New water tanks make a splash at St Helier Hospital
St Helier Hospital’s enormous rooftop water tanks, which provide 80-90% of the hospital’s non-drinking water, have just undergone a £1.5m overhaul.
As a Trust that cares for more than 913,000 patients every single year, it’s vital that we have enough water to power our showers, taps, baths and radiators. That’s not to mention water for the cooling systems we rely on in our operating theatres and Assisted Conception Unit.
The four new water tanks, which can hold up to 168,000 litres of water, are in the very highest parts of the hospital. This means that water flow is not hampered by gravity, and can get to parts of the hospital whenever it is needed. However, installing water tanks at a height of 35 metres was no mean feat for the Trust’s Estates Team.
Director of Estates, Facilities and Capital Projects Trevor Fitzgerald, said: “This was a very complex project, requiring a great deal of planning and coordination from our team, and despite the adverse conditions (the location of the tanks made the refurbishment a more complicated task than normal) the job was completed safely and on time.
"The new water tanks have a new modern alarm and sensor system, which allows the tanks to be “proactively aware“ – whch essentially means that the alarms will detect a problem in time for us to face any water shortage or leak. These modern new tanks will provide St Helier Hospital with millions of gallons of water in the years to come.
“We are set to invest a record amount into improving the hospital estates, equipment and ICT systems this year, so I would ask everyone to keep an eye on our website for news about the latest projects.
“This project is one of a number of investments into the future of St Helier hospital. We are commited to providing the best possible service to our patients, and will be continuing to make improvements to our hospital in the years to come."
