The area, a former Level 2 Endoscopy department has now opened as the Regional Plastic Surgery Service for Northern Ireland. It was totally stripped back to a bare shell with all internal walls removed and transformed into a new main theatre, anaesthetic room, two prep lay-up rooms, recovery, nurse base, minor operations room, procedure room, two dirty utility rooms, patient WCs and changing rooms and a welcoming patient reception/waiting area with all- new electrical, mechanical, ventilation and medical gas installations and a fully integrated theatre control panel which is the first of its kind in Northern Ireland. On level three, a new electrical switchroom was created, and on the external roof deck Dowds installed a new air-handling unit and carried out associated pipework within the level three plantroom.
One-stop approach
Commenting, Alistair Nevin, Contracts Manager for Dowds said, “This project started in the middle of the first Covid-19 lockdown and presented a real challenge to us, our sub-contractors and suppliers as we strived to deliver the project in the midst of a global pandemic. Suppliers were either closed or on skeleton working so production levels were nearly non-existent and estimated material deliveries times could not be relied upon.”
“It is testament to the resolve of our suppliers and sub-contractors that we battled on to get the project carried out in the strange times in which we found ourselves.”
Construction Manager Nicholas McKee added, “The project, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, was originally delayed by a number of months so it was a credit to the team that when the client gave us access, we had all the necessary supply chain in place ready to commence the project. We worked closely with the South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust to ensure that all possible measures were put in place to protect patients, staff and our site operatives from Covid-19. An example of this was installing a new scaffolding external access in through the second floor to keep safe separation between the hospital and site operatives. Dowds Group’s one-stop-shop approach again worked extremely well, with all trades coordinating on a daily basis throughout this complex project, and having one focus: to deliver the best possible theatre for the SEHSCT.
“The Dowds’ team have carried out another fantastic project and the client has received a top quality install.”
Dowds Group’s Construction Division is growing from strength-to-strength with every project they take on. They can provide an inhouse construction and M&E coordinated service, ensuring that the client is only ever dealing with one company. This not only speeds up decision-making and design coordination, but also improves the speed of delivery and the guarantee of quality. Previous projects include the Nightingale Step Down facility at Whiteabbey Hospital, Whiteabbey Endoscopy, Craigavon Area Hospital Maternity Ward, and Belfast Cancer Centre Foyer.
“Our clients only need to deal with one point of contact throughout the project,” said Alistair, “and they are guaranteed the quality that Dowds Group offers from the start right through to the finish. We have had great feedback from our build clients, and we hope the success of our construction division continues to grow.”
PROJECT TEAM
Client: South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust
Main Contractor: Dowds Group
Architect Project Manager: Colin Craig
Dowds Construction Manager: Nicholas McKee
Dowds Contracts Manager: Alistair Nevin
Dowds Group Site Manager: Colin McGilligan
M&E Contractor: Dowds Group
M&E Consultants: Beattie Flanigan
Dowds Group, 2-4 Milltown Road, Ballymoney, Co. Antrim BT53 6LE
T: +44 (0)28 2766 2789
www.dowdsgroup.com
