Architects, engineers, quantity surveyors, construction specialists, software engineers and medical experts were all part of a team working collaboratively on the new state-of-the-art medical facility at KEMH. Saltus Design Technology Head, Mr Phillip Heap, was pleased when Mrs Susan Behrens, Senior Architect at OBM, helped to coordinate this unique site visit for Saltus SGY1 students which gave them the opportunity to discuss with the experts how to pursue a career in those fields and discover the world of “real design technology in action”. The tour was guided by Mr Quinton DeShield who trained in Civil Engineering and is the Quality Control Manager.

SGY1 student Kurt Repose commented, “We were shown how the architects and engineers sometimes find existing plans of hospitals that have been built before and use them as a blueprint which saves time and money. Of course each design is adapted to a particular country; for example, Bermuda has to have regulations for hurricanes, but also systems in place in case of earthquakes. We also heard that time management and organisation are the key to create such a structure — every small detail was planned beforehand. And we learned about psychological aspects such as having a garden and lots of large windows to keep the patients from feeling claustrophobic and help with rehabilitation — it gave me invaluable insight into careers in engineering and architecture.

And SGY1 student Philip Hagen reported, “I was really impressed. We discovered how many different types of engineers are actually needed for such a project. The design is very modern — it allows as much natural sunlight as possible into the building ... which helps reduce the stress levels for the nurses. We also learned about what problems they face while designing and constructing such a building in Bermuda, the co-ordination needed between medical experts and designers, and, since most of the designers would be from the UK and Canada and know how to design to their own standards, the designers have to come to an agreement on which standards to follow. We were told about the many tests that have to be performed while building, for example testing a two foot section of pipe to make sure there are no leaks, and there are easily thousands of feet that need to be tested. Mr DeShield told us about what is needed to be a successful Civil Engineer, and he mentioned how nowadays companies will not hire you unless you have a Health and Safety and Quality Control background.