Construction of Berwick’s new £35m hospital has begun, after the appointment of Merit as lead construction partner by Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust. 

A large part of the construction is taking place offsite at Merit’s factory in Cramlington.

As well as being able to complete a build at a much-faster rate, with significantly-less disruption, Merit’s use of cutting-edge offsite methods ensures high-quality prefabricated designs and building techniques are maximised to meet the high standards healthcare facilities require.

Responsible for a large proportion of the hospital’s services infrastructure, and fitout, Merit will manufacture 650 pre-assembled modules (PAMs), weighing around 195 tonnes in total, and 17 UltraPODs weighing around 300 tonnes.

The PODs will house all mechanical, electrica,l and plumbing services including power, lighting, heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and fire alarm systems.

And the PAMS, which will sit underneath the PODs in the ceiling framework, will act as the distribution network for the services into the hospital building.

Our new hospital will not only provide top-quality healthcare well into the future, but will also provide a much-improved environment for our staff and patients, enable additional services to be provided, and support staff recruitment and retention

Merit chief executive, Tony Wells, said: “We have been working closely with Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Northumbria Healthcare Facilities Management (NHFM) to develop a design that is zero carbon emissions, has built in infection control, and is technically enabled for the future of healthcare. 

“This is 21^st-century construction in action and it is always exciting to reach important milestones in a project of this size and scale.”

Originally built in 1874, the current infirmary is no longer suitable for the efficient delivery of modern-day healthcare.

The new purpose-built hospital will reprovide all the existing services to deliver care closer to people’s homes, and house GP practice, the Well Close Medical Group.

Once the main build is complete, demolition of the remaining old hospital buildings, with exception of the clock tower, will be carried out, the car park and access roads will be built, and landscaping work will be completed.

Marion Dickson, Northumbria Healthcare’s executive director and project lead, said: “Our new hospital will not only provide top-quality healthcare well into the future, but will also provide a much-improved environment for our staff and patients, enable additional services to be provided, and support staff recruitment and retention.”

Building work is expected to complete by the end of 2024.