Customer: Medway Primary Care Trust (PCT)

Location: Gillingham, Kent

Requirement: The Medway district of Kent has been identified by the Government as an under-resourced area for healthcare services in relation to its population size and demographics. Medway PCT has identified a number of suitable sites in the area for new GP surgeries, including a large site in Gillingham that has been earmarked for a major new health centre. Gaining planning permission and constructing a brand new building on this site will be a lengthy process. The healthcare needs in the area are urgent, so Medway PCT needed to provide an interim GP surgery quickly to boost services to patients in the short-term.

Solution: Matthew Brett, Project Manager at Medway PCT, says: "Following a competitive tender process, Portakabin was chosen as our preferred supplier for a number of reasons. Principally the quality of the buildings matched the high standards we demand for healthcare facilities, and the hire contract offered good value for money. Crucially, Portakabin could also commit to meeting our very tight programme times."

Portakabin has a unique Customer Charter, which promises that all buildings will be delivered on time and on budget. To back up this pledge, Portakabin even promises that if it ever fails to deliver on time, it will provide a week's free hire for every day it is late.* This level of reassurance on delivery times was essential for Medway PCT.

Portakabin was also able to provide a complete turn-key package of services, giving Medway PCT a single point of contact for the whole project. Portakabin provided everything for the new surgery, from groundworks and temporary power supplies during the build, to fire and intruder alarms, data cabling, CCTV, door access systems, induction loops, climate-control systems and disabled-access ramps.

The GP surgery building was designed by Portakabin to meet the precise needs of Medway PCT. The building comprises seven modules, which were fabricated off-site in state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities before being delivered to Gillingham for rapid assembly. The bright, spacious building incorporates a lobby, waiting room, two treatment rooms, two consulting rooms, an office and records area, toilets, a kitchenette and ample storage space.

This modular surgery was the first of Medway's new batch of healthcare facilities to be completed. The chosen service providers were Dulwich Medical Centre (DMC), selected through the Government's new Alternative Provider Medical Services (APMS) scheme, which aims to improve healthcare delivery to patients by introducing more competition into the provision of GP services.

The new building was delivered exactly on schedule, as promised, and was fully installed and ready for occupation just nine weeks after the initial order.

Matthew Brett adds: "DMC staff and doctors moved in soon after the building was completed and are already providing a full range of medical services to patients in the region. They are very happy with the quality of their new surgery, and we were delighted with the timely delivery and the overall service provided by Portakabin."