Barton Knight Contracting was initially contacted in August 2021 to test some wiring subjected to fire damage.
Ashford’s Project Manager, Guangmo Zhu, put Barton Knight forward as a nominated contractor to the insurer, having worked successfully with the company previously. Barton Knight had completed another job that required a rapid turnaround in 2020, working with main contractor, Rex Hurst & Sons Ltd, on an
eight-week project to provide electrical works for a new 12-bed Intensive Care Unit for COVID-19 patients.
For the new project, Barton Knight was subcontracted again to Rex Hurst for electrical power supply. Barton Knight also installed additional UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) and supporting IPS (Isolated Power Panels) circuits, to ensure continuous power for at least three hours in the event of a cut or dip in supply.
Work started in September, just a few weeks after the fire occurred, and was successfully completed before Christmas, just three months later. Several rooms had sustained damage after the fire, which occurred due to a faulty phone charger. The handset had been left on a trolley which had some semi-flammable packing dressing on it, which then caught fire. There was a significant amount of smoke damage – approximately £350,000 worth – and an operating theatre, anaesthetic rooms, plus a couple of ancillary rooms needed to be refurbished.
All existing wiring was removed, going right back to the cell/basic structure of the rooms, and the theatre was thoroughly cleaned before further work was undertaken. Then new cable flow trunking for power, data, and medical gases was fitted, as well as the UPS, IPS, new distribution board, replacement data and fire alarm and mechanical wiring. A new, specialist Starkstrom surgeon’s panel was installed, controlling air con, data, power and lighting in the operating theatre. Barton Knight also fitted a surgical lighthead and specialist lighting for the anaesthetist.
Barton Knight’s experienced team of electricians was able to successfully complete this urgent project quickly and effectively, with minimum disruption to staff and patients.
