El Carmen Hospital

El Carmen Hospital in Maipú, Santiago (Chile) was built on a large site on which there used to be a park. With a view to not letting the surface area of this park go to waste, it was decided to use the major difference in elevation between the two sides of the parcel (12m) to develop the building on two different levels.

The first (1st and 2nd storey) is like a socket which contains the different programmatic areas. The basement ceiling is the continuation of the public park on the upper level (3rd floor). The second level (4th and 5th floors) are two displaced bars, resting in suspension over the park. The bars support the hospitalisation areas and have a direct relationship with the park. All these strategies help the building look smaller than it really is, fitting into its setting more easily.

Thanks to all these reasons El Carmen Hospital in Maipú was awarded the International Award for Architectonic Quality in Health Buildings IFHE 2014.

LIGHTING

The lighting project seeks to boost the volumetric lightness proposed by the architecture. The lighting level of the landscaping and the exteriors adjoining the building were minimalised, respecting a comfort and safety standard and allowing the interior lighting to highlight the transparency of the volumes appearing at different heights.

This formal criterion is also consistent with the intention to reduce the energy demand of a large-scale building. The precise definition of the vertical and horizontal planes to be lit up combined with a selection of highly efficient light fittings and lamps allow electrical power and consumption standards to be attained which are equivalent to those required by the bodies certifying green buildings.

The operational safety and low maintenance cost were also a concern when defining technology and lighting devices. As it is a health establishment that needs to work 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, it must have light fittings capable of withstanding intense cleaning maintenance and record without risking the deterioration of the optical bodies, the diffusers or the seals that ensure the hermeticity of the appliances.

And this is where Lamp has contributed with its products to making El Carmen Hospital into a hospital with good lighting. In the interior thereof KONIC have been installed for the general lighting of the corridors, emergency boxes and enquiry boxes, FLAT for waiting rooms, INDIRECT MODULAR also for waiting rooms and dialysis rooms and HERMETICA for lighting up operating theatres. On the exterior of the hospital NIC have been installed at the main entrance, MINI PROA in the emergency unit entrance, NIU in the outdoor car park, URBAN on the parking access ramps, UPLIGHT at Plaza Mapuche and XTREMA on those courtyards with interior spans.