Modular Pod Installation

Slated to open this fall, Northwestern Medicine's Old Irving Park Outpatient Center is almost complete! One specialized component of the project was the integration of over 60 prefabricated exam room pods that were constructed off-site and transported on trucks to the AOCC. These fully equipped exam rooms require an immense amount of early planning and BIM coordination to ensure they seamlessly fit into the space and are equipped with all of the connections required by the medical staff.

The main advantages of modular construction include improved efficiencies and increased site safety. By constructing the pods off-site in an assembly-line-like fashion, it breaks the construction process into steps that are completed in a pre-defined sequence. Not only does this lead to a better quality control process with reduced errors but it means there are fewer trades and tradespeople working in the same area. In the manufacturing space, the tradespeople are working in a controlled environment, solely focused on the pods and simultaneously, there are fewer tradespeople, materials and equipment on-site which reduces the chances for injury.

Once the pods are constructed and wrapped in transporting materials, they are delivered to the site on flatbed trucks for installation. Using a mobile crane, the pods are individually lifted to a large opening in the building's enclosure which was planned preconstruction and maintained until the pods were completed and delivered. After hoisting, the pods are moved on rolling platforms to their designated location, connected to the electrical supply and medical gases, and furnished with medical beds and provider desks. The final product is indiscernible from a traditional on-site buildout but with the benefit of reducing the overall schedule, improving the quality control process, and making the site safer for tradespeople and project management.