USACE and DHA Project Support Across Europe

Various Locations

HFS has been providing support across Europe since 2018 with initial outfitting, equipment planning, project management, engineering support, and construction management.

The HFS Team is at numerous sites across Germany, such as Spangdahlem, where we oversee the relocation and consolidation of several medical functions, the construction of a war reserve material (WRM) warehouse, and the renovation of a veterinary surgical suite. At Ramstein Air Force Base, staff are providing support to numerous projects. These include the renovation of the Ramstein Dental Clinic SPD (DIPC), the new construction of the Kaiserslautern Military Community Center (KMCC) Satellite Pharmacy, the construction of the Ramstein WRM warehouse, a gas storage warehouse, and a roof canopy addition, as well as the replacement of the Rhine Ordnance Barracks Medical Center.

Outside of Germany, HFS is overseeing a MILCON hospital replacement and the modernization of the dental clinic at Royal Air Force (RAF) Lakenheath. We are, additionally, providing support for the modernization of another dental clinic at RAF Alconbury.

In Italy, HFS is providing initial outfitting for the 8,400-SF Aviano Air Base Dental Clinic, as well as oversight of the modernization of the hospital’s laboratory and pharmacy casework. The team is also reviewing the design of the Aviano WRM Warehouse (EDI).

Moreover, the HFS Team is overseeing the renovation of a 40,000-SF warehouse in Zutendaal, Belgium. In the Netherlands, we are supporting the expansion and modernization of the 52nd Fighter Wing MUNNS GSU – Medical Aid Station Clinic, in addition to the renovation of five warehouses. HFS staff also designed the class-8 racking system and will oversee the construction of a 20,000-SF warehouse in Powidz, Poland.

Schofield HFPA Construction Management Support

Schofield Barracks, HI

HFS provided support as part of a project management team, overseeing the construction of military medical facilities throughout Health Facility Planning Office – Schofield Barracks (HFPO-SB). HFS’s key purpose was to successfully coordinate and partner with all project stakeholders, including HFPO program and project managers, facility support staff, architect-engineering (A-E) firms, the USACE, and more. HFS imparted general and medical-specific technical advice, constructability support and information, and ensured projects met required standards.

One of the projects HFS supported was the new behavioral health/dental clinic addition to Desmond Doss Health Clinic (DDHC). Here, HFS provided construction management support for the construction of a 73,401-SF addition with 284 rooms in Phase 1. The new clinic consolidates dental services, physical therapy (PT) services, and behavior health services into one building. Meeting State Historic Preservation Division (SHPD) and Department of Public Works (DPW) environmental standards, the facility is in the Historic District of Schofield Barracks. The clinic also adhered to Tripler Army Medical Center (TAMC) standards and connected/integrated with some of TAMC’s existing systems. The DDHC clinic addition opened one month earlier than contractually projected and was within budget.

Another project HFS supported was the construction of a new 429-stall five-level parking garage for the US Army Health Clinic. Being the first and only parking structure at Schofield Barracks, the garage includes 18 handicap and 16 motorcycle spaces, and stands adjacent to a renovated ground level parking lot.

A-E-0 Planning and 1391 Development, Marine Corps Air Station

Miramar, CA

The Miramar Ambulatory Care Center (ACC) has three separate buildings totaling a combined area of 98,039 SF. The HFS Team prepared four different master planning courses of action (COA) for consideration. The product was a consolidated Project Book with 29 deliverables of varying complexity and data entered into the Program Administration & Execution (PAX) DD 1391 Processor.

The HFS Team of architects, structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire protection engineers conducted two site visits to collect data and conducted evaluations of as-built drawings. The team also performed condition assessments of existing buildings, grounds, utilities, environment, and the surrounding geography. A hazardous materials survey/remediation plan analyzing the future proposed site and parking conditions were also completed. A site master plan included conceptual site analysis and study to demonstrate site access, building footprint, preferred adjacencies, and interdependencies with other structures and antiterrorism/force protection (AT/FP) setbacks.

