Northumberland-headquartered industrialised construction and digital manufacturing specialist, Merit, has been appointed by Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust (NCH&C) to design and deliver its new 48-bed modular unit on the Norwich Community Hospital site in Norfolk.
The multimillion-pound facility, ‘designed with sustainability in mind’, will be delivered in just five months. News of Merit’s appointment follows NCH&C’s announcement last August as one of 30 NHS organisations awarded funding to provide more beds and increase capacity to help relieve hospital pressures and cut waiting lists. The Trust says the Willow Therapy Unit will improve the transition of patients from hospital care to the community, helping ease pressure on local acute hospitals. It will include single and four-bedded bays treatment areas, an assessment kitchen, a self-service café area, staff amenities, and a reception area. Merit says its expert in-house design team has curated a facility ‘which prioritises ease of access, while also catering to the footfall requirements of both patients and staff’.
The company said: “Utilising advanced 4D BIM modelling technology and a product-based approach, Merit’s offering is especially suited to meet the current needs of healthcare facilities, enabling the highest level of infection control and easy adaptability for future needs.
‘Pioneering a new approach to the industrialisation of construction’, Merit will deliver the facility using its new V6 UltraPOD SFS variant. The expandable full building solution configurable to create multiple types of buildings for a variety of uses utilises its latest roll former, panel line production system ‘to enhance affordability and accessibility through a significantly reduced programme’. The V6 platform comes as standard, rated BREEAM ‘Excellent’ as a minimum, EPC-A, and with energy consumption reportedly 69 per cent lower than current CIBSE hospital benchmarks.
Tony Wells, CEO at Merit, commented: “We’re delighted to be working collaboratively with Norfolk Community Health & Care NHS Trust to deliver this new facility, which will bring improved healthcare services to the local community. Merit’s new UltraPOD SFS variant is ideal for this project, bringing enormous advantages in terms of speed, quality, a sustainable design, enhanced infection control, and affordability.”
Matthew Winn, NCH&C CEO, said: “We’re extremely pleased to be working with Merit on this important project for the Norfolk and Waveney health and care system. Therapy-led care provided at the Willow Therapy Unit will help bridge the gap between hospital and home, and allow local residents to seamlessly move from hospital back into their communities.”
Merit’s experience delivering similar projects for the health and care sector will be invaluable as we look to construct these beds quickly and help to relieve pressure on our local acute hospitals.”
