Hospitals are highly sophisticated, highly specialized buildings that serve fragile populations. As such, HVAC systems designed for these facilities must not only deliver superior air quality, but need to provide a comfortable environment in which medical staff can work and patients can heal.
Due to this overriding concern for patient safety, hospital mechanical systems are subjected to numerous federal, state, and local regulations, which at times may seem a little overwhelming. Contractors who work in this market must be especially careful to keep up to date on changing requirements if they are to successfully navigate the complex system of regulatory compliance.
Layers of complex federal, state, and local laws regulate the construction and renovation of health care facilities, and these laws influence everything from whether a project can proceed, to the schedule of the project, to the ultimate scope and cost of the project, said John Sauer, senior director of engineering design, BSA LifeStructures Inc., Indianapolis. “There is no doubt that it is more difficult for contractors to work in hospitals as compared to other types of facilities like commercial buildings and schools. Part of the reason involves patient safety and ensuring that workers are not being affected by patients.”