Our personnel prepared parametric cost estimates using the most current version of the Parametric Cost Engineering System (PACES). In addition, the team completed an economic analysis that considered status quo, addition/alteration, new construction, renovation/recapitalization, leasing, and building of opportunity conversion options.

Medical facility planning included concepts of operation (CONOPS), including a narrative and diagrams showing relationships between the departments, and space and equipment planning (SEPS) reports.

A-E Design Combined Energy Plant, Phase 1 (Chiller Plant)

Omaha, NE

The HFS Team provided professional services to design and construct a new, modern chiller plant adjacent to the existing boiler plant at the Omaha VA Medical Center. The project consisted of the demolition of existing systems and the installation of equipment in a new chiller plant building, which included new controls, all required safety items, and system modifications/enhancements for the new plant to function with portions of the existing chilled water distribution system.

The initial project scope of work was based on a feasibility study to connect to and purchase chilled water from a nearby university plant, which was deemed infeasible as it lacked redundancy for emergency situations. The HFS Team reviewed the options and the existing system, concluding that a new plant was needed on site. The existing system was an eclectic mix of technologies that had been modified over the years. These modifications resulted in complicated, inefficient piping and pumping systems that wasted energy.

The new building was designed adjacent to the boiler plant, away from the main building to consolidate the industrial areas of the campus and simplify maintenance requirements. The HFS Team designed it to accommodate future expansion, when more funding becomes available, by simply adding additional bays for chillers and electrical equipment, as needed. In addition, premium land area on campus was both recovered from the existing towers and saved for alternate uses by placing the new cooling towers on the plant roof.

AHU Phase 3 (Renovate Fourth Floor), Building 11, Kerrville VA Hospital

Kerrville, TX

The HFS design team provided A-E services to renovate the fourth floor of the Kerrville VA hospital, which was built in 1947. This vertical medical facility design project was comprised of upgrades to infrastructure systems while also improving space utilization for specialty clinics, such as the GI, ortho, respiratory, and oncology health clinics, as well as their administrative offices. 

The goal of the HFS Team was to improve patient care while improving both staff and patient experiences, efficiently and effectively. We developed a program for design and conceptual designs for this renovation project after several site visits, researching the building plan archives, and analyzing existing conditions and space utilization. Once the conceptual design was approved, the team completed construction plans and specifications that included demolition, interior design, mechanical, electrical, low voltage, hazardous material abatement, and life safety systems that are consistent with a mission-critical facility.  

The fourth floor of the Kerrville VA hospital is somewhat unique in that the clinical staff is not on-site full time. For this reason, much of the clinical space has been developed as a hybrid office/treatment space. 

Convert Patient Rooms to Private Patient Rooms, Olin E. Teague VAMC

Temple, TX

As part of a VA initiative to enhance the patient experience, HFS led the design team in the conversion of existing two-bed, semi-private patient hospital rooms into single-bed private patient hospital rooms on the third and fourth floors of Building 204. The design team was also charged with the review and design of related auxiliary functions of the nursing unit to transform it into a modern, state-of-the-art patient care and nursing unit. 

Once constructed, each floor will have approximately 25,800 SF of renovated space. The renovation provides 28 new private patient rooms and private restrooms conforming to VA design standards. Additionally, amenities for staff include new nursing stations, a staff workroom, and storage. 

The project included the design of all aspects of architectural space layout, interior design, fire protection engineering, mechanical engineering, structural engineering, electrical engineering, and commissioning, as well as security and communications systems design integrated through 3D building information modeling (BIM). 

EHRM Infrastructure Upgrades

Cincinnati, OH; Ft. Thomas, KY; Columbia, MO

HFS was selected as the prime contractor on two Electronic Health Records Modernization (EHRM) Upgrades projects for the VA. These projects support the Cincinnati VA Medical Center (VAMC) in Cincinnati, OH; the Ft. Thomas VAMC in Ft. Thomas, KY; as well as the Truman VAMC in Columbia, MO. 

