G&H Wins £12 Million MEP Contract for Harrogate Hospital
- Michael Ghobrial
- Oct 14
- 5 min read
MEP specialist G&H has secured a £12 million contract to deliver complete mechanical, electrical and public health design and build services for Harrogate District Hospital's new Day Case Surgery and Imaging Centre. The appointment by main contractor Morgan Sindall Construction marks a significant step forward for the £50 million facility, which aims to accelerate elective care recovery and reduce NHS waiting times across North Yorkshire.
Project Overview
The Day Case Surgery and Imaging Centre represents a substantial investment in healthcare infrastructure development for the Harrogate district:
Total facility value: £50 million
MEP contract value: £12 million
Location: Harrogate District Hospital, Lancaster Park Road, North Yorkshire
Client: Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust (HDFT)
Main contractor: Morgan Sindall Construction
MEP specialist: G&H
Funding source: Government's Targeted Investment Fund 2 (TIF2) and NHS England
Team size: 60-strong workforce including apprentices
Site commencement: 6 October 2025
Completion target: Summer 2026
The modern two-storey facility will feature two new operating theatres, three x-ray rooms, an MRI suite, a procedure room and a dedicated day care ward, significantly expanding the hospital's surgical and diagnostic capacity.
Delivery Partners and Key Stakeholders
The project brings together experienced healthcare construction specialists with proven track records in complex medical facilities:
Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust oversees clinical requirements and operational integration
Morgan Sindall Construction manages main contract delivery, having commenced groundbreaking in February 2025 with steel frame completion achieved by July 2025
G&H provides comprehensive MEP design and installation through its in-house engineering team
NHS England's Targeted Investment Fund 2 finances the project specifically to accelerate elective care recovery
Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board coordinates regional health planning
Harrogate Integrated Facilities supports operational estates management
Steven Fry, project manager at Morgan Sindall, emphasised the collaborative approach, noting that both organisations' values align regarding quality, safety, timelines and social value commitments. Rob Woodward, senior contracts manager (north) at G&H, highlighted the firm's vast healthcare experience and commitment to transforming buildings into safe, comfortable spaces where patients and staff can thrive.
Construction and Technical Details
G&H's scope encompasses sophisticated medical-grade MEP systems designed specifically for healthcare environments:
Theatre equipment installation for two operating theatres meeting stringent infection control standards
Piped medical gas systems delivering oxygen, medical air, vacuum and anaesthetic gas scavenging
Ultraclean ventilation (UCV) canopies for two operating theatres maintaining critical airflow patterns
MRI scanner infrastructure including specialist shielding and cooling requirements
Specialist nurse call systems integrated across clinical areas
Advanced power distribution with redundancy for critical equipment
HV transformers (two units) providing resilient electrical supply
Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) units (two units) protecting sensitive medical equipment
Main generator with backup connection points ensuring continuous operation during outages
Air source heat pumps delivering energy-efficient heating aligned with NHS net zero targets
Plate heat exchangers and chillers supporting thermal management
Advanced ventilation systems maintaining air quality standards across surgical and imaging zones
The technical complexity demands expertise in healthcare-specific regulations including Health Technical Memoranda (HTM) guidance, particularly HTM 03-01 for ventilation and HTM 06-01 for electrical services. G&H's in-house design engineers created bespoke solutions accommodating the building's operational requirements whilst integrating with existing hospital infrastructure.
Timeline
The project follows an accelerated programme supporting NHS recovery objectives:
September 2024: Tender issued by Morgan Sindall Construction
22 May 2025: Stage two bids submitted
October 2025: G&H contract award announced
6 October 2025: 60-strong MEP team mobilised on site
February 2025: Morgan Sindall commenced groundbreaking (main contract)
July 2025: Steel frame completion celebrated with signing ceremony
Late 2025: Floor laying, roof installation and cladding progressing
Early 2026: Internal fit-out commences
Summer 2026: Building completion and commissioning
Autumn 2026: Operational handover and patient services commence
The 18-month construction programme from groundbreaking to completion demonstrates project management efficiency essential for healthcare developments where delays directly impact patient waiting lists.
