Mei Wu Acoustics
The following are typical acoustical and vibration issues associated with hospital projects:
- Speech privacy in doctor’s offices, exam rooms, and patient wards
- Sound isolation around noisy spaces such as burn units and quiet spaces such as NICU, sleep study units
- Acoustics of main lobbies, chapels, and teleconferencing rooms
- Noise and vibration control for MEP systems
- Noise impact from the hospital to neighbors
- Rooftop helipad noise and vibration control
- Floor vibration control for Micro Surgery, MRI, CT, Ultrasound, Diagnostic Image labs, SEM, microscopes, etc.
- AIA Guidelines for Sound and Vibration
- Acoustic and vibration LEED or GGHC credits
Projects > Healthcare Facilities
We have worked on a variety of healthcare projects, ranging from small community doctors’ offices to major medical centers with a half-billion dollar total budget. Samples of recent projects are listed below.
Lemmen-Holton Cancer Pavilion, Grand Rapids, MI
This project consisted of the design and construction of a 270,000 square foot, 7-story steel-framed building. Sensitive equipment includes: linear accelerators, a simulator, CT/SIM’s, PET/CT’s, MRI’s, mammography, ultrasound, biopsy tables, and optical microscopes. The major mechanical systems are all on the roof. MWA was responsible for a floor vibration study as well as MEP noise and vibration control.
Kaiser Permanente Psychiatry Clinics, Santa Clara, CA
This project represents a series of small clinics where our firm was responsible for speech privacy between doctors’ offices. The major issues included cost-effective wall types, sound transmission through other building elements (such as ceiling plenums, HVAC ducts, etc.), ambient noise control, and construction details. We also conducted post-construction sound testing.
Texas Children's Hospital Maternity Center, Houston, TX
This building is approximately 800,000 square feet. It consists of a 10-story tower above a 6-story podium and 4 levels of parking. The podium stories have lobbies, retail spaces, executive suites, a conference center, diagnostic areas, imaging laboratories (MRI/CT equipment), operating rooms, a pharmacy, a dietary area, facility operations, etc. The maternity tower includes labor and delivery, ante-partum, post-partum, and neo-natal intensive care units (NICU). MWA was responsible for the full range of architectural acoustics, MEP system noise control and floor vibration analyses.
Stanford Hospital Clinical Lab Building, Palo Alto, CA
This project includes tenant improvements on two existing 2-story office buildings totaling 114,000 square feet. Located in these buildings are microbiology, molecular pathology, virology, and other vibration-sensitive laboratories. Major mechanical systems are added to the roof and yard. MWA conducted a floor vibration study and provided recommendations to meet the vibration criteria of sensitive equipment on existing floors without major structural modification.
Nationwide Children’s Hospital Replacement Hospital, Columbus, OH
The signature structure for the project is the 12-story, 720,000 square foot patient tower. Clinical laboratories and other spaces are in the basement. Emergency care, laboratories, radiology, and other spaces are on Level 1. The Surgery center is on Level 2. Patient wards occupy most of the higher levels. The MEP systems are in the basement, sixth floor, and penthouse. A helicopter landing pad is located above a mechanical penthouse. MWA was responsible for the full range of architectural acoustics, MEP systems noise control, and floor vibration analyses.
Kaweah Delta Heart Hospital North Expansion, Visalia, CA
This project includes the addition of an 180,000 square foot, 6-story new wing to the existing hospital. All major mechanical systems are located on the roof above sensitive spaces, such as patient wards and operating rooms. MWA was responsible for all aspects of noise and vibration control.
Helen DeVos Children's Hospital, Grand Rapids, MI
This 404,000 square foot building has an 11-story tower above a 3-level podium. The building includes patient wards, exam rooms, operating rooms, emergency services, laboratories, a 2-story lobby, a small chapel, a helipad on the roof, and other spaces. Mei Wu Acoustics’ responsibilities included the full range of architectural acoustics, mechanical system noise control, and floor vibration analysis.
Kaiser Psychiatric Ward, Santa Clara, CA
This project consists of a 22,000 square feet single-story building with related surface parking and site improvements. The building includes 24 inpatient psychiatric beds and a 6-bed crisis stabilization unit. Our services include interior and environmental noise control, mechanical noise and vibration control. Due to the nature of the facility, acoustical recommendations have to comply with special safety requirements.