The New Heart Tower at Miami Valley Hospital has been designed to maximize adaptability, efficiency, and user delight. This presentation will focus on how these goals have been realized through Prefabrication, Building Information Modeling and Integrated Delivery.

BIM and Integrated Delivery
The Heart Towers lean project schedule demanded a robust building information model that would promote simultaneous collaboration between the design team, consultants, constructors and the client. The team also leveraged multiple Design Assist relationships, each of which streamlined the design process by creating a direct interface between architects and fabricators.

Prefabrication
Each of the 180 patient rooms in the New Heart Tower is identical, acuity-adaptable and same-handed. This degree of programmatic standardization makes the project the ideal testing ground for a comprehensive prefabrication effort. Beginning with the development of a prefabricated patient room, the approach has expanded to include the development of modular engineering racks, demountable care giver stations, a prefabricated patient bridge and unitized wall systems. Each of these assemblies is being shop-built off-site in order to improve construction quality, reduce cost, shorten the work schedule, and eliminate waste. The talk will highlight the lessons learned from the teams pioneering efforts on this project as well as discuss the results of the following performance metrics:
Project Schedule Reduction
o Accelerated construction start time
o Accelerated construction, delivery and installation
Material Savings
Labor Savings
o Worker productivity
o Worker safety
o Labor reduction
Construction Waste Reduction
Build Quality Improvement

The presentation will begin with an overview of what inspired the team to explore prefabrication opportunities, and how the team worked collaboratively to advance the research and thinking behind each initiative. As the projects design evolved function, efficiency and aesthetics were foremost in the mind of the client and designers. As the project progressed, the lens of prefabrication was applied to elements which were repetitive, modular and for which flexibility was essential. Prefabrication did not impact function or aesthetics. Instead the prefabrication process enhanced the teams ability to deliver a high quality solution more accurately, effectively and efficiently.

This presentation will be a complete journey from concept to reality. The process of concept development to collaborative problem solving will be discussed, along with the process of fabricating and installing each of the prefabrication components. The presenters will share lessons learned throughout this process from the perspectives of designer, construction manager and sub-contractor. Those participating should feel as inspired by this design/delivery process as those who are sharing their stories. Hopefully each will take those lessons into their practice as well.