The ACT Government is expanding the Canberra Hospital to include a new Critical Services Facility at the existing hospital campus in Garran.

Ferrycarrig is currently engaged in the installation of inground utilities including stormwater, sewer, fire and gas service assets.

Ferrycarrig commenced works on the Canberra Hospital Expansion in October 2021, and over the past 12 months has delivered the following
scope of works:

• 750Lm of stormwater FRC pipe from DN300 to DN625 up to 3.6m deep
• 1000Lm of inground hydraulic pipework for sewer, water and gas services
• 37 stormwater manholes precast & in-situ
• Deep excavation to install 3 pump stations up to 4.2m depth
• Pressure testing and CCTV inspection of newly installed pipework
• Connections to existing services for water, gas and fire
• Landscaping and roadway restorations

The project team faced multiple key challenges at the project including deep excavations in unstable soil up to 4.2m depth to install pump stations and connecting pipework, identification of many unknown services via NDD and services locating, and managing groundwater ingress to deep excavations by dewatering pit and hydro vacs. Connecting the inflow pipework to the base of the pump stations required narrow trench excavations between tanks that were up to 4m in depth. This required improvising the proprietary shoring equipment to suit site conditions with engineering design signoff by the manufacturer. The project team’s experience and problem-solving expertise were key to resolving numerous design issues in a short timeframe and delivering a high-quality program as a result.

Working inside an operational Hospital required prioritizing access to patients, staff, and emergency crews. Site specific inductions introduced by Ferrycarrig ensured all crews were informed of requirements by ACT Health. To ensure that new connections to existing critical services were carried out to prevent any disruptions to the hospital activities, Ferrycarrig further developed the rigid approval process for building activity within the hospital which included performing rigorous valve shutoff investigations at night and conducting risk workshops to the client to demonstrate technique and controls. The demolition and reconstruction of a critical services culvert, which housed the main water, gas & fire services required Ferrycarrig to develop a sequenced methodology where work activities that disrupted live services had to be in line with the hospital’s daily agenda. Effective communication and planning of works by Ferrycarrig with the asset owners allowed the ability to control the outcomes for the project’s key dates and work in collaboration with our clients.