b'COVID-19 RELIEFRoyal Victoria Hospital. They had more of a need for a multipurpose alternate healthcare facility. This structure was less temporary in nature, with full insulation and washrooms.In the fall, the Ottawa Hospital called for a 40-bed emergency department ambulance offload and medicine transition unit for its Civic Campus, to be located in what had been the hospitals East Parking Lot. It was intended to decrease wait times for patients in the emergency departments and reduce ambulance offload times. All of these rapidly deployed projects were essentially design-build. Says Waddell: We have a fantastic consulting team, Colliers,who are doing oversight on two ofour projects.ALUMINUM STRUCTUREThe field hospitals are based on an aluminum frame structure covered with a tensile membrane. The first two were erected without insulation, but it hasINTERIOR OF THE FIELD HOSPITAL UNIT AT ROYAL VICTORIA HOSPITAL, BARRIE ONsince been added. The tentlike structure is excellent for high-snow-load and high-wind locations. Raised access floors fromit is predominantly a re-deployable asset,many different forms, says Waddell. Its Tate Access Floors of Etobicoke were laidWaddell notes. probably 85 per cent repurpose-able.over the asphalt, followed by a layer of rigid polyurethane foam for insulation,While some of the field hospitals mayUltimately, Waddell says, were proud to a plywood subfloor and a seamlesscontinue to alleviate hallway medicinehave been able to help our healthcare hospital-grade vinyl floor.backups, others may find new life ascommunity. We appreciate the struggles Arttec Signs, based in Edmonton, helpedcommunity centres, classrooms, sportstheyve had. Theres not a company invent a prefinished aluminum patientfacilities or markets. The main aluminumor worker thats not been proud of headwall system for all the interiorstructure and roofing membrane couldthese rapid deployments. Theyre very partitions and it was easy to run theeven be put into storage. We see itchallenging, but at the same timeelectrical conduits behind them. Eachliving in perpetuity, and it may take onvery rewarding.structure is connected to the hospital via a tunnel and the door system comes with a hood to protect it from snow shed. We brought in propane service for heating and ran the HVAC units off of the electrical; we typically tried to tie it into the hospital infrastructure, explains Waddell, adding that a diesel fuel-fired generator was added for emergency power backup.We worked very carefully with the municipalities for permitting inspections, adds Waddell. Building with COVID added some challenges: wear a mask, wash your tools at the end of each shift. But we benefited by being able to work through, because these were under the Emergency Response Act.BLT continues to receive calls aboutother facilities, and the field hospitalswill continue to serve a useful purpose even after the end of the pandemic. Thats the fantastic thing about these:BUILDERSDIGEST Quarter 4 202021'