Acute Services Building – A Snapshot…

With a building footprint of 10,450m2, the new Acute Services building (ASB) will be the South Island’s largest hospital building. The ASB is being built to IL4 (Importance Level 4) standards, or 180% of code – the highest level for a building designated to an essential facility that needs to be up and running after a disaster. The building is fitted with 129 base-isolators.

Other features include:

• 62,000 m2 total area
• 13 lifts in the building
• Built with steel framing (6,000 tonnes of structural steel and over 100,000 bolts) with a curtain wall made up of 1,300 panels.
• Lots of natural light.
• Significant seismic protection in the building – apart from the base isolators there is lots of seismic bracing, gaps in the stairs to allow movement and special joints in the pipes that run services such as hot water, steam and air conditioning.
• West Tower (Level 3 – 9) – general surgery wards, vascular, stroke and children’s medical and oncology and the helipad.
• East Tower – (Level 3 – 8) – Neuro Surgery, Paediatric, BMTU and AYA, Oncology, Ortho, SARA and General Surgery.
• Central Core – shared spaces with reception areas, admin, meeting rooms etc.
• Ground Floor – ED and Radiology.
• Level 1 is Intensive Care, theatres and Radiology.

Project consultants

The consultants involved in the project are:

• Architects – Katoa Health Design including Chow Hill, Warren and Mahoney and Thinc Health
• Quantity Surveyors – Rider Levett Bucknan
• Project Programmers – Woods Harris Consulting
• Structural, Geotech and Civil Engineers – Holmes Consulting
• Mechanical and Electrical Engineers, 
• Communications, Security, MTAV services – Beca
• Fire Engineering and Fire Protection Design – Aurecon 

Frequently​ Asked Questions

Why is the Acute Services Building needed?

The need for new facilities at Christchurch Hospital was identified well before the earthquakes. Back in 2008 the Canterbury DHB (CDHB) began to plan health facilities according to projected growth and changes in Canterbury’s population by 2020, and beyond. It was recognised that with a steadily growing and steadily ageing population in Canterbury, the existing facilities would not meet demand beyond 2018. This is a key reason for the project being completed on schedule.

Has the public been consulted on the project?

Yes. Extensive consultation occurred in 2010 jointly between the CDHB and the CCC, including public notices, stakeholder engagement, several public meetings and a full public submissions process. Feedback was very positive, with 233 of 248 submissions in support of the proposals.

Who has designed the building?

A team of internationally renowned health-sector architects and health planners has worked on the designs. CDHB clinical and ancillary staff, other health providers, hospital suppliers and service providers, patient groups and some members of the public have also been involved in the design process.

Where is it being built?

The building will occupy land immediately adjacent to the existing hospital buildings, behind the existing Christchurch Women’s Hospital. The land was subject to a land swap of equal parcels of land between the CCC and the CDHB earlier this year. As a result of the land swap, CCC gained riverside land and the CDHB gained land next to the hospital, including areas already built upon. 

How much will it cost?

The project is part of the Government’s $1-billion investment in Christchurch’s future healthcare facilities. This includes new buildings at both Burwood and Christchurch Hospital sites., including the new Outpatients.

How long will it take to build?

The Acute Services building project is on track to be completed by 2019.

Is this project separate from the hospital’s earthquake repair work?

Yes. A separate team of repair contractors has been working on the earthquake repairs needed at the hospital. This work is ongoing. As much of the work as possible is done after hours or at the weekends.

How do I find out more?

Send an email to itsallhappening@cdhb.health.nz and one of the project team will respond. ​​

The Acute Services Building project marks a steel milestone

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​This is a time-lapse of the acute services building from the start of construction in October 2014 to January 2018 as seen from our camera on top of Riverside