Emergency Department Expansion

As patient demand continued to grow at the Lake Nona VA Medical Center, the hospital expanded its Emergency Department to improve patient intake, increase treatment capacity, and support more efficient emergency care operations for veterans across Central Florida.

Above Group provided the mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire alarm, telecommunications, and low-voltage engineering design supporting the expansion. The project introduced new triage rooms, intake spaces, patient waiting areas, and clinical support functions designed to improve patient flow while integrating seamlessly into the active hospital environment.

Because the work occurred within an occupied healthcare campus, the engineering approach focused heavily on operational continuity, infection control, and infrastructure resiliency. Above Group designed HVAC systems connected to the campus chilled water and heating networks while expanding building automation controls for centralized monitoring and long-term operational consistency.

Additional scope included emergency and life safety power systems, telecommunications infrastructure, fire alarm integration, and exterior lighting improvements supporting patient and ambulance access.

The completed expansion strengthened the hospital’s emergency care capabilities while modernizing infrastructure designed to support future growth across one of the VA’s fastest-growing healthcare campuses.

Key Engineering Features

• Emergency Department expansion infrastructure
• Redundant HVAC systems for critical care environments
• Building automation systems integration
• Emergency and life safety power systems
• Fire alarm and telecommunications infrastructure
• Exterior lighting improvements for emergency access

Project Challenges

• Maintaining uninterrupted Emergency Department operations
• Integrating new systems into existing hospital infrastructure
• Coordinating infection-control ventilation requirements
• Designing rooftop infrastructure for Florida weather conditions

Results

• Expanded emergency treatment capacity
• Improved patient intake and triage workflow
• Modernized healthcare infrastructure systems
• Enhanced operational resiliency and reliability
• Improved emergency vehicle and patient access