Product category:
Walls
News Release from: Knauf Drywall | Subject: Drywall versatility
Edited by the Buildingtalk Editorial
Team on 04 February 2008
Mental health solutions show drywall
versatility
Knauf Drywall is helping mental health trusts to develop safe and comfortable facilities for psychiatric patients and the staff who care for them.
Technical Services Manager James Leaning says this shows that drywall and expertise add up to solutions for some of the most demanding environments Conditions for mental health service users have been in the spotlight in recent years, amid calls for investment in units that are more conducive to recovery
This article was originally published on Buildingtalk on 31 Jan 2008 at 8.00am (UK)
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For many mental health patients there is no choice over the length of their hospitalisation, but many experts believe a safe, therapeutic environment contributes to faster recoveries.
A number of mental health trusts have embarked on development projects and as a result, many patients and staff are already benefiting from improved facilities.
These new mental health units embody the latest thinking and best practice in design and construction for this special area of medicine.
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For example, patients are accommodated in rooms that are built and furnished to provide maximum safety - without compromising occupants' dignity.
Building designs and material specifications vary according to the requirements of each trust, but generally they incorporate many of the same structures and finishes as any other modern building.
All the advantages of drywall construction - including speed, cost effectiveness, reliable performance and durability - transfer well to the mental health environment.
The requirements for conventional healthcare applications are the starting point, but with additional special detailing to meet the trusts' precise requirements in drywall partition design.
This provides opportunities for our project specification managers to assist architects and contractors by offering innovative solutions that demonstrate the potential of drywall.
In our experience, there are two major considerations in the design of drywall partitions for mental health units.
These are the mental illness categorisation of patients and the level of patient supervision needed.
In addition to the customary fire and acoustic performance requirements, these factors highlight the importance of system robustness and physical security.
Robustness is measured against the stiffness and surface damage criteria in BS5234 - the code of practice for internal non-loadbearing walls - and is often expected to exceed the code's guidelines.
Security is necessary to prevent break-out from one area to another, and to prevent harm to self or others from components in a system.
Modern acute psychiatric wards require excellent security - but without the restraints typical of old-fashioned institutions.
The advantage of modern plasterboard based constructions is that relatively little adaptation is necessary to make wards fully secure.
We have found that, in the absence of a national design standard, each unit is likely to require a fully bespoke partition design.
With the flexibility that drywall systems offer, and the possibilities for enhanced performance in special circumstances, bespoke designs need present no real problem for experienced specifiers and contractors.
The uniqueness of some of these designs does sometimes require the drywall team to produce system mock-ups prior to completion of the full specification, which we are happy to do.
A GBP1.7 million drywall project recently completed for a mental health unit in London, St Bernard's Hospital, West London Mental Health Trust, involved over 3,000 linear metres of partitioning.
The subcontractors, Astins, used several types of plasterboard from the Knauf Drywall range, mostly supported on 70mm Knauf Acoustic 'C' Studs - some of which are in twin frame configurations for higher acoustic performance.
Plasterboard was installed in three ways to meet different needs:.
* In offices and non-patient areas, plasterboard was fixed to the studs in the normal way, without any additional backing.
* In supervised patient areas, plasterboard was installed over a layer of 12mm plywood.
* In unsupervised patient areas, plasterboard was installed over 18mm plywood.
The plywood layers increase the stiffness of the partition, reducing the possibility of breaking through - which could put patients at risk, especially where partitions enclose electrical and other services.
In similar situations elsewhere, trusts have chosen steel sheet or mesh as the security solution.
The design for the St Bernard's unit also incorporates other safeguards against deliberate self-harm.
For example, bathrooms feature Knauf Aquapanel, but not in its usual role as a tile backer as the bathrooms are untiled to avoid damage to tiling and the possible use of fragments as instruments of harm.
Instead, the fibreglass reinforced cement board is finished either with Knauf's Aquapanel Q4 Finish, a ready mixed waterproof skim coat to create a smooth surface for painting, or with a seamless acrylic sheet.
Knauf Drywall products such as Aquapanel, Toughpanel (fibre reinforced gypsum board), and Denseshield (high performance impact resistant plasterboard) provide resilient walling solutions, contributing to more pleasant environments that reduce the risk of damage from vandalism. Request a free brochure from Knauf Drywall ...
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