The COVID19 pandemic tested healthcare systems to their very limits, with the situation in hospitals far from business as usual.
And as frontline staff battled to care for the surge of patients, manufacturers were responding to urgent calls for COVID-19 wards within unprecedented timescales. Behind the scenes, production lines were scaling up at speed, through a time of supply chain disruptions and factory closures. As clients called for critical isolation rooms and temporary ICU wards, Apreco’s healthcare experts worked fast to design solutions that could be implemented immediately. The emergency COVID-19 facility, NHS Nightingale hospital, came with a host of novel challenges, requiring an airflow regime that would suit the 10-metre high ExCel convention centre.
Designing for NHS Nightingale London
Typically, the HTM would require an air change rate of 6 ACH, while the huge volume of space within the ExCel would lead it to fall short of this. While the hall usually operates under positive pressure, with air passing through the boulevard, infection control required these to be sealed. Dedicated ‘don/doff’ areas were created to deliver positive pressure to the don areas, and negative pressure to the doff areas.
It speaks for itself when Architects like BDP think firstly of you for the most complex and time-sensitive projects in the UK. That is the market-leading reputation Apreco hold within the healthcare sector. Specialising in the design and supply of air pressure stabilisers to control airborne contamination within operating theatres, isolation facilities and clean room environments. The UK based engineering firm has shown its ability to exceed expectation and tackle the most challenging projects with confidence.
Answering the call across the UK
Apreco continued to design and supply air pressure solutions to treat COVID19 patients up and down the UK, including adapted facilities at Morriston Hospital, the St Helier Hospital C2 Wards, Torbay Hospital Intensive Care Units, Nightingale Hospital Bristol, as well as the testing facility Project Jupiter and the viral vector suite for Cobra Biologics.
The novelty of the virus and rate of transmission has not been experienced in our recent history. We are now keenly aware of this threat and reminded of our fragility. Preparedness and resilient healthcare facilities have proven more than ever to be important in the effectiveness of our responses to the most critical and ever-changing healthcare needs.