Birmingham Dental Hospital, Birmingham

The new Birmingham Dental Hospital is a landmark development which is built on the former home of the BBC Pebble Mill Studios. The development is seen as highly strategic for the city of Birmingham, being a key element of the new Medical Quarter which enhances the city’s reputation as a hub of medicine, learning and life sciences.

It is the sole dental hospital and school in the West Midlands and one of only 10 in England. Service provision, education and research form key components, with consultant-led dental specialties providing treatment for around 115,000 attendances each year, together with undergraduate and postgraduate training for dental students, dental nurses, dental hygienists and therapists.

GBE Converge were appointed by Interserve Engineering Services to carry out the design, supply, installation and commissioning of all fire, security, access control and disabled alarm systems to the new four-storey, £34m building. GBE were appointed by Interserve for this project due to GBE Converge’s proven track record, design expertise and a competitive offering.

GBE Converge’s early design input assisted in ensuring the design conformed to the current legislation. The access control system specification was changed to a Gallagher system by the client to enable continuity of access cards throughout the university estate. GBE were able to accommodate this change as installers of Gallagher systems.

Pelco fixed IP CCTV cameras were specified and installed along with the Gent Vigilon fire detection system which provides the user with clear, comprehensive information in the event of a fire and an historic log of the system’s management information. Incorporated within the Vigilon system GBE Converge installed Gent’s WINMAG Management System which provides a graphical view of the entire system and is fundamental in managing the control and status of the fire dampers throughout the building.

There were a few key challenges to the installation. One was the complex wiring system design due to the nature of the two, four-storey concrete frame buildings. There was also the different levels of protection required for the two different, but linked sections of the building. The North block that will be used primarily for teaching and research required L2 protection and the South block, which will deliver dental care from 154 dental bays on three floors required full L1 protection.

As GBE Converge Business Development Manager Paul Walsh explains “This was a challenging project from the initial design phase through to installation. However, we had a really dedicated project team that were committed to overcoming all the obstacles we were faced with.”

GBE Converge are due to complete work on the site during the summer of 2015 with the building opening in the autumn.

Key Project Facts