Sector: Healthcare
Holland Bloorview
Kids Rehabilitation Hospital
“Bloorview sets a new benchmark for the shape patient- and family-centred health care should take in the future.”
— Beth Kapusta, Azure Magazine
Holland Bloorview Kids’ Rehabilitation Hospital is a 5-storey 343,000 ft2 rehabilitation inpatient/outpatient facility that replaced two existing facilities. It includes a 75-bed inpatient unit, specialized clinics, school, lap pool, therapeutic pool, cafeteria and central kitchen, technical laboratories and administration offices.
The main design objective was to create an environment that was inviting, friendly and safe. In patient rooms, indirect lighting and downlights create a cozy atmosphere. LED night lights and wall-mounted non-commercial, glare-free bed lights mimic sconces while enhancing comfort and safety. Daylighting throughout the building significantly reduces environmental impacts for this 24/7 healthcare facility.
In the lobby, a colour window displays LED scenes controlled by motion sensors that are triggered when children walk by, creating a fun and interactive environment. The design is sense-oriented with colour distractions, and incorporates low-glare and natural daylighting.
The Snoezelen Room, the first of its kind in North America, uses light as therapy, incorporating multi-level, colour-changing, indirect and twinkling lighting. Its focal point is a therapeutic pool using an indirect, direct and snoezelen lighting for children’s therapy. The pool’s higher temperature required design considerations to control the higher humidity and space temperatures.
SERVICES
Mechanical Engineering | Electrical Engineering | Lighting Design | IT & Communication Design
PROJECT FEATURES
Size: 343,000 ft2 | Status: Completed 2006
LOCATION
Toronto, Ontario
KEY SCOPE ELEMENTS
5-storey facility | Innovative lighting design incorporated in Snoezelen Room - first of its kind in North America | Lobby Colour Window displays motion-controlled LED scenes
Inviting the neighbours in
The recreation pool was designed as a community facility. The lighting features wall-mounted and suspended indirect lighting. The lap pool was located on the exterior of the building with exterior glazing. This posed a challenge in keeping the windows clear of condensation with the high humidity levels from the pool. Air curtains at the windows were incorporated to help eliminate the condensation build-up.
Optimizing design for a sustainable result
Extensive input from the entire design team resulted in an environmentally-sensitive design. A series of workshops were held during Design Development to optimize all aspects of the building, and to maximize use of sustainable materials.
Quote source: World Architecture News, The kids are all right
Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre
The Hospital’s architectural design presented challenges that required innovative engineering to visually integrate lighting, heating, cooling, power and ventilation services throughout the building, while meeting the life safety requirement and respecting the architectural integrity of the design.
HH Angus was retained to provide the mechanical, electrical and vertical transportation consulting engineering for this 683,000 ft2 375-bed acute care facility on a greenfield site. The facility included the full range of departments found in an acute care hospital, as well as the regional cancer centre, ambulatory care, forensic mental health, and full kitchen and laundry facilities. Subsequent projects delivered a cogeneration facility and the Northwestern Ontario Regional Cancer Centre at the Thunder Bay Hospital site.
For the main hospital, energy efficiency elements were a key component of the design. HH Angus worked extensively with the architects to calculate the optimum building orientation and amount of sun shading devices, and determined the optimal glazing and curtain wall specifications required to realize passive solar energy gains and reduce the hospital’s long-term overall operating costs.
The heating plant for the hospital consists of 4 X 350 BHP hot water boilers and 2 X 250BHP low water content steam boilers. The hot water distribution is handled through primary and secondary pumping with variable frequency drives on the pump motors.
Enhanced fire alarm and security systems were implemented to address a design challenges posed by the forensic psychiatric unit.
The project used a construction management procurement approach, with sequential tendering geared to achieve fast track completion. The methodology involved significant coordination and interaction between the consulting and construction teams.
SERVICES
Mechanical Engineering | Electrical Engineering | Vertical Transportation Design
PROJECT FEATURES
Size: 683,000 ft2 | Status: Completed 2004
LOCATION
Thunder Bay, Ontario
KEY SCOPE ELEMENTS
Greenfield hospital | Fast track completion | Full acute care departments, plus cancer centre, ambulatory care, and forensic mental health | Energy efficient design to reduce overall operations cost | Enhanced fire alarm & security systems
User-friendly spaces
The hospital has a 460 ft. long, 25 ft. wide “main street” that forms the backbone of the building. It is constructed with wooden columns and beams, opening the space to the outdoors with 35’ curtain wall.
Working with a tight schedule
Under a fast track completion, this fully functional state-of-the-art hospital was designed and constructed within a short five-year timeframe.
A 360˚ service provider
HH Angus delivered design engineering for Thunder Bay Regional Hospital’s main acute care building, its mental health centre, its cogeneration plant, and the Northwestern Ontario cancer centre on the same site.