MAT was approached by an NHS Trust’s delivery partner to carry out the complex, detailed concept, design and installation work for its turnkey project.
As well as the NHS hospital replacing its existing hard tissue/histology laboratory, the associated offices and store rooms underwent a refurbishment, inclusive of all necessary architectural, mechanical, electrical, and public health works.
The new histology laboratory
The large NHS teaching hospital where the work was carried out is a major regional and national medical centre.
Histology, which forms part of the hospital’s Clinical Sciences provision, is the study of the microscopic structure of tissues and cells.
The existing histology containment laboratory had come to the end of its lifecycle.
Bringing in an airflow specialist like MAT is vital to ensure the containment is achieved in line with the requirements and standards of HTM 03-01 (2021)
The Trust saw the planned rebuild as an opportunity to not only create a research facility with the most up to date design concepts and furniture, but also one that could accommodate two shifts, allowing longer opening hours and the analysis of more hard tissue samples.
Containment within a laboratory is achieved by specialist airflow design, which allows the laboratory to operate at a negative pressure in relation to the outer spaces.
In this way, biological agents are managed in the environment so as to prevent or control the exposure of workers, other people and the outside environment to the agent(s) in question.
Bringing in an airflow specialist like MAT is vital to ensure the containment is achieved in line with the requirements and standards of HTM 03-01 (2021).
A comprehensive rebuild
The new histology laboratory needed new air handling units (AHUs), controls, lighting, ventilation systems and electrical systems.
After stripping out the existing space, MAT supplied and installed new ventilation systems, including air handling units, extract fans, and heat recovery units.
All installations were completed with the necessary grilles, dampers, fittings, etc.
The existing AHU within the rooftop plantroom was removed and replaced and ductwork, grilles, diffusers and controls provided to serve the system.
Ductwork dropping from the rooftop plantroom was renewed in full, with new fire stopping provided within the riser.
The new ductwork systems include a complex Variable Air Volume (VAV) system
It was also necessary to replace the extract fan to provide the extraction rates required for the remodelled space.
Existing ductwork dropping from the plantroom to the first floor was replaced with polypropylene ductwork due to the corrosive nature of the chemicals being used within the laboratory, with a new dedicated polypropylene extract fan mounted externally on the roof.
The new ductwork systems include a complex Variable Air Volume (VAV) system.
The VAV was developed by MAT engineers to enable the three ventilated downflow benches to independently operate while maintaining negative pressure in the facility.
MAT also carried out the full turnkey installation including new fabric, furnishing, mechanical and electrical fit out.
All the building work; new walls, ceilings, plastering, specialist coatings, doors and furniture was also carried out by MAT.