Emergency Support and Business Continuity Planning for North-West England Hospital

The Challenge

As the summer heat soared, the hospital’s chiller in a cooling plant servicing the kitchen and other vital parts of the building broke down. This posed an immediate threat to temperature-sensitive food storage.

We were swiftly brought on board over the weekend and promptly provided two cold store units – in other words temperature-controlled refrigerated containers – as a temporary solution to address the kitchen’s pressing temperature control needs.

After the initial problem was addressed, further issues with the cooling system, exacerbated by the heat, necessitated emergency cooling solutions. To support the hospital’s cooling plant and augment its capacity, we promptly delivered and installed temporary i-Chillers to the site.

The Solution

Recognising the lack of a comprehensive backup plan, the hospital, engaged its engineering team with our team to prepare a robust Business Continuity Plan. The goal was to find ways to help the hospital continue to operate in a crisis with their cooling and heating systems. This started with conducting an overall site and operations audit to understand where the risks lie within the essential components of the cooling and heating systems.

Based on that the teams agreed on what equipment is required and aligned on a 24/7 activation plan.

This strategy encompassed:

1. A plan for a plug-and-play emergency installation of cold stores for the hospital’s kitchen.
2. Backup plan for immediate installation of i-Chillers – fully packaged process chillers – for the existing cooling systems to mitigate against the potential risk of malfunction. This includes preparing on-site infrastructure for quick chiller installation.
3. Backup plan to support the hospital’s existing boilers in case of failure.

During the initial engagement, it was noted that there wasn’t adequate electricity infrastructure in place for emergency equipment.

This oversight necessitated calling in electricians and running cables around the hospital. To eliminate such delays in the future, our team allocated a dedicated socket for emergency cold stores, ensuring power readiness for any additional equipment.

With this improvement, cold stores can be plugged in and operational within 24 hours.

The Result

What began as a response to a singular cold storage need in the kitchen expanded into a comprehensive engagement, which involved altering the infrastructure for the emergency installations of chillers and boilers.

Through efficient emergency responses and proactive planning, we are proud to have addressed the immediate concerns but also paved the way for a safer, more resilient future for the hospital.