Strategic Importance
The Day Case Surgery and Imaging Centre addresses critical capacity constraints within North Yorkshire's healthcare system whilst supporting broader NHS transformation goals. The facility forms part of HDFT's comprehensive transformation programme, funded through mechanisms specifically targeting elective care backlogs exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The project simultaneously resolves a safety issue identified at Harrogate District Hospital: the presence of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) in the existing therapy services building. RAAC, a lightweight material with a 30-year lifespan, poses structural collapse risks in aging buildings constructed during the 1970s when the first sections of Harrogate District Hospital opened. The £50 million investment allocates approximately £20 million to permanent RAAC removal, with recent additional funding of £14 million supporting both the new centre construction and RAAC remediation across non-clinical areas.
For public-private partnerships in healthcare, the project exemplifies effective collaboration between NHS trusts, central government funding mechanisms, and private sector construction expertise. The Targeted Investment Fund 2 specifically channels resources to projects demonstrating measurable impact on waiting list reduction, ensuring capital investment directly translates to improved patient outcomes.
Imaging department expansion particularly addresses diagnostic bottlenecks limiting surgical throughput. The centre will house two MRI scanners, two CT scanners, three x-ray rooms, seven ultrasound scanners, bone density (DEXA) scanning and fluoroscopy equipment. This diagnostic capacity enables faster patient pathways from referral through investigation to treatment, reducing the time patients spend awaiting diagnosis.
Construction Opportunities
The MEP contract generates substantial supply chain opportunities across specialised healthcare construction sectors:
Medical gas pipeline manufacturers supplying copper pipework to HTM 02-01 standards
Ultraclean ventilation specialists fabricating laminar flow canopies for operating theatres
Electrical distribution equipment suppliers providing healthcare-grade switchgear and distribution boards
UPS and standby power equipment manufacturers delivering mission-critical power protection
Building Management System (BMS) integrators programming complex HVAC controls
Fire detection and suppression specialists installing healthcare-compliant life safety systems
Nurse call system providers integrating patient communication technology
Prefabrication facilities manufacturing off-site MEP modules (G&H utilises prefabrication capabilities accelerating installation timelines)
Commissioning specialists validating system performance to healthcare standards
Apprenticeship training organisations supporting G&H's 60-person team including apprentices gaining healthcare construction experience
Beyond direct MEP scopes, the broader £50 million project creates opportunities in structural steelwork (completed July 2025), cladding and roofing systems, internal fit-out including clinical finishes, medical equipment installation, IT and communications infrastructure, and facilities management services post-completion.
Writer's Opinion
Whilst celebrating contract awards makes good public relations, the construction industry should acknowledge that healthcare MEP projects consistently expose the sector's tendency to underestimate complexity. The £12 million MEP value represents approximately 24 percent of the £50 million facility cost, a proportion suggesting either aggressive pricing or optimistic assumptions about coordination requirements with medical equipment suppliers, commissioning durations, and inevitable design changes as clinical teams refine operational requirements during construction.
G&H's decision to mobilise a 60-strong team including apprentices sounds impressive until considering the 20-month window from October 2025 mobilisation to Summer 2026 completion. Healthcare MEP installations demand meticulous quality control, extensive testing protocols, and coordination with clinical commissioning that cannot be accelerated through workforce numbers alone. The industry should question whether ambitious completion dates serve patients or simply create unrealistic expectations that ultimately compromise sustainable building practices and workforce wellbeing when inevitable delays trigger panic measures.
Furthermore, celebrating NHS contracts whilst the service faces £13.8 billion maintenance backlogs feels performative. The construction sector profits from reactive projects like RAAC remediation that could have been prevented through adequate maintenance funding. Rather than applauding individual contract wins, the industry should advocate for systemic change in public sector asset management that prevents buildings reaching crisis points requiring demolition and replacement within 50 years of construction.
