THE construction of the £70 million East Lothian Community Hospital has reached two key milestones with the completion of the steel structure and the delivery of all bathroom pods to site.
The three-storey redevelopment, undertaken by NHS Lothian in partnership with hub South East Scotland, is being delivered by Morrison Construction.
The steel frame of the 22,000 sq. m health facility was recently completed in the same week as the final delivery of the 134 factory-built bathroom pods, each of which contain a sink, toilet and shower, arrived on site.
Philip Galbraith, project director at Morrison commented, “We are delighted to celebrate these milestones as construction continues to progress well on site.
“The programme for this project is phased, with different trades coordinated to work on sections of the building in a certain sequence. Currently, external walling and internal fit out are being undertaken at the far ends of the development while roofing works continue in the middle of the structure.
“With the final bathroom pods delivered to site we will now be able to finish connecting these to the hospital rooms across the three floors of the development. The pods are being used for this project to save time and on site labour.”
Richard Park, hub South East’s operations director said, “It’s fantastic to see the progress made on site on the East Lothian Community Hospital – our largest project under construction, and the biggest hub deal signed to date in Scotland.”
Alison MacDonald, interim chief officer, East Lothian Health and Social Care Partnership added, “Construction of the new East Lothian Community Hospital has been underway in Haddington since the end of 2016. The work to date has seen the completion of a new car park and access road, new outpatients department and the demolition of some of the unoccupied buildings, including East Fortune House.
“The completion of this framework is a pinnacle of the construction progress as it allows you to see the scale of the rest of the new hospital.
“NHS Lothian and East Lothian Health and Social Care Partnership continue to work closely with development partner hub South East Scotland on the project and I am delighted with the progress the project is making.”
The full programme of works for the redevelopment is due for completion in early 2020.
