$286M Children’s Hospital rises along Medical Mile

By: Deborah Johnson Wood

Hospital officials say the $286 million Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital is is right on schedule for the spring 2011 opening, even though parts of the building now wrapped in its Arctic Blue Viracon Architectural Glass look almost ready to accept the first patient.

“The structure of the lower three levels that house the clinical spaces are complete,” says Ron Dawson, project manager for Wolverine-Turner Construction. “We’re installing the interior partitions and the overhead and in-wall mechanical and electrical services. We’re about 90 percent complete on the C level, which houses the pediatric emergency and radiology departments.”

The glass panels on the facade are constructed to shade the interior from the sun’s heat and prevent condensation build up. Even though the panels are blue on the outside, the sunlight inside the rooms has no hint of blue.

Across Michigan Street to the north, Christman Construction has broken ground on a medical building called Tower 35. The hospital parking ramp will be located under the building, and an elevator tower will act as the north anchor for an enclosed elevated pedestrian walkway across Michigan Street to the hospital. Wolverine-Turner, the hospital and Christman have collaborated on the construction of the various elements to bring the entire project together.

“We’ve also worked with the City, Christman and MDOT to coordinate with the I-196 construction in 2010 and have been able to modify our construction methods to accommodate the extra traffic that’s expected on Michigan,” says Jonathan Flyte, Spectrum Health’s vice president of facilities.

When completed, the 14-story, 440,000-square-foot hospital will have 1,013 doors, 6,800 glass panels on the tower curtain wall alone, 21 miles of plumbing pipes and 1,250 tons of structural steel spread over 11 floors above ground.

The building will be LEED certified.

Source: Ron Dawson, Wolverine-Turner Construction; Jonathan Flyte, Spectrum Health

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Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].