PROJECT OVERVIEW

The Baptist Health Care project team carefully planned, designed, and constructed a patient-centered and staff-friendly campus. The new state-of-the-art facility includes a 10-story, 264-bed hospital; a 6-story, 178,000-ft² health-care center; a 23,000-ft² central energy plant; and a stand-alone behavioral health unit. Completed in September 2023, the campus serves the greater Pensacola region.

Read more about this project in the Winter 2024 issue of Ascent.

PRECAST SOLUTION

Precast concrete was the ideal building solution because a robust and resilient hospital was necessary to withstand the climate and location so that the structure would last for decades. The Baptist Health Care team project goals centered around designing and constructing a healthy, sustainable, and resilient building.

Architect

Gresham Smith

Owner

Baptist Health Care

Contractor

Brasfield & Gorrie

Engineer

Gresham Smith

Precast Concrete Producer

GATE Precast Company

Precast Concrete Erector

Precision Stone

Key Project Attributes

• Pensacola’s location in the Western Panhandle makes it vulnerable to severe weather and its low, flat elevation exacerbates the storm surges associated with hurricanes and tropical storms. A robust and resilient hospital was necessary to withstand the climate and location so that the structure would last for decades.
• The hospital is designed for a Category 5 hurricane and a 1000-year flood. The structure was also designed to withstand a minor seismic event should building codes change over the life of the structure.
• Prefabrication of bathroom modules and off-site fabrication of the precast concrete panels were critical to the successful completion of the project. Prefabrication reduced on-site labor and construction waste, and increased safety for personnel on the jobsite.

Project/Precast Scope

• The 2¼ in. of architectural precast concrete is framed with recycled tube steel and spray-on insulation with an ultra-low global warming potential.
• The precast concrete panel system selected included insulation and preinstalled windows, which improved efficiencies threefold.
• In addition to the thin GateLite panels, traditional insulated architectural precast concrete panels were manufactured. Both the traditional precast concrete and the GateLite system feature simulated terracotta accents and a GateStone finish, which creates varying shades of color and a random appearance within the panels.