The EHRM projects are a part of the VA’s ongoing modernization endeavors to launch new electronic health record (EHR) systems across all VA facilities. These upgrades allow the VA facilities to seamlessly store and track patient medical information, connecting over 60,000 health care partners. This provides quick, secure access to patient data from participating partners and health systems. 

HFS provides improvements to electrical, infrastructure, bonding, UPS, building management system interfaces, existing HVAC, as well as reconfiguration, expansion, and renovation of existing space to support communication infrastructure. The scopes of work also include physical security upgrades, upgrades to the fiber optic backbone infrastructure within and between all existing buildings, installation of diversified path to data center for wide area networks (WANs), and hazardous material abatement. The contracts include options for construction phase services to provide submittal/shop drawing review, answer questions, issue amendments, participate in site visits, and review contractor proposals for additional work.  

Facility Support at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center

Bethesda, MD

With 15 support staff, HFS provides construction management services (CMS), project management, life cycle support for Sustainment, Restoration, and Modernization (SRM) program construction projects, and administrative support to the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC).

Disciplines include architects, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) engineers, project/construction managers (PM),

life safety specialists, information technology (IT) specialists, and administrative support staff. 

Examples of the projects serviced under this contract include: 

• Fire door inspection, repair, and replacement  
• Replacement of a CT scanner and MRI unit 
• Roof installation at Building 51 
• Modernization of electrical distribution panel replacement  
• Asbestos abatement and floor replacement at Building 1  
• Retro-commissioning HVAC equipment serving sterile processing 

Highlighting our efficiency, during an electrical switchgear project, HFS reviewed another organization’s “zero impact” work plan for an electrical switchgear project.

A-E Design Operating Room (OR) Optimization

Portsmouth, VA

The HFS Team developed full A-E design documents with specifications to enable the award of this design-bid-build (D-B-B) project. The scope included a complete design to modernize and expand the existing 110,146 SF main OR suite, pre-operative area, and post-operative recovery area. The project was expanded to include the full design of anesthesia and operating room administration, a seven-bed pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) with sedation spaces, and consolidation of the central procedure unit consisting of nine procedure rooms and 18 pre-op/phase II recovery bays.  

With the Revit/3D model, doctors and hospital staff were able to really see the designed space and OR layouts before construction, as well as see the proposed equipment placement.  

One of the unique aspects of this project was the development of a transition plan that will keep partial aspects of the OR suite operational during its renovation. 

A-E Services for Construction Management Services

Ft. Jackson, SC

The HFS Team provided two senior construction inspectors, one senior HVAC senior construction inspector, one contract administrator, and one scheduler to provide quality assurance, construction management, and construction inspection services support to the Ft. Jackson Resident Office in South Carolina.   

One of the many projects our team supported was the new $27M Pierce Terrace Elementary School. The new Pierce Terrace is 40% larger (73,942 SF) than the original school and is the educational home for up to 325 pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grade students on the Ft. Jackson military installation. Thanks to HFS, the school is now Silver certified in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) and contains unique aspects, such as movable partitions, a butterfly garden, an outdoor learning amphitheater, and an energy dashboard. The energy dashboard acts as a bonus teaching tool, monitoring the utility use of each classroom while the students compete for who can use the least amount of energy.  

HFS also supported the critical Legion Lake Dam repair project for the Ft. Jackson Resident Office. This $5M project was a design-bid-build (D-B-B) repair of both upper and lower Legion Lake dams. The work included the partial excavation of the existing embankments, concrete labyrinth spillway construction (upper), earthen channel spillway construction (lower), and the extension of an existing spillway outlet pipe (lower). Our team performed contract drawing and specification reviews, site QA, and inspections of embankment fill placement, rebar, formwork, sand filter material, and drain piping. We also performed QA testing of compaction, concrete installation, and concrete testing. 

