A view of the crane carrying the 12,000-pound panel.
Connecting to the Inpatient Hospital
A view of the crane carrying the 12,000-pound precast panel.
Crews working to carefully guide the panel up and out of the building.
The 16-inch gap that crews had to pull the panel through.
The precast panels before being removed.
A milestone three years in the making has been reached. This week, construction crews took the first step of connecting The Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (The James) to The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center Inpatient Hospital under construction.
Crews used a crane to pull eight-inch thick, 12,000-pound precast panels up through a 16-inch gap between the two buildings. Imagine threading a 12,000-pound needle!
To keep The James protected from being exposed to any outdoor elements, crews built a retractable dome that encloses the roof, but can be pulled back to allow access to the precast panels.
The inpatient tower is scheduled to open in 2026 with connections to The James. The 1.9 million-square-foot inpatient tower is the largest single facilities project ever undertaken at Ohio State with up to 820 beds in private-room settings to elevate patient-centered care, safety and training for the next generation of health care providers.