York-based Portakabin Hire complete £13.5m hospital building scheme in less than four months

A 4,200 sq m two-storey ward and theatre building at Royal Stoke University Hospital has been constructed by York-based Portakabin Hire in less than four months.

This £13.5m contract is the largest in the 52-year history of the Portakabin Group’s Hire Division.

The structure for the high quality patient facility was manufactured in York and installed in just 18 days which included weekend working to minimise disruption to the hospital’s service provision as there were fully operational wards immediately adjacent to the new building.

This construction solution allowed the project to be built in the shortest possible time to the benefit of patient care.

The purpose-designed scheme, which will be in use for the next five years, has provided 56 new in-patient beds and two large state-of-the-art, clean air theatres for all orthopaedic procedures.

John Simpson, director of corporate services at University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust, said: “This type of construction allowed us to benefit from a much shorter delivery programme so we could have the new facility up and running more quickly, meeting the increasing demand for services and enhancing patients’ experience.

“Whilst the building is constructed to permanent standards, its modular construction gives us greater flexibility as the facilities can be dismantled and removed if service needs change. We had an extremely tight timescale to deliver this complex healthcare building for the relocation of clinical services – but I am delighted to report that this was achieved.

“The new facilities have been very well received by patients and staff. There is excellent light, space, décor and infection control. Portakabin Hire successfully installed the building next to the main hospital with minimal impact on service provision. This required detailed logistical planning and the whole installation operation was carried out with military precision by a superb site team. The final design is extremely good.”

The new Orthopaedic Unit is constructed from 124 steel-framed modules up to 14m long and weighing up to 9 tonnes each. These were installed complete with wall finishes, internal partitioning, mechanical and electrical services and flooring already in place, further reducing work and disruption on this busy hospital site.

The hiring of modular accommodation is a fast, flexible and cost-effective way for healthcare providers to expand or relocate services and funded from revenue rather than capital budget streams. The approach also gives NHS trusts greater flexibility as the facilities can be dismantled and removed if patient needs change.

Complete, fully-fitted buildings can be delivered in a fraction of the time of a site-based construction solution. In addition, buildings can be installed with far less disruption to patient care and the solution is much safer and quieter as fitting out can also be carried out off site.

Portakabin Hire provides accommodation for wards, recovery suites, dialysis units, diagnostics, out-patient departments and treatment centres.