Acentech Provides Acoustical and Vibration Consulting for BMC Menino Project

Cambridge, MA – Acentech is providing acoustical and vibration consulting services for Boston Medical Center’s (BMC) Menino Pavilion addition and renovation project, the largest capital investment included within BMC’s four-year Clinical Campus Redesign plan.

With the Menino project, BMC is the first academic medical center in Massachusetts to use an integrated project delivery (IPD) framework and the largest to employ collaborative project delivery in New England.

The project management team is comprised of owner Boston Medical Center, program manager Tocci Building Companies, architect and engineer TRO, and construction manager Suffolk Construction. Under the IPD agreement, all risk and reward is shared equally by the four parties and key subcontractors.

The project includes the demolition of an existing infill building, 227,000sf of renovations to the Menino Pavilion, and a new 112,000sf addition inclusive of a pedestrian bridge with elevator towers at each end, speeding transport directly from the state’s busiest heliport to the hospital. Once open, the facility will provide expanded services for radiology, surgery, emergency and trauma, pharmacy, central sterile processing, interventional procedures, and inpatient care units.

Renderings courtesy TRO Design.

Acentech is providing room acoustics, sound isolation, mechanical system noise and vibration control, and structural dynamics vibration consulting services for a variety of spaces, and the company is addressing several acoustical challenges on the project, such as the design option to locate an MRI above a lecture hall, the structural design of the building and associated vibration impacts, adherence to new FGI guidelines, and prioritization of acoustical recommendations.

Work on the  project is being performed in multiple phases while the hospital is fully operational. The project is scheduled to be completed in spring 2018.

The collaborative nature of the IPD method allows the entire project team to focus holistically on the patient experience. Studies have proven that serenity fosters healing, and sound is a critical element in the healthcare environment, so acoustics and noise and vibration control within the facility are an emphasis of the design.

The project team’s collaborative decision making will ultimately yield a patient-focused and cutting-edge medical facility with a consolidated footprint that is anticipated to reduce operating costs by $25 million annually.