MCCARTHY 9/13/07 4:28 PM Page 41
struction programs in the United States, tions,” Dumke says. “They went the extra
driven mostly by patient demand and
California’s seismic regulations. Kaiser is
two years into a 10-year, $24 billion plan
to invest in its medical facilities.
Included in the healthcare provider’s
plan is upgrading existing hospitals and
medical office buildings, entry into new
markets and renovating older facilities to
comply with modern seismic require-
ments. Between 2005 and 2015, Kaiser
intends to build 11 new hospitals, ex-
pand four existing hospitals and replace
16 hospitals, it says.
Designed by CO Architects of Los Ang-
eles, the exterior of the Panorama City
building was designed with plaster, metal
panels and glass. The six-level, 218-bed
hospital will include a state-of-the-art in-
patient care diagnostic and treatment fac-
ility, which will encompass critical and
acute care nursing, in and outpatient sur-
gery, labor and delivery and a neonatal in-
tensive care unit. At the project’s peak,
roughly 40 subcontractors were on site.
“We were fortunate that [CO Archit-
ects] was proactive, understood our
needs and reacted quickly to our ques-
PD), an organization also responsible for
mile and tried to get us involved as
quickly as possible.”
Headquartered in St. Louis, McCarthy
Building Cos. specializes in construction,
design/build and construction manage-
ment for the healthcare, industrial, ed-
ucational, office and retail segments. Mc-
Carthy operates from five regional divi-
sions, including one in Newport Beach,
Calif., where Dumke is based. Now, with
more than 2,500 employees, the compa-
ny is the nation’s 10th-largest general con-
tractor with 2006 revenues exceeding
$2.3 billion.
“We are very client-focused and we’re a
full-service type of builder, which is a de-
parture from some of our competition,”
Dumke asserts. “What really stands out
more so than other firms is that we also
value repeat business, hence the Kaiser
Permanente projects. About 80 percent
of our work is with repeat clients.”
Impact of Legislation
Today, hospital construction in the state
is overseen by the Office of Statewide
Health Planning and Development (OSH-
enforcing seismic codes.
State seismic safety legislation SB1953
is one of the most-pressing issues facing
California’s healthcare organizations and
contractors. Legislation was passed in 1994
following the Northridge earthquake,
which had caused 23 hospitals to halt
part or all of their services and resulted
in an excess of $3 billion in hospital-re-
lated damages. The public policy is meant
to ensure that the state’s healthcare sys-
tems continue to operate smoothly fol-
lowing a natural disaster such as an earth-
quake. A report issued by the California
Healthcare Foundation estimates these
seismic safety goals will require about 50
percent of the state’s hospital floor space
to be reconstructed.
But according to many contractors –
McCarthy included – the mandates will
be difficult if not impossible to meet by
the set deadlines because of cost and
schedule delays.
Under current deadlines, all general
acute-care inpatient hospital buildings
must meet specific requirements by Jan.
1, with the possibility of an extension
OCTOBER 2007 ■ CONSTRUCTION TODAY ■ 41