RUBAU COMPLETES THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE MULTIPURPOSE HOSPITAL SPACE ANNEXED TO BARCELONA’S MOISÈS BROGGI HOSPITAL IN LESS THAN 5 MONTHS

April, 2021

Construcciones Rubau, in a joint venture with Dominion Industries, has built the extension to the Moisès Broggi Hospital in Sant Joan Despí (Barcelona), which is now operational. The satellite building was completed in less than five months and contains 56 additional beds for patients who are critically ill, mainly from COVID-19. It is one of five multi-purpose hospital buildings that CatSalut (the Catalan Health Service) decided to build in order to tackle the pandemic, increasing the healthcare capacity of the Catalan health system.

The new building features a flexible structure with three independent levels where beds can be converted into ICU beds within 24 hours. In addition, the different levels of the building can be adapted for other uses when the pressure on the healthcare services decreases, serving as a laboratory, day hospital or research facility. The joint tendering for the design and its execution, and the involvement of all the parties concerned, made it possible to achieve the targets set for its construction and commissioning within a tight schedule so as to be able to help tackle the pandemic. The Lean Construction collaborative method was used in the construction, allowing for maximal use of time and maximal process efficiency by optimising the activities that add value to the project.

The new hospital annex consists of four floors and a surface area of 4,643 m2. Its construction means that the hospital will now be equipped with a total of 74 critical care beds, which represents an increase of more than 300% in ICU beds. The building will allow for maximum adaptability of its spaces, according to current needs as well as those of the future, once the pandemic is over. It is an industrialised building, with an open-plan layout that can be converted at any time according to the functional scheme established. It also contains a 70-metre walkway and a communications hub that will allow health personnel and patients to move between the main building of the Moisès Broggi Hospital and the new multi-purpose building at all times.

Rubau has extensive experience in hospital construction projects. In Spain, it is currently carrying out the construction of the new Clínica Girona and it has previously built healthcare facilities such as the Vía Augusta Primary Care Centre, the residence and day centre for the Estimia Foundation – also in Barcelona – and a care home in Amposta (Tarragona). It has also recently been awarded the contract for the new Hospital Evangélico to be built in Barcelona’s District 22@. At the international level, of particular note is the construction of two third-level hospitals in Bolivia: the El Alto Hospital in La Paz, already in operation, and the Potosí Hospital, which will be opened in the coming months.

Construcciones Rubau is firmly committed to the construction of socially sustainable facilities. Industrialised construction allows for the reduction of processes and guarantees their quality, as some of the production is carried out in the plant and not on site, significantly improving lead times and the quality of the construction. The commitment to this type of construction is forward-looking but also serves as a means of generating employment in the short term.

Rubau’s previous experience in the construction of healthcare facilities and the use of industrial construction systems were key to being able to build the new hospital in less than five months.