New children’s hospital starts to take shape

20 August 2019

Capital & Coast DHB and Minister of Health Dr David Clark have marked the beginning of the steel-framing work for the new children’s hospital in Wellington.

The DHB and Minister were joined onsite by property developer Mark Dunajtschik, who has donated $50 million to build the new facility.

This is a truly exciting phase for the project as the three-storey building – which is expected to open in mid-2021 – starts to take shape.

The main hospital structure will consist of more than 950 tonnes of structural steel, and 1.2km of floor beams sized and fabricated specifically for this building.

The steel columns will sit on 45 ‘triple pendulum friction’ proprietary-designed isolator bearings. The same bearings have been installed in the new Apple Corporate Headquarters in California – one of the top 10 largest base-isolated buildings in the world.

In just under two more years, Wellington will have a purpose-built facility for children of the lower North Island and upper South Island who need of specialist hospital services. The new building will bring inpatient services and outpatient clinics under one roof for the first time, allowing for greater integration of services.

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