Whāngarei Hospital Theatre Block Extension
Airzone was contracted to undertake its first design build project at Whangarei Hospital in 1993.
Since then, Airzone has been the preferred HVAC supplier for the NDHB, maintaining and repairing all HVAC systems at Whangarei, Kaitaia, Bay of Islands and Dargaville Hospitals.
The Northland District Health Board (NDHB) Theatre Capacity project was an interim project to address capacity issues ahead of a planned major redevelopment of the Whangarei Hospital site.
This project included two additional high grade operating theatres accommodated within an extension to the existing theatre. The works required a new HVAC system to serve the operating theatre extension and provide air handling plant located in a new plantroom.
Whangarei Hospital Theatre Block Extension
The brief included:
- Fully ducted outdoor air from filtered fresh air louvres to the air handling units and spill air fans to the operating theatre units to assist with room pressure control
- Individual air-source heat pump and chiller units provide heating hot water (HHW) and chilled water (CHW) to the extension, each unit with integral circulating pumps (duty/standby) and a buffer vessel
- Clean up room extract fan, toilet extract fan system, PACU anaesthetic gas extract fans via passive roof cowls, away from outdoor air intakes
- An outdoor air system for the dictation bay with inline duct-mounted fan, roof mounted intake cowl and air filter
- A supply air system for the UPS room with inline duct-mounted fan
- CHW/HHW ducted fan coil unit located within corridor ceiling void to serve non clinical dictation bay
- Ductwork and pipework reticulation throughout the extension from the two plant areas
- HVAC controls and alterations to the existing MCS to facilitate the new extension,
- Electrical for mechanical work, including new MCC within the AHU plantroom
- Testing and commissioning of all mechanical systems
- Provision of as-built drawings and O&M manual for the works.
This base build contract was completed by Argon Construction in March 2021 with the new Theatres going operational in May 2021.
The project provides much needed capacity to assist the Northland community where there has been significant growth for acute medical and surgical services, reducing the need to travel to Auckland for procedures, fewer delays to treatment and more positive health outcomes.
