Green standards guide hospital construction
Posted on Thursday, January 24, 2008
Editor’s note: This is the third story in an ongoing series about the changes Mercy Health System will make as it prepares for the March 16 move to its new Mercy Medical Center near Interstate 540.
ROGERS — Mercy Medical Center’s design and construct uses ecologically friendly guidelines — standards drafted with the aim of incorporating the facility into the existing landscape, reducing energy usage and cutting back on waste.
The center, set to open March 16, will be the new home of St. Mary’s Hospital, which will relocate from its current location at West Walnut and 13 th streets to the new building beside Interstate 540.
When the hospital’s leaders met with architects to design the building, they wanted to incorporate the core values of Mercy’s founding sisters, including a respect for the Earth, said Susan Barrett, president of Mercy Health System of Northwest Arkansas.
To guide the process, architects from Atlanta-based Perkins and Will incorporated the principals of The Green Guide for Health Care.
The Green Guide for Health Care, a set of standards designed to promote sustainable design and operations at hospitals and clinics, is supported by representatives from the U. S. Green Building Council, the Environmental Protection Agency, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and several national health-care providers. The guide aims to expose untapped areas for greater efficiency and lesser environmental impact in patient-oriented facilities through construction, operations and maintenance.
“ Health-care facilities present both a challenge and opportunity in the development and implementation of sustainable design, construction and operations practices, ” the guide’s Web site states. “ Issues such as 24 / 7 operations, energy and water use intensity, chemical use, infection control requirements and formidable regulatory requirements can pose significant obstacles to the implementation of currently accepted sustainability protocols. ”
Mercy administrators instructed architects to follow the Green Guide for Health Care and incorporate LEED building standards without pursuing formal LEED certification, Barrett said. LEED, an acronym for Leadership and Energy and Environmental Design, details environmentally friendly and energy-efficient design standards, including the use of alternative and recycled materials. Formal LEED certification was not considered because it was cost prohibitive, estimated to be as much as 2 percent of the budget, Barrett said.
Through environmental efforts at the new facility, builders sought to use the natural environment of the site, taking advantage of natural light and incorporating curves into the facade of the building to mimic the ground line.
“ The property that Mrs. Rife had gifted to us was a beautiful pastureland with a natural spring and huge old trees in the bluff line, ” Barrett said. “ We wanted to protect and respect those elements. ”
To maintain the landscape, large trees were preserved on the site, and main entrances were located on several levels to reduce the need for grading. To minimize waste, which would normally end up in landfills, reclaimed damaged concrete was used, along with local brick and stone, on the building’s facade.
Perkins and Will architect Willard Lariscy outlined in a letter to Barrett how more-efficient standards could lead to a 40 percent savings in utility costs. Outdoor light fixtures will minimize light pollution and energy use by shielding and targeting the direction of the light; the entrance of the building looks out over the bluff, maximizing sunlight and solar heat gain to lower energy use; and condensation on plumbing pipes will be reclaimed for use in the cooling tower.
The architects also created a suggested Green Operations Plan to cut back on waste in the new hospital.
Beyond the energy savings, the building strategies may have positive health effects for patients. A reduction in vinyl and artificial materials with potentially volatile organic compounds, which are typical of hospital applications, will help to improve the air quality in the hospital, the architects said.
Barrett said the building’s design and execution fit into the values the health system sought to address in its move.
“ We had as one of our guiding principles the intent to create a nurturing, healing environment, ” she said.
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