Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand (HNZ) is searching for a contractor to refurbish the ageing heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) air handling units, ducting and controls for eight main operating theatres in the clinical services building.
The issue has been complicated by the discovery of asbestos in the building.
The equipment is in poor condition, and HNZ said while theatres could continue to operate as-is until the new Dunedin hospital opened, this would increase the risk of unplanned outages.
A condition report described a range of issues, including perished insulation, corrosion, leaks and an abundance of rust.
In several instances, isolation valves were in such bad condition that testing could not take place.
In once case, the assessor noted "cannot turn any of the valves due to extreme rust."
Elsewhere the assessor noted "pipework very rusty."
Tape was being used to patch air leaks in several instances, not always with success.
In one case, ductwork insulation was "falling off in multiple areas", and tape was failing.
The name plate of a fan in poor condition was too faded to tell what motor type it had, and a fire damper installed by the fan was "likely no longer up to code".
The assessor commented several times on how new or old parts appeared, noting that paperwork for this was not logged.
HNZ said in its request for proposals document the air handling units, including ducting, housing, and insulation, were in a "poor condition".
Some critical parts were obsolete and would need to be replaced by modern equivalents.
The contractor would need to ensure the area was safe before starting work and could not break any materials that might contain asbestos.
Availability of theatres was dependent on operational requirements and a schedule would be worked out with the clinical team, the document said.
To reduce the risk of service failure, only when work for one theatre was completed would the next theatre be available for refurbishment.
The deadline for proposals was July 13, and the expected start date was October.
HVAC systems have been an ongoing issue for the hospital.
Stage two of a new ICU - earlier expected to open in mid 2019 - is due to be completed in the next two or three months, a delay which HNZ last month attributed to the complex work needed to upgrade the HVAC system.
HNZ Southern general manager of facilities and property David Bainbridge-Zafar said the upcoming work was a normal part of planned maintenance to replace equipment before it reached the end of its useful life.
"While theatres could continue to operate without the refurbishment, we would be at greater risk of unplanned outages should this ageing
equipment fail in future," he said.
Two fans per theatre - one for supply air and one for return air - would be replaced.
HNZ Southern said there was no risk to patients or staff from the work.
"We will be carefully scheduling the work to minimise disruption wherever we can, though some planned operations may need to be re-allocated to other theatres during this time."
HNZ did not comment on the risk the system posed to patients, such as any impact on the risk of infection.
Nor did it answer questions on when the system was last repaired or replaced.
It was unable to comment on the cost of the work as the tender process continued.
The work was expected to take at least 12 months.
