Helora - a sustainable, innovative and forward-looking design for a hospital network in Hainaut

Helora, a case study and boost for healthcare infrastructure in Hainaut

Stéphane Vermeulen presented a new generation of hospitals, together with Laurent Grisay, president of Archipelago, and Olivier Lequenne, director of new infrastructure at Helora.

The focus here lies not so much on a hospital, but rather on a hospital network. The Helora network will undergo a true transformation, with five of its seven sites getting a new build at the same time. This replaces the outdated healthcare infrastructure, which has low legibility, does not meet today's comfort requirements and is lagging behind in terms of energy efficiency. The transformation is taking place in La Louvière, Mons, Nivelles, Lobbes and Warquignies. Together, the five new hospitals have around 1,800 beds, ranging from 200 to 550. Helora aims to become a model example of sustainable, caring and efficient hospital architecture in Hainaut. A great deal of effort has gone into digitalisation along with a strong architectural and technical concept

A feat of industrial solutions in a biophilic design

All five hospitals are being designed and developed simultaneously, a stunning feat to say the least! To do so, we use industrial processes to utilise resources as efficiently as possible.

The same principles also apply in terms of design. A natural context forms the basis and core of any hospital: a biophilic design situated in the natural environment and with a garden at its centre, the heart around which the hospital unfolds. The plinth houses the medical-technical services and ambulatory care services. An open, fordable design ensures the garden remains accessible to all users. The lodgings cluster in rings on top of the plinth, flanking the garden and overlooking the landscape.

This compact and modular concept can be applied to any of the five sites. Evolutive and expandable, with daylight and nature as fixed values.

Future-proof low-emission hospital

Helora is also aiming to meet the World Green Building Council 2030 objectives. With maximum use of renewable energy, and the choice of materials and systems with a low embedded emissions stamp, the emissions of the five new hospitals will be equal to just one-third of those of a conventional hospital.

Helora also served as a model in the panel discussion in which Stéphane participated later in the evening. During the course of the discussion, he talked about the evolution of different typologies of hospitals in a range of contexts, together with in an international panel featuring hospital professionals from Quebec and France. During an engaging conversation, the panellists shed light on the regained importance of ecology, nature and bioclimate (light and air) in our clinical settings. Infrastructure adaptability also remains a key issue since Covid. How can hospitals, traditionally seen as monoliths or sometimes mastodons, deal flexibly with future developments, become future-proof and improve the well-being of their users?

We look forward to the 2024 editions, which will undoubtedly once more give rise to several evolving insights in an inspiring context.

Partners: VK architects+engineers - Archipelago - Tractebel