Monash Children's Hospital begins construction
A valuable piece of Victorian infrastructure officially began work on Tuesday this week, with the first sod of soil turned to signify construction of the new Monash Children's Hospital. Located at Monash Medical Centre Clayton (MMCC), the new 230-bed, purpose-built Monash Children’s Hospital marked construction with Victorian Premier, Dr Denis Napthine joining festivities.
Conceived as a response to the growing need to service Melbourne and Victoria's increasing population, the facility will be one of two statewide tertiary paediatric facilities, and the only venue in the state which provides foetal surgery, thalassemia and paediatric cardiac electro-physiology.
Head contractor Lend Lease Building (Baulderstone) expect the concrete structure to rise skyward by October with dual tower cranes erected either side of the Christmas break. The concrete structure is expected to be finished by August 2015 with full completion roughly a year later, owing to the lengthy fitouts when constructing hospitals.
Project details
- Clients: Monash Health & Victorian Department of Health
- Architect: Silver Thomas Hanley
- Builder: Lend Lease Building (Baulderstone)
- 30,000sqm paediatric hospital: Australia’s third largest children’s hospital
- 230-bed facility
- completion late 2016
- Cost estimate: $250 million
Construction facts
- 14,000 cubic metres of concrete will be used in construction
- 1500 tonnes of reinforcement
- 35000m2 of plasterboard will be used
- 1000 doors will be installed
- 35000m2 of floor finishes including vinyl and carpet
- 35000 cubic metres of dirt will be removed
- 2-year construction program
- Two tower cranes on site
Children's joins the TRF
Monash Children's isn't the only project worthy of note currently under construction at MMCC. With a tower crane visible from far and wide, Lend Lease Building (Baulderstone) have advanced the Translational Research Facility (seen below) to the first floor structure.
Designed as an incubator for knowledge and research, the facility "Will bring together basic and clinical researchers grouped by theme; integrated transitional research laboratories; a dedicated clinical trial centre; a general research centre and common use research platforms." The end result is a research centre designed to enable world-class clinical research, "Translated into best-practise, patient-centred healthcare" according to Monash Health.
Valued at $84 million, the Woods Bagot-designed facility secured $71 million via Federal Government funding with the remaining $13m being provided by the project partners. The Translational Research Facility is due for completion late 2015.
