Construction of the Dh4.4-billion ($1.2 billion) New Al Ain Hospital, a project with a total built-up area of 347,000 sq m, is now 66 per cent complete, Abu Dhabi General Services Company (Musanada), was quoted as saying in a media report.

The project is being executed in collaboration with Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (Seha), reported Emirates news agency Wam.

Ali Al Haj Al Mehairbi, Musanada’s executive director, building construction management division, said that the project was designed according to environmental sustainability criteria that significantly reduce energy and water consumption and make maximum use of sunlight.

The hospital uses solar panels to generate clean electricity (4,700 panels with a total capacity of 1.5 megawatts) and features a distinctive design that allows shade to fall on external windows, helping to keep the building internally cool, in addition to the use of internal blinds which are connected to a smart control system.

The hospital project will have 719 beds, including 484 beds for general medicine, surgery, children’s ward and maternity, 67 for ICU, 142 for medical rehabilitation, and 26 for VIP patients and royal suites. It will also include 104 advanced specialised clinics, 17 radiology rooms for X-ray, CT scan and MRI services, as well as 22 specialised rooms for endoscopy diagnosis and procedures. There will be an educational and simulation building also featuring learning halls and a central library.

The project also features a car parking facility accommodating up to 1,573 cars in two basement levels, in addition to some external buildings such as the administration building, the Al Ain region central morgue, utility building, logistics building and the primary substation.

“There were 3,462 workers engaged in the project which started in March 2014 on three main contracts. The company completed all the concrete works of the main and utility buildings together with the project’s steel structures, and it commissioned and handed over the primary substation,” he noted. “Musanada has completed 83 per cent of the utility building works, 71 per cent of the main building works, 76 per cent of the electromechanical works and 54 per cent of the architectural works,” he added.