Ongoing Engineering Support for Bristol & Weston Hospitals

From lifesaving equipment to the spaces where care happens, hospitals are complex buildings that never stand still. Since our very first day, Skeletal has been proud to work alongside University Hospitals Bristol & Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW), providing civil and structural engineering support to keep these facilities operating safely, efficiently, and ready for the future.

Much of our work isn’t about building from scratch — it’s about helping existing hospitals adapt to ever-changing clinical demands, new technology, and essential maintenance needs. These projects might not grab headlines, but they have a huge impact on patient care and hospital operations.

One example is our ongoing work with operating theatre upgrades at the BRI, Children’s Hospital, and Eye Hospital. Ceiling-mounted surgical lights are vital for theatre teams, but eventually they reach the end of their life. We assess how new lights interact with the existing building structure, making sure they can be installed without overloading the existing structure or delaying the theatre’s return to service.

In the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at the BRI, we’ve supported the installation of advanced Draeger double-bed medical pendants — complex, heavy units that provide critical services at the patient’s bedside. Our job was to assess and adapt the structural supports so these new pendants could be safely fitted and used immediately.

At Weston General Hospital, we’ve been involved in a trust-wide hoist replacement programme, phasing surveys and construction works so outdated patient hoists can be replaced with minimal disruption to daily care.

Some projects focus on major infrastructure upgrades:

• Replacing end-of-life cold water storage tanks at both the BRI and Weston General Hospital, with careful back-analysis to justify increased loading.
• Installing or upgrading air handling units to improve air changes and ventilation in both existing wards and newly refurbished spaces.

Others are about expanding and modernising clinical capacity. We’re playing a key role in delivering the new Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC) ward at Weston General Hospital, converting admin spaces to treat minor injuries and reduce pressure on A&E. This is including redesigning a car park, provision of a new admin building, and rethinking the building’s stability system to allow functioning new clinical spaces and future flexibility.
We’ll also be working on SDEC 2, which will refurbish the ground floor at Weston General Hospital to improve patient flow and access to same-day treatment.

As technology changes, we’ve helped prepare hospitals for the future of surgery — from assessing structures for the installation of new operating robots at St Michael’s Hospital and the BRI, to supporting the replacement and relocation of CT and X-ray scanners, ensuring floors and support structures can handle the loads and vibration of the latest imaging equipment.

Even ward refurbishments can be transformative: the full upgrade of the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit at the Children’s Hospital will provide an improved environment for vulnerable patients, while the Acute Obstetrics Triage project at St Michael’s Hospital will turn an old records area into a modern consultation and triage facility.

Whether it’s enabling cutting-edge medical procedures, upgrading vital infrastructure, or simply making sure a theatre light can be replaced without delay, our ongoing partnership with UHBW is something we’re incredibly proud of.