Caunton Engineering have supplied and erected over 1000te of structural steelwork for a 120.000 sq ft extension to the Thanet General Hospital in Margate.
Steel was selected as the framing material very much for its benefits in speed of construction. The main contractor Birse Construction reports the scheme was completed under a fast track programme in only 78 weeks, allowing the wing to open 3 months earlier than planned a testament indeed to steel's advantages in speedy construction.
The extension, shown in the photograph under construction, was designed by Rust Consulting. It accommodates a range of hospital facilities A&E, wards and operating theatres, care and treatment units and a hydrotherapy pool. Thus demonstrating further benefits of framing in steel. Steel's flexibility helps to accommodate the requirements of these very disparate hospital functions.
The extension funded by the Thanet Healthcare Trust has now been named the Queen Mother Hospital in memory of, may we most respectfully say, very much a lady of steel