbishment and reconfiguration project through to a successful conclusion. “The Pick Everard team can be proud of their contribution to this great healthcare facility, which will provide significant benefits for the Bro Ddyfi community for many years to come.” For more information, please visit https://www.pickeverard.co.uk/ Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals 

The Royal Bournemouth Hospital marked a major milestone on Friday 19th May with a traditional ‘topping out’ ceremony for its new BEACH Building. Lord Markham, Under Secretary of State for the Department of Health and Social Care, and Jacqueline Smith, Deputy Lieutenant of Dorset, attended the event alongside a number of staff from University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust (UHD), including Chief Executive, Siobhan Harrington, and Dr Isabel Smith, UHD’s Medical Director for transformation. The event was hosted by Integrated Health Projects (IHP), an alliance between VINCI Building UK and Sir Robert McAlpine, as represented by executive partner and IHP board member, Hector McAlpine. As part of the ceremony, dating back to the Roman era, the guests were led to the top of the BEACH Building by a bagpiper where a symbolic tightening of bolts took place, and an evergreen bough was nailed to the structure. This was followed by an exchange of tankards to symbolise a job well done. The BEACH Building is a 23,000m2 complex standing six storeys tall – equivalent to 115 tennis courts. It contains a new maternity unit and children’s unit, as well as an enhanced emergency department, larger than the existing facilities at the Royal Bournemouth and Poole Hospital combined, and a critical care unit with capacity for 30 beds. When it opens in Spring 2025, it will enable the Royal Bournemouth Hospital to become the major emergency hospital for Dorset. Lord Markham, Under Secretary of State for the Department of Health and Social Care, said: “It was an honour to attend the topping out ceremony of Royal Bournemouth Hospital’s new BEACH Building, backed by over £168m of government investment. “This building will improve birth, emergency and critical care services, and children’s health services, making a significant difference in helping cut waiting times for patients in Dorset by serving nearly 145,000 patients a year. “We continue to work closely with the NHS to improve services and this new building is part of over 70 hospital upgrades we’re delivering across the country, on top of 40 new hospitals.” John Roberts, Managing Director at IHP and VINCI Building, said: “IHP are proud to be part of today and achieving this major milestone in the construction of the new facility here at Bournemouth Hospital. The project represents significant investment in the UHBP site to provide a brand-new state of art A&E department. This scheme will serve local people in the city, Poole and wider Dorset community providing improved patient journeys and outcomes for years to come.” Hector McAlpine, Executive Partner at Sir Robert McAlpine and IHP Board member, said: “This topping out ceremony provides an opportunity to celebrate the exemplary collaboration and the technical excellence displayed throughout by the project team and hospital staff. IHP are proud to work with UHD on the BEACH Building and we look forward to delivering this state-of-the-art facility for Dorset’s communities.” The construction work has been designed to minimise disruptions to the Royal Bournemouth site for the duration of the project, with the BEACH Building itself set to open in Autumn 2024. The project is part of a wider £250m investment to transform UHD’s hospitals. Siobhan Harrington, UHD’s Chief Executive, said: “The BEACH Building, when it welcomes patients in 2025, will help create a hospital specialising in emergency care at the Royal Bournemouth, while at Poole, we are putting the finishing touches to our new operating theatres complex – creating the major planned hospital for Dorset.  “As we plan for the future services, we remain focused on the present, and the responsibility to continue to deliver high-class care for all our patients.”  

The Ayrshire Hospice officially marked the start of building work on its major £17 million-pound redevelopment project on Wednesday 5th April. Joined by representatives from NHS Ayrshire & Arran and the three local authorities, Ayrshire Hospice Chief Executive Tracy Flynn led the breaking-ground ceremony as work begins to transform the site ahead of reopening in Summer 2024. Tracy said: “This is a historic milestone for the Ayrshire Hospice and, as a team, we are so excited to start building our new hospice which will be a centre of excellence for palliative and end of life care for the people of Ayrshire and Arran, right here in Racecourse Road.” Site clearing and demolition carried out by McLaughlin & Harvey began in December last year and the ground is now ready for work to begin to deliver a facility Ayrshire can be proud of. John McClintock, McLaughlin & Harvey Operations Director – Healthcare, explained: “McLaughlin & Harvey is delighted to have marked the first official milestone of our Ayrshire Hospice project. We bring with us a wealth of previous healthcare experience, and look forward to undertaking the substructure and structural works on this meaningful project in the coming weeks.” The Ayrshire Hospice Board of Trustees and Leadership Team were joined by Provost Iain Campbell and Chief Executive Eileen Howat from South Ayrshire Council, in addition to Craig McArthur, Director of Health and Social Care Partnership for East Ayrshire Council and Russell McCutcheon, Executive Director (Place), from North Ayrshire Council. NHS Ayrshire & Arran Chief Executive Claire Burden was also in attendance to mark the significant milestone in the project.   Tom Steele, Chair of the Ayrshire Hospice Board of Trustees added: “The breaking ground ceremony is a seminal moment for our new hospice as work begins to lay down foundations. Although this sub-structure is something that people can’t see, it is arguably one of the most crucial points of the project from which our new infrastructure will be built.” Andrew Baillie, Ayrshire Hospice Trustee and Chair of the Capital Project Governance Committee added: “Breaking Ground is the first major milestone in what will be an amazing new facility for the Hospice. Over the coming months work will progress onto foundations, the superstructure and then the roof before moving into the interior fit-out. “It’s exciting to be not only creating a wonderful facility for patients, relatives and staff but helping to contribute to our sustainable future.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals