Miller HPS has been awarded a design and build contract from Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust at Gateshead Queen Elizabeth Hospital. The contract, awarded through the ProCure 21+ Framework, will see the creation of a new £22m Emergency Care Centre.
Chris Webster, Chief Executive, Miller Construction, said: “We are delighted to have secured this contract. Miller HPS and the Trust will now work together to seek best value and high-quality design refinements for this facility which will be built by Miller Construction. Health is a key market for us, and our ability to provide solutions is the key differentiator in working with us as delivery partner – our health offer is driven by service-led solutions as opposed to construction-led designs.”
The 9500m2 Emergency Care Centre is a three-storey new build which will create a new focal entrance to the hospital. The lower ground floor will link through to the existing hospital and incorporate staff offices, changing areas and a retail opportunity which will enable the Trust to maximise on a commercial opportunity. Emergency Care will be located on the upper ground floor, comprising a nine-pod formation with a central diagnostic pod – the formation being utilised will be reviewed as an exemplar model for emergency care across the UK. A 36-bed short stay ward, each with en-suite facilities, will make up the third floor. With future needs of the Trust in mind, the Centre is being designed with capabilities for further storey extensions in the future.
Miller has also been identified as the lead contractor for a potential new pathology centre covering Gateshead, South Tyneside and Sunderland. The £12m development, which has been developed through a partnership between Gateshead, Sunderland and South Tyneside NHS Foundation Trusts, is proposed to be located in the former Gateshead hospital laundry and will see a strip-out of the existing building with the main structure being retained, providing part refurbishment and part new build. The new centre will be home to a pathology ‘centre for excellence’ which will be supported by appropriate facilities at each of the neighbouring hospital trusts in Sunderland and South Tyneside.
The laboratory will cover a variety of testing and is anticipated to conduct over 12 million tests a year, and will also feature a ‘hot lab’ for immediate test results. The scheme is subject to full business case approval from the three organisations involved over the next few months.