Healthcare Projects
Baum Harmon Mercy Hospital – Wound Care Center
Baum Harmon Mercy Hospital wanted to build a Wound Care Center to provide state-of-the-art medical care for their patients. They hired a general contractor to complete the building, but budgetary, schedule and construction issues quickly arose. When they called ECS the construction was already underway.
The first step for ECS was to collaborate with the hospital staff, the contractors, suppliers, architect and engineers. The building contractor was from Texas. The site contractor was from Iowa. Healogics from Florida supplied the hyperbaric chambers. Fred Evans Group in Texas provided the medical gas system. Matheson Gas from Nebraska provided the gas storage system. ECS quickly brought everyone together and identified key Action Items that had to be addressed for the project to be successful.
In reviewing the A & E plans, ECS also discovered several problems. Permitting was an issue. The medical gas pad that had already been poured was designed and built incorrectly and design of the separation wall for the pad did not meet safety codes. Site drainage was not designed correctly. A City fiber optic line was in the way. Winter construction had increased the footing costs which put the project over budget. In addition, the local contractor’s workmanship quality was not up to standards and his pricing was very high. ECS effectively addressed every one of these issues, succeeded in expediting the project schedule and saved Baum Harmon over twice as much money as they paid ECS for their professional services.
Mercy Medical Center – Storm Lake Clinic
Mercy Medical Center wanted to buy an existing building and renovate it into a first class medical clinic that would meet Joint Commission Standards. Just before they closed on the real estate transaction, Mercy called ECS to get their professional advice on the necessary construction work . Upon inspection, ECS discovered the building would require major renovations including all new electrical service and lighting, new HVAC systems, new plumbing systems, all new interior walls, cabinetry, insulation, sound proofing and data systems.
Because the existing building location was ideal for their clinic, Mercy still wanted to proceed with the project. ECS provided them with an updated, accurate budget which allowed Mercy to renegotiate their purchase price and save money. Due to prior commitments with new patients, Mercy only had a few weeks to get all of the construction work completed. Because of tight budgetary concerns, they also wanted to get competitive bids for the work.
Given the schedule challenge and budgetary constraints, Mercy hired ECS to oversee their project. ECS got to work immediately to lay out a suitable floor plan, complete the interior design, and find qualified, interested firms to provide design-build proposals. After careful analysis of the bids, ECS recommended the best firm for the project, developed an AIA contract, and negotiated terms to make sure the quality, cost and schedule would meet the needs of the clinic. ECS then carefully managed the entire project from design development through owner occupancy.
At the beginning of the project, clinic staff commented they were afraid opening on time would be impossible and they would lose many patients to other health care providers. With a concerted effort from ECS, the design-build contractor and Mercy staff, the building construction was completed at an incredible pace and approved for occupancy on schedule. Mercy Hospital retained all their patients and got a quality clinic built for a reasonable price.
Mercy Hospital – Child Advocacy Center
Mercy Hospital bought a building that needed major renovations to make it into a new Child Advocacy Center (CAC) to provide medical care to child abuse victims in the community. Their clinic needed to be built to Joint Commission Standards. Because their $2.6 million project had to be funded by donations, they called ECS to lead their project, cut costs and deliver the exceptional quality they needed.
When ECS got involved, the architect had already completed a preliminary design and project budget. To ensure the design would meet the needs of the hospital, ECS led design development meetings with the architect, engineers and CAC staff. ECS soon discovered the architect’s budget was inaccurate and significantly low. The budget failed to include necessary costs to replace the roof and to replace a massive retaining wall that was in danger of collapse. ECS developed an accurate budget and successfully found major cost savings that slashed project costs by over 30% to offset the additional costs for the roof and the retaining wall.
ECS saved Mercy Hospital over $400,000 by using many existing columns, footings and wall sections rather than building new, by using alternate materials and suppliers, and by modifying the HVAC system design. In addition, ECS saved about $270,000 through competitive bidding and the use of multiple prime contractors. ECS also made a major donation and got contractors to donate over $100,000 to the CAC.
In hiring ECS for this important project, the CAC got a top quality building that was done on schedule and under budget. Mercy Hospital completely paid for the professional services of ECS from the cost savings ECS found and used the balance of the savings to reduce their fundraising needs.