The project: The Eastpark Medical Center provides new ambulatory and outpatient services at UW Health’s East Campus. The facility’s Carbone Cancer Center is the first in Wisconsin to offer proton therapy and one of the first in the U.S. to offer upright proton therapy.

Project delivery: The construction manager at risk delivery required early commitment by the design and planning team to achieve the fast-track schedule. Monthly meetings during program validation refined the owner’s needs and developed department space programs. This included IMEG-led meetings to summarize decisions made from user group workshops and to facilitate detailed engineering system decisions. An “IPD-light” project delivery was used during schematic design, with IMEG, the owner, architect, CM, and sub-contractors collaborating in a shared on-campus room. As the design progressed, meetings with the owner, architect, and contractor were held each week to discuss system selections and value analysis cost control to maintain the budget. Integrated teams and lean principles such as Target Value Design and Choose by Advantage were used to complete design.

Mechanical design highlights: The building is prepared for full electrification, with heat recovery chillers currently providing 20% electrification. Other sustainable design features include two 900-ton high-efficiency water-cooled chillers, a 275-ton dry cooler for winter chilled water load, and condensing boilers. Solar energy from a 1MW carport photovoltaic array matches the energy needs of the proton therapy center, while heat recovered from the proton therapy system is used for in-floor perimeter radiant heat. Other MEP features include: six 6,000 MBH high-efficiency hot water boilers; 13 variable volume rooftop air handling units with 570,000 CFM of capacity: specialty exhaust systems for laboratories, pharmacies, and hoods throughout the facility.

Electrical highlights: Five 3000-amp electrical services, each rated at 480Y/277V 3-phase 4-wire, serve the building; two serve the north tower and three serve the south tower. Other features include two 1750kW emergency generators with on-board digital paralleling; electronic power monitoring on distribution equipment to track receptacle, lighting, motor, fan, and miscellaneous loads separately per the LEED Measurement and Verification credit; and two 100 KW centralized flywheel UPS systems.

Technology design highlights include outside plant fiber connection to the existing campus network, structured cabling system for telephone and data, wireless access points, real time location system, distributed antenna system, nurse call, paging and sound masking, access control system, and a video surveillance system.

Project outcome: Eastpark Medical Center is expected to be one of the first to achieve LEED v4.1 certification for healthcare and is designed to fully integrate with three future buildings. It provides patients with same-day access to world-class clinicians, life-saving therapies, cutting-edge technologies, and world-changing clinical trials—all delivered within a highly sustainable healthcare facility.