2025 February High Rise Healing: Ten Years After – Trends and Lessons

High Rise Healing: Ten Years After – Trends and Lessons

Presented by Douglas J. King AIA, CSI, NCARB, ACHA

Ten years ago this coming March, Mr. King gave a presentation to the Chicago Committee on High Rise Buildings on “High Rise Hospitals.” This presentation stemmed from a viral blog he wrote for Building Design and Construction Magazine entitled “Are We Ready for High Rise Hospitals?”

https://www.bdcnetwork.com/home/blog/55151771/are-you-ready-for-high-rise-hospitals

Following that initial presentation, Mr. King also contributed to a Spring Seminar focused on High Rise Hospitals, supported by many of the CCHRB members.  This seminar coincided with the publication of an article in the CTBUH Journal on this topic. In the past ten years, this topic has gone from being a “one off” presentation by Mr. King, to a genre of building type within the healthcare community – commonly referred to as “XL” projects.

Presentation Goals:

The goal of the presentation on High Rise Healing would be to provide those in healthcare planning, architectural design, structural engineering, MEP/FP and IT engineering, hospital constructors, hospital operators and hospital ownership roles a snapshot of emerging challenges associated with the design, construction and operation of healthcare facilities in high rise settings – and an update on trends that have developed in the past decade, of following this topic in earnest. These topics would include:

• Initial Project Engagement – Unique Characteristics of Large-Scale Healthcare Project Teaming Structures
• Site Planning, entry point development and parking connections and the challenges and opportunities presented by the urban hospital
• Growth in healthcare specific interest in Sustainability and high-performance buildings.
• Regulatory challenges presented by the high-rise mixed-use healthcare facility.
• Structural challenges unique to vertically designed healthcare project
• Vertical Transportation considerations including use of AI and Robotics for materials movement.
• Façade Selection, special challenges in a vertical healthcare environment
• MEP and IT Services Major Equipment Placement and Distribution Strategies
• The Challenge of Achieving intelligent Buildings Systems in Healthcare
• Construction execution and phasing challenges including renovation and “replace in place”
• Healthcare Planning Related Issues – presented by special populations
  • Bariatric patient design in high-rise healthcare projects:
  • Impact of patient flow in an urban high-rise setting: (mental health, women’s/children’s and general population).
  • Design of bridge and tunnel connections in healthcare facilities:
    (System by System impact analysis of bridge and tunnel design)
  • Flexibility, Adaptability, Growth and Change accommodated within the high rise “chassis
  • Way-finding/Signage in a vertical public space environment and broader campus

This meeting will take place at:

Waterview

350 W Wolff Point Plaza
15th Floor,
Chicago, IL 60654

The committee meeting will start at the usual time 5:00 pm in the LaSalle Room with drinks and appetizers. At 6:00 pm we will adjourn for our business meeting and technical presentation.

Do you have a program you would like to share with the committee, please feel free to reach out to our program coordinator at jose.estrada@clarkdietrich.com