Work at Royal Liverpool to restart this month
Laing O’Rourke will start structural repairs this month on the stalled project, with more than 220 cubic metres of concrete and 165 tonnes of steelwork needed to fix defects in the build.
While the whole programme, timescale, and cost of the remedial works is still yet to be finalised, work will begin later this month, with cladding to be removed to allow materials to be lifted into the site.
The hospital has been hit by a series of delays since its original completion date of March 2017 overran. Completion was first pushed back to February 2018, and delayed further when then-contractor Carillion reported cracks in concrete beams and asbestos in the ground. Carillion then collapsed in January last year.
Arup was appointed to review the building’s structure, with Laing O’Rourke appointed last year to complete the scheme.
Jim Bell, director at Arup, said: “Our structural review looked at the building as it is now and the building at its peak use, once the hospital is open and fully operational. The review found a number of design and compliance issues. These mostly relate to peak use when the hospital is open and the resulting structural solutions to these issues are mostly contained on three of the 11 floors.”
These solutions involve using tried and tested methods to strengthen existing beams, reduce loads that are causing structural issues and putting in place additional support for torsions.”
Andy Thomson, project director, Laing O’Rourke added: “This is positive progress. We’re working to a plan to ensure the building is finished to the high standards required and we’re moving forward with this.
“Control measures are already in place to ensure there are no immediate risks to workers in the building.
“Fixing the structural issues is a complex programme of work, with the added challenge of protecting the existing hi-tech fixtures and fittings in the hospital. This requires heating the building and maintaining water flow to prevent deterioration, which would lead to costly replacements if it was not diligently carried out.”
I thought that this had restarted sometime ago? This is a national disgrace/ embarrassment.
By Craig
I suggest that if remediation designs are ongoing and the whole programme, timescale, and cost of the remedial works still yet to be finalised, then when will this Hospital be completed and opened and what cost to the public purse?
By IR
The cost will be what the cost should be 20 – 40%..no doubt the LOR group are using their inhouse companies who will do this project with a blank cheque, great value for public..
By Real
The here today, gone tomorrow politicians (Government) are not interested in long term strategic economic planning; be it Health, Transport, Defence, Education..etc, etc, etc, etc. WE will never get to know the real financial cost of this project; perhaps twice as much, or more, as the original project, when you also consider they had to buy back the PFI too.
By Billy
We need to be respectfully cautious when talking about these “…structural repairs…” that are needed to The Royal. While Carillion themselves may have been a ragged bunch the RC subcontractor on the scheme was a very good one and we need to be clearer on what exactly the widely-reported “…cracks in beams…” are.
By Lloyd Hitchmough