FEATURE ARTICLES

A leading plastic pipe supplier highlights the importance of specifying a sufficiently robust pipe product able, for instance, to accommodate thermal and chemical disinfection.

Why it pays ‘to go beyond existing control to maximise energy efficiency’ when it comes to optimising the performance of hot water boilers.

A UK architectural practice, an infrastructure and project management specialist, and a consortium of UK suppliers, are working together to deliver new hospitals in Ghana.

The role of safety flooring in healthcare premises, and some of the key features to look for when specifying it.

A reverse osmosis wastewater recovery system has significantly improved the overall ‘sustainability’ of a renal water system, and cut running costs, at a Canterbury hospital.

The impact of good acoustic products on ensuring a quiet, restful, and therapeutic recovery environment in hospitals and other healthcare facilities discussed.

The director of a food safety consultancy explains how listeriosis can arise in healthcare settings, and sets out the key priorities to prevent vulnerable patients contracting it.

The background to, and rationale behind the development of the Design Quality Indicator for Health ‘tool’, explained by a chartered architect who was one of the co-authors.

A building energy management system (BEMS) installed at a Yorkshire hospital has been configured to capture water consumption data and alert estates personnel to leaks.

The advantages of Energy Performance Contracts, and some of the options available for NHS Trusts keen to embrace them to cut their energy bills and carbon emissions.

RFID tracking of some 2,500 high value medical devices used at Scotland’s Forth Valley Royal Hospital is helping to minimise the time that technicians spend looking for equipment.

The executive director and strategic planning lead at Community Health Partnerships shares his thoughts on the healthcare estate’s role ‘as a facilitator for much-needed change’.

How to establish an effective Water Safety Group and associated Water Safety Plan as part of a determined strategy to keep a healthcare facility’s water system safe.

Proposed ‘point-value metrics’ for assessing the ‘efficiency’ of NHS Trusts relative to their peers could be inherently flawed, a former NHS estates and facilities manager warns.

The variable quality of new surgical instruments arriving at a leading London hospital, and an auditing process to ensure defective such devices never reach the operating theatre, were discussed at a recent IHEEM seminar.

An independent water hygiene consultant and Authorising Engineer (Water) reports on the potential lessons from his recent work collecting Pseudomonas aeuruginosa samples from 14 UK Trusts.

The complexities and challenges, including decanting patients and staff into eight temporary ‘cabins’, of a £3m refurbishment and asbestos ‘strip-out’ at a north Kent private hospital.

A new Design and Innovation Centre at Static Systems’ Staffordshire headquarters incorporates a multi-bed bay – a ‘live example’ of the ProCure21+ repeatable room design.

Some of the very varied and often daunting challenges faced by healthcare security personnel in what can be a volatile and stressful environment, where normal inhibitions may not apply.

Some of the priorities to ensure a good choice of fire alarm and detection system for hospitals and other healthcare facilities.