St. Mary's Hospital

Project Summary:
Location:	St. Mary's Hospital Medical Center Madison, Wisconsin
Lab Functions:	Chemistry, Hematology, Microbiology, Surgical Pathology
Project Scope:	Reconfiguration of Central Lab (Approximately 8,457 sq. ft.)
Architect:	Michael Jackson, Canon St. Louis, MO
Laboratory Furnishings and Equipment:	MAX/Lab® Adaptable Furniture System SafeAire® Pass-Thru Fume Hoods

Reconfiguring a large and complex hospital laboratory to meet changing needs can be a major headache. Yet change is inevitable as health care laboratories today are challenged to provide more services, higher quality and faster turnaround, at lower cost.

St. Mary's Hospital Medical Center has taken the pain out of lab redesign by accommodating ongoing changes in personnel equipment and procedures with Hamilton's adaptable MAX/Lab Furniture System. Originally built in 1993, St. Marys Central Laboratory includes chemistry, hematology and blood bank areas, plus a microbiology lab, surgical pathology lab and administrative offices.

Over the past six years, St. Marys' facilities management team has made modifications to lab and administrative areas as staff was reduced and small analyzers were replaced by newer, larger ones. More recently, St. Mary's Hospital accomplished a major change in the Central Lab floor plan to streamline workflow, save steps and reduce turnaround time. The in-house facilities team moved floor-standing equipment and relocated MAX/Lab casework and countertops to meet the new plan. Although four days were allotted, the work was completed in a single day, minimizing lab downtime.

Hamilton's MAX/Lab system was the key. At the heart of the system are fixed, 12" wide support cores housing electrical, water and data lines. All other standardized components, including worksurfaces, storage cabinets and shelving, are completely modular and interchangeable. Thanks to the MAX/Lab System's unmatched flexibility, St. Mary's has realized significant savings in reconfiguration costs. And, with more changes coming, their investment will continue to pay dividends far into the future.