‘Reinforcing hospital windows will save millions’

Improvement meant to protect hospitals against damage from reverberation caused by nearby explosions or falling of rockets.

By JUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH
Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv 311 (R) (photo credit: Nir Elias/Reuters)
Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv 311 (R)
(photo credit: Nir Elias/Reuters)
A project to reinforce the windows in public hospitals in the center of the country has been launched by the Health Ministry, it was announced on Thursday. It is due to be completed in several months. The NIS 61 million project will include not only buildings that the ministry owns but also medical centers owned by public organizations, including Clalit Health Services.
Hospitals in the North and South have already undergone window reinforcement due to their more immediate risks.
The ministry said that this was part of its “strategic program” to protect medical centers and prepare for emergencies.
“As part of this, it was decided to improve reinforcement of the envelope of hospital buildings in the center of the country against damage from reverberation caused by nearby explosions or falling of rockets and missiles. This can protect the loss of lives from the spread of glass and other shrapnel and damage to property.”
Glass is reinforced with special protective coatings on the windows without the need for renovations to the buildings.
The ministry said that, in order to save energy and millions of shekels a year, it will use hybrid coatings that reduce the costs of air conditioning by minimizing the entrance of hot solar rays. By doing so, it will earn back its expenses within three years. Hybrid coatings will be applied only on western, southern and eastern windows.
The ministry said the project will involve 28 medical centers in the center of the country using 100,000 square meters of transparent coating, and will be carried out by the Al Soreg and Magen Shemesh companies.