6th Floor COVID Unit Renovation

Our Lady of Lourdes in Lafayette, Louisiana expanded its 6th floor to provide a dedicated, 14-bed care unit for COVID-19 patients. Bernhard provided mechanical construction on the project.

The HVAC in each patient room is designed to maintain negative pressure. This helps to isolate air flow and prevent viruses and bacteria in the air from leaving the space. Air is directed to flow into exhaust air returns and out of the building through a new, dedicated exhaust unit that was installed on the hospital’s roof. Chilled water and heating water piping for the 6th floor was tied into the hospital’s existing systems. To accomplish this in an existing facility, piping was welded in sections and fed down the building through an existing chase from the roof.

Bernhard’s team worked closely with the contractor and hospital facilities staff to minimize disruption. Because the hospital remained fully operational, installation of the new roof top units had to be planned around emergency helicopter landings. The project team worked collaboratively with hospital staff to ensure equipment was installed in a timely manner with no impact on patient care. The project was completed in June 2021.