A New Model for Managing Healthcare Utility Construction

Healthcare buildings are incredibly intricate, and much of that complexity lies in the mechanical systems that power these lifesaving environments. That’s the case with any healthcare construction project, but it’s especially true for our work with the Brown University Health (Brown Health) Middle Campus Enabling Program.

The project marks the first of three planned phases to make way for a new platform and clinical building. The timing and progression of each phase will depend on Brown Health securing significant philanthropic support and achieving key financial performance goals.

This project involves demolishing three buildings, constructing a parking garage, and undertaking a significant amount of utility upgrades to meet Brown Health’s standards for patient care. With concrete tunnels running through the basement and various existing conditions to manage, we needed a precise, accurate, tech-driven plan to stay on schedule — before we even need to start construction.

To meet that challenge, we built our plan around two pillars: demolition design support from Suffolk Design, our in-house design team, working alongside design and engineering partners DLR Group, BR+A, WSP, VHB, and Desman Garage; and digital scans and 3D models from Suffolk’s Digital Engineering team to guide Brown Health through its available utility options. They’re two sides of the same coin when it comes to driving constructability, giving Brown Health and its designers freedom and information as they make decisions.

Demolition design support

Taking down a building in the middle of an active campus is an exacting process, and it requires loads of documentation to make sure it happens properly. Since our Suffolk Design team is directly connected to Suffolk operations, they have a unique view into the best — and quickest — approach. To alleviate the workload for the design team and allow them to focus on the design of the new building, Suffolk Design took on the demolition drawings and teamed up with our builders to swiftly produce these documents.

Digital scanning and 3D modeling

The next step in our preparation for Brown Health’s new infrastructure involved digitally scanning every existing condition, including drone scans of existing exteriors, then producing models that showed the current utility tunnels, pipes, valves, and more. Scanning needed to happen around the clock and off hours for many areas, so our digital engineers trained our full field team and rotated them through the scans in shifts to complete everything within the tight timeframes.

Based on the models we produced through this process, we provided Brown Health and the design team with four constructable options to route the new utilities. They had the chance to consider these options virtually before incorporating their preferred route into the construction drawings, which our team will use to build. We also had our Suffolk superintendents weigh in on the plan, incorporating real construction challenges they presented through the model to showcase virtually and evaluate how they would impact price and schedule, and traced the actual systems with trade partners to make sure we identified the correct point-to-points. With the trade partners, we incorporated their fabrication-level models into the overall plan. That approach offered the best of both worlds: real-time data at our fingertips, paired with the experienced eyes of longtime builders.

This level of detail and optioneering may seem overwhelming, but we’ve found this approach is what it takes to get the accuracy our healthcare clients need. There’s no way around it: utilities are a critical path for any hospital project. And by being thoughtful with how we approach these essential systems, we’re easing that path to success.