Balfour Beatty, Kier, Robertson and Graham are principal contractors on the job, on behalf of the Scottish government.
A construction crew of more than 400 is working alongside nearly 150 NHS Scotland clinicians and operational staff to establish NHS Louisa Jordan. Work began on 31st March and within two weeks it will provide an initial 300 beds for use during the coronavirus outbreak, with the capability to increase capacity to 1,000 if required. Plans for the hospital were announced on Monday.
Works include laying 25,000m² of vinyl flooring, constructing sterile temporary wards, installing and commissioning life-saving oxygen and gas systems, as well as a range of other complex tasks required to repurpose a facility designed for leisure into one for treating patients. In addition, Balfour Beatty Kilpatrick will deliver elements of the mechanical and electrical engineering for the project.
Balfour Beatty said that all works were being carried out adhering to the coronavirus Standard Operating Procedures (SOP).
Hector MacAulay, Balfour Beatty Construction regional managing director, said: “In these unprecedented times, we are extremely proud to be playing our part in the response to Covid-19 pandemic, supporting the critical work that our NHS workers are doing on the frontline, ensuring that NHS Scotland has the capacity it needs as we pull through this crisis together.”
Graham’s role in the project involves logistics planning, provision of external gases and external utilities for the site. Gary Holmes, Scotland director for Graham, said: “It’s a privilege to support NHS Scotland and its clinicians in the development of the new Louisa Jordan hospital to provide additional capacity for the people of Scotland at this most difficult of times. Graham has significant experience in delivering modern healthcare facilities throughout Scotland, and we are working flat-out to help successfully complete this vital facility.
“I’m proud of the way the construction industry in Scotland is coming together during this crisis.”
Gary Wintersgill, managing director for Kier Regional Building in Scotland, said: “Our teams are working tirelessly to convert the Scottish Event Campus so it can be operational by mid-April. We are committed to working with our partners to deliver this temporary hospital in Glasgow that will assist NHS Scotland’s response to Covid-19. These are unprecedented times and I could not be prouder of the collective effort, dedication and skill of all parties involved, including our local supply chain.”
Scotland's health secretary Jeane Freeman praised the site staff. “They are working together, under exceptional circumstances, to deliver a clinically safe and fit for purpose hospital that if required, will provide extra capacity for NHS Scotland," she said.
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