April 22 2009

NHSG/41/09

Images of the new Emergency Care Centre:

Click on each image to see it in full size

NHS Grampian today [Wednesday, April 22] announced that its planning and construction partner for the new £115 million emergency care centre at Foresterhill in Aberdeen will be RD Health.  Grampian NHS Board approved the expansion of the project to provide a further two floors.  The proposal for another two floors has been submitted to the Scottish Government for formal approval.

RD Health is a consortium formed exclusively to work in partnership with the NHS in Scotland as part of Frameworks Scotland, a new partner-style approach to publicly funded construction work.  Through its two principal members, Robertson Construction Group and Dawn Construction Group, it has extensive links with the NHS in Scotland and has considerable expertise in the design, construction and maintenance of NHS developments in the Scottish healthcare estate. 

Robertson Construction Group has been selected as the principal supply chain member and will begin work on the new emergency unit next month. 

Graeme Smith is project director for the NHS Grampian's health campus programme.  He said: "The centre is at an advanced stage of planning and is a significant milestone in NHS Grampian's ambitious plans for the redevelopment of the Foresterhill campus over the next 20 years.  The partnership arrangement with RD Health is a new way of working for us and we are looking forward to a genuine partnership and close team working to deliver a successful project

Bill Robertson, Executive Chairman of Robertson Construction, said: "We are delighted to be part of Frameworks Scotland and this project with NHS Grampian signifies our first major award through the initiative. 

"We very much look forward to working closely with our project partners and our client NHS Grampian to develop this centre which will modernise the provision of acute healthcare services for the local area."

The new emergency care centre is one of the most ambitious projects undertaken in the North East since the construction of the original Foresterhill buildings in the 1930s.  The centre will be built next to the Royal Aberdeen Children's Hospital and the existing A&E department, which will be demolished once the new facility is complete.

The new building will be built to the latest standards of design using energy efficient design and materials.  Most of the rooms will be single with en-suite toilet and shower facilities to improve quality for patients and reduce the risk of infection.

The centre will integrate acute medical assessment with A&E and out-of-hours services. NHS Grampian approved two additional floors at its board meeting on April 7.  The redesigned seven storey building will replace more than 40 per cent of the existing inpatient facilities at the hospital, benefiting around 70,000 patients a year.

Work will begin in June and is due to be completed in 2012.

Ends
 
Corporate Communications
NHS Grampian
(01224) 554400