Methodist Olive Branch Hospital receives Grand Conceptor Award; Hernando Lagoon Reclamation project receives Owner Award

Smith Seckman Reid, Inc. (SSR) a leader among engineering firms in designing, consulting, and commissioning projects is pleased to announce that two projects were recently recognized by the Mississippi ACEC chapter’s 2015 Engineering Excellence Awards. Methodist Olive Branch Hospital was recognized with the Grand Conceptor Award and the Hernando Lagoon Reclamation project received the Owner Award.

SSR provided a breadth of services to Methodist Olive Branch Hospital (MOBH), including mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire protection, and civil engineering design, technology design, sustainable consulting, and commissioning services. The 100-bed, full-service facility opened during the summer of 2013 in the growing community of Olive Branch, MS, just south of the Tennessee/Mississippi state line. The 208,000 SF facility includes four operating rooms, 18 emergency department exam rooms, and an intensive care unit, as well as labor and delivery facilities.

MOBH was designed by Gresham Smith & Partners (GS&P) and SSR with Turner Construction Company providing construction services. The goal of the project was to deliver a modern healthcare facility that is  energy efficient, LEED® certified, and within budget. To help achieve these goals, the project team employed Integrated Project Delivery (IPD), Building Information Modeling (BIM), and lean construction practices.

The IPD delivery method created interdisciplinary teams among all stakeholders, with the goal of fostering collaboration and delivering the best results in the most timely and cost-efficient method possible. With the IPD structure in place, Olive Branch Hospital was designed, constructed, and opened within in 23 months, on schedule and under-budget. The facility has achieved LEED Gold® certification, making it the first LEED for Healthcare Gold certified inpatient facility in the world.

Prior to the Lagoon Reclamation project, the City of Hernando was facing two major problems. The first being that they had two very large abandoned wastewater treatment lagoons on either side of town. The second being the City had a burgeoning youth soccer program without proper facilities due to a lack of available land and funding. SSR was brought on board early and served as the consulting engineers for the Hernando North and South Lagoon Project, from inception to completion.

The lagoon sites were essentially abandoned until SSR approached the city with the idea to utilize the Green Project Reserve (GPR) for a 20% subsidy to reclaiming the lagoons as green space for athletic fields and future athletic fields. SSR prepared and submitted a Facilities Plan. At that time it was the first stormwater project to be funded by SRF (State Revolving Fund) and the first green infrastructure project to qualify for the Green Project Reserve. The Facilities Plan was approved and the GPR grant was awarded in 2010.

During design and construction, green Infrastructure principles were employed across both lagoon reclamation sites. Less than 5% of the trees on these properties were removed and the sites were graded with slopes of 1-2% to allow maximum infiltration of stormwater back into the groundwater system. The sites drain into vegetated swales that slope at 0.5-1% into the creeks.  The swales are filled with native trees, shrubs, and grasses. For the soccer complex, SSR specified a recycled crushed asphalt parking lot, and access driveway, to allow for additional pervious surfaces, reducing runoff and first flush pollutants being introduced into the streams.

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