Walk-Thru Questions

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Alwayslearningelec

Senior Member
Location
NJ
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Estimator
If you had to go and look at a job in an existing hospital what questions would you ask. What I really mean is I am sure when you look at ANY electrical job in an existing building there would be standard questions/things to look for(electrically) and I'm sure particular questions for a hospital. I am aware of some but I really like to get opinions from others on this site who seem to be very knowledgeable. Thanks very much.
 
That is really going to depend on the work that will possibly be done. And in a hospital what type of area are we going to be working in. Patient care areas will be looking for different things than in offices or mechanical areas. Also in hospital working on emergency vs non emergency power systems I would be looking for different things.

If I am there just to repair lighting/ballasts or things of that nature then I may not be looking specifically for anything other than where to turn off power to what I am working on.
 
Is there anybody in your company familiar with healthcare facility work? This forum will not be able to adequately tell you what to ask and look for without a very detailed scope of the work.

It may be best to leave this to other companies with healthcare installation experience.

Roger
 
Where is the contractor parking, what are the contractor working hours, is the service elevator always available, what security measures are contractors subject to?
 
chris kennedy said:
Where is the contractor parking, what are the contractor working hours, is the service elevator always available, what security measures are contractors subject to?
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Also, somewhat along the angle Chris is working...

I just underwent HIPAA training in case I'm involved in service work or adds at a clinic or hospital. This training involves safeguarding patient's health information.

A good policy would be to have hospital staff present in any occupied patient care room that you are working in.
 
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Yes, Chris questions like the ones in your last post is what I was looking for. And not even so much a hospital. If you were gogin to a "fit-out" office building what things would you be looking for electrically. ALso, there is always a lot of information given in the bid documents, general conditions, instruction to bidders etc. Thanks very much guys.
 
YOU who asks the most basic questions about fire alarm and hvac,

are now going to be performing work in an occupied hospital???

Give me a break. The GC must not know his butt from a hole in the ground either.
 
We have A LOT of it. Like, I said. I like to get input from you guys first. I am new comapred to other estimators and like to have a little input before approaching someone. THanks.
 
If there will be other bidders there, then only ask questions that you think will likely be overlooked by the other bidders. If you see something that will keep your price low, don't ask.
 
jeremysterling said:
Also, somewhat along the angle Chris is working...

I just underwent HIPAA training in case I'm involved in service work or adds at a clinic or hospital. This training involves safeguarding patient's health information.

A good policy would be to have hospital staff present in any occupied patient care room that you are working in.
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That is more of the hospital's concern than a contractors, but they should be happy that you are concerned about safeguarding their information.
 
kwired said:
That is more of the hospital's concern than a contractors, but they should be happy that you are concerned about safeguarding their information.
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No, it is the contractors concern as well.

In a number of hospitals we work in, infection control is the main concern (should be in all hospitals) and affects our work greatly. We work in one hospital that only allows two ceiling tiles in a corridor to be removed at one time or we must use tents along with hepa filters in vacuums and may require tasks be done after normal working hours, which greatly impacts costs. We have to work with the mechanical contractor in keeping areas at negative pressures for certain tasks. We also have to attend HIPAA orientation and other time consuming considerations when working in occupied spaces.

In sterile spaces things get more difficult.

In short, depending on the facility, you can miss labor costs by a long shot due to these and many other things.


Roger
 
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I thought I heard of tools that have bags to prevent the spread of dust being used in hospitals in some situations......or something like that. True?
 
roger said:
No, it is the contractors concern as well.

In a number of hospitals we work in, infection control is the main concern (should be in all hospitals) and affects our work greatly. We work in one hospital that only allows two ceiling tiles in a corridor to be removed at one time or we must use tents along with hepa filters in vacuums and may require tasks be done after normal working hours, which greatly impacts costs. We have to work with the mechanical contractor in keeping areas at negative pressures for certain tasks. We also have to attend HIPAA orientation and other time consuming considerations when working in occupied spaces.

In sterile spaces things get more difficult.

In short, depending on the facility, you can miss labor costs by a long shot due to these and many other things.


Roger
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Ok the hospitals policies are more of the concern to the contractor more so than HIPPA or sterilization are of direct concern to the contractor.

If know I am going to have to enter occupied patient rooms I will want to know information from the hospital staff about potential risks to the patient or myself or else we need to make arrangements for there to be no patients present while work is being done.

If you are bidding something you need to allow for some non productive time for things like this as well as ask questions about what to possibly expect to help determine how much non productive time you could run into.

Same applies to the possibility that you may need to turn off something to work on it that will effect the normal operation of the hospital. You will need to agree on a procedure of how this will be done before you do it.

You need to this type of thing out in many places but in a hospital, nuclear power plant, someplace with hazardous materials, or anyplace where life or property could be in immediate danger sometimes things can be more critical if not planned properly.
 
kwired said:
Ok the hospitals policies are more of the concern to the contractor more so than HIPPA or sterilization are of direct concern to the contractor.

If know I am going to have to enter occupied patient rooms I will want to know information from the hospital staff about potential risks to the patient or myself or else we need to make arrangements for there to be no patients present while work is being done.

If you are bidding something you need to allow for some non productive time for things like this as well as ask questions about what to possibly expect to help determine how much non productive time you could run into.

Same applies to the possibility that you may need to turn off something to work on it that will effect the normal operation of the hospital. You will need to agree on a procedure of how this will be done before you do it.

You need to this type of thing out in many places but in a hospital, nuclear power plant, someplace with hazardous materials, or anyplace where life or property could be in immediate danger sometimes things can be more critical if not planned properly.
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And all of that pretty much supports my first post.

Roger
 
We did a lighting retrofit in a large area hospital, we lost our shirts as the estimators never took into account all the night work and down time. :roll:
 
iwire said:
We did a lighting retrofit in a large area hospital, we lost our shirts as the estimators never took into account all the night work and down time. :roll:
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Exactly. :)

Roger
 
I've worked a little bit in a hospital. Some of the items I have seen that would impact time, most of them mentioned above:

1. Getting badges. This usually entails the foreman going to the office, arranging a time, then returning to the job, then returning with the employee needing the badge, getting turned away 'cause Francine called in sick today...

2. Parking. There was a rule from the GC that only marked company vehicles could be parked onsite. All the trades wound up parking up and down the street, between one and two blocks away.

3. Conduit running between an existing panel to a new panel through an operating room. Nothing like electricians dressing up like doctors on a Sunday in between operations, knowing they have been "promised" five hours of downtime. If an emergency came along, you are expected to vacate immediately.

4. Critical loads. Can you shut that panel off while you're making your changes? Does the work have to be completed live? I've heard "bomb squad-esque" tales of electricians wedging under service gear making changeovers hot, with an EMT hovering nearby because the hospital can't have a shutdown.

It's hard to say what you should ask about without any details.
 
Thanks George. Parking should not affect the job. The workers have to be there ontime regardless of parking. Is that correct?
 
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