AFMSA Health Facilities Division Support

San Antonio, TX

HFS provided professional project support services through subject matter experts (SMEs) in a variety of disciplines to support the Defense Health Agency-Facilities Enterprise (J8), formerly Air Force Medical Support Agency (AFMSA), Initial Outfitting Program. Each SME oversaw several healthcare facility projects simultaneously from seven Air Force bases across the country. The teams:  

• Coordinated between project delivery teams and stakeholders 
• Provided program/project management and comprehensive technical support 
• Coordinated within a congressionally mandated design 
• Participated in design reviews, charrettes, inspections, investigations, and transition 
• During this project, HFS staff oversaw the planning, construction, transition and outfitting of over 30 medical facilities both in the Continental United States (CONUS) and outside the Continental United States (OCONUS). 

Visitors’ Parking Garage, Olin E. Teague VAMC

Temple, TX

HFS provided a design-build (D-B) request for proposal (RFP) package for the Olin E. Teague VAMC. The project developed a 380-space visitors’ parking garage through the following services: 

• Site and traffic master planning  
• Community outreach and communication 
• Vehicle and pedestrian traffic studies 
• Security and anti-terrorism development 
• Structural, architectural, landscape, and wayfinding design 

The Temple VAMC has seen recent growth in the veteran populations and subsequently more diversified demands for VA medical services. To respond, the City of Temple improved access to the medical center and added entrances, but the VA campus traffic flow into and through the campus needed significant improvements. VA patients and visitors did not know where or how to enter the campus, where to go to obtain medical care, how or where to park, and had to view 27 (often contradictory) signs within 100 yards while crossing three streets to travel from their parking space to the entrance of the main hospital building.

To solve these problems, HFS collected and analyzed vehicle traffic flow data onto and throughout the campus, as well as pedestrian flow from the parking area to the hospital or clinical buildings. After analyzing the collected data and the flow of traffic, HFS revised traffic flow through the campus to optimize space utilization and updated the facility master plan for development over the next decade. 

Audie Murphy 4G Cancer Center

San Antonio, TX

HFS was the prime A-E design firm for the new fourth floor addition to Ward G, creating a consolidated outpatient cancer clinic utilizing the Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) Space Module Design Guide. This multi-phased project replaced an outdated existing facility with an entirely new unit to deliver a Cancer Care Center of Excellence, capitalizing on innovative health care delivery methods. The new 19,800-SF cancer center included an enclosed bridge between the new ward and the existing tower and was designed to expand vertically to seven floors to match the main tower in the future.  

HFS performed all the required A-E design services, including: 

• Field surveys and investigations of existing structural and utility systems 
• Security monitoring and access control 
• Complete contract drawings and specifications 
• Cost estimates 
• Critical path schedule 
• Phasing 

As a part of the project, the HFS Team replaced the existing hydraulic elevators with new traction elevators to serve the new height and prepare for future vertical expansion. The infusion area provides wireless network connectivity and charging ports for electronic devices in the patient care and waiting areas.

Multidisciplinary A-E Services in Support of Ft. Hood Hospital

Ft. Hood, TX

HFS provided construction engineering services for the Darnall Army Medical Center (DAMC) and campus replacement project. The overall program was a 947,000 SF medical center replacement of the existing DAMC campus. The replacement campus included all inpatient services, ambulatory and outpatient clinics, ancillary services, emergency department, ambulance garage, building information systems, special foundations, and basic interior furnishings and finishes.

Our six-member team provided construction management services (CMS), including professional mechanical, structural, soils, fire protection, interior design, cost estimating, as well as architectural construction “back office” and field support. We reviewed and evaluated LEED submittals and provided master electrician support for utility and electrical quality assurance (QA). These disciplines assisted the Area and Resident Offices with design and constructability reviews, construction QA, reporting in our Resident Management System (RMS), submittal reviews, and network analysis system (NAS) schedules. The team reviewed construction quality control (CQC) safety plans and verified as-built drawings as well as pay requests. Additionally, we provided an on-site PhD structural engineer to evaluate structural requirements of antiterrorism/force protection (AT/FP), expansive soil/deep pile foundation/structural system interaction, basic structural system, and interstitial space structural capabilities.

Our team was also responsible for proposing additional LEED points which upgraded the certification from Silver to Gold.