FEATURE ARTICLES

Medical emergency communications still rely on single channel systems vulnerable to a single point of failure. James Bushell, head of product at Critico, explains why communication resilience must be considered with the same engineering discipline applied to other critical services.

With NHS estates facing mounting maintenance backlogs, limited capital funding, and rising demand for services, making better use of existing space has never been more important. Tony Booty, director at Abintra, explains how, by combining occupancy sensors, environmental monitoring, and strategic estate planning, healthcare organisations can uncover hidden capacity and improve efficiency without costly new developments.

The urgency to shift care into community settings to support the NHS –while delivering value for public funds – is clear. Tom Howells, board director and national head of healthcare at Pulse Consult, examines why the shift from treatment to preventative care is integral, what delivery success looks like on the ground, and the estate and operational design components required to enable it.

In this practice-led piece, written from the perspective of recurring patterns seen across NHS estates programmes, construction consultancy Gleeds’ head of healthcare Andy McNulty and healthcare sector lead (South West) Simon Yeo argue that, rather than simply through strategy documents and national programmes, the future of the NHS estate is actually being shaped by the thousands of decisions made every day by estates leaders responding to the operational realities of healthcare.

Staff parking is an increasingly difficult area for estates teams to manage, particularly at a time where space is at a premium and simply building new car parks is not a viable option. Here, Ciara Spreadbury, business development & account manager at Mobile Worker Plus – creator of permit and pass management software OCTOPASS – looks at how digital permit systems can help NHS Trusts manage busy hospital sites, reduce unnecessary journeys, and improve the experience for staff.

Architecture should actively promote health, not just treat illness. By integrating outdoor spaces, healthy choices, education, and co-located non-clinical services, we can embed prevention into care settings. However, this requires both bold leadership and capital project reform, as Matt Griffiths, health sector director at Kier, explains.

As hospitals continue to digitise clinical processes, the promise of faster, safer care increasingly depends on how well digital tools align with day-to-day operations. Vicky Morley, senior clinical advisor at Systematic, explores how fragmented operational systems create hidden friction in hospitals, and how better alignment between digital platforms and frontline operations can streamline care delivery and improve patient flow.

According to the WHO, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) represents a growing threat to global health – one that is placing populations at heightened risk. Paul Owen, global business unit manager – healthcare & life sciences at Mueller Europe, discusses how built environment strategic planning and estates teams can help to manage this growing crisis.

Following a busy day of networking, keynotes, and meeting with exhibitors, delegates to the IHEEM Wales Regional Conference 2026 made their way to the Celtic Manor Resort Hotel for the 2026 IHEEM Wales Regional Awards presentation.

On 6-7 May, IHEEM, with the Welsh Branch and NHS Wales, Shared Services Partnership, Specialist Estates Services, held its annual Wales Regional Conference at ICC Wales. This year, the event explored solutions for building resilient healthcare estates, managing ageing infrastructure to reduce the risk of critical system failures, and improving resilience and response to outages and emergencies – topics discussed in a conference keynote delivered by Jacqueline Totterdell, director general for health and social services and NHS Wales chief executive. HEJ editor Matt Seex reports.

At Starkstrom’s state-of-the-art demonstration and training facility, the latest vital infrastructure and new technologies can be explored, touched, and configured – helping to visualise and optimise the operating theatres of the future.

NHS & FM commercial advisor James Saunders examines common pitfalls in NHS outsourcing relationships and offers practical recommendations to avoid them.

Given that delivering and maintaining safe and efficient environments is absolutely paramount, the obvious solution to tired and expired flooring would seem to be full replacement. However, this can be extremely expensive, and estates managers ought to consider the many advantages of restoration rather than replacement, as Simon Testa, managing director at resilient floor restoration specialist Stainbusters Cleaning and Hygiene, explains.

Phil Wiltshire, contracts manager at Pensdown Ltd, explains the critical role that modern AV technology systems can play in the overall fabric of healthcare estates, and the positive impact they can have on operational performance.

Towards the end of last year, Bård Rane, a member of the National Association of Norwegian Architects (MNAL) and former head of design and function for the New National University Hospital of Norway and The University Clinic of Akershus, Norway, visited two brand new Danish hospitals, both of which are currently under construction and expected to open in 2027.

With waiting lists remaining at historically high levels, healthcare providers need to urgently build capacity at pace. Simon Squirrell, national sales director at Vanguard Healthcare Solutions, explains how volumetric construction with high pre-manufactured value is transforming healthcare estates.

Utility enabling works are the unseen foundations of major hospital redevelopment. Here, Leon Stefanski, senior project manager in the New QEH Design and Construction team at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital King’s Lynn, explores how early-stage infrastructure, multidisciplinary coordination, and cross-team collaboration shape the success of complex NHS transformation programmes.

Steve Heape, chair of IHEEM’s Environmental and Sustainability Advisory Panel, speaks with Andy Yates of the Carbon and Energy Fund and Rob Hilliard of Vital Energi, drawing on their substantial experience delivering energy, mechanical, and Net Zero infrastructure in operational NHS environments. Together, they explore what trusts can – and should – be doing to prepare existing estates for low-carbon heat technologies, including how early estate preparation and critical backlog investment can be aligned to make future Net Zero solutions deliverable, affordable, and resilient.

At Healthcare Estates 2025, Sam Vijatov of Innovation Fire Engineering interviewed Paul Mathews, director at Murphy Philipps Architects, winner of the 2025 Healthcare Estates Architectural Practice of the Year Award.

Andrew Steel, managing director of Airmec Essential Services, outlines the critical importance of fire dampers and in keeping these devices fully maintained and compliant, especially in healthcare facilities.