Drawing on a Royal Surprise
Curtains and blinds are an afterthought for new builds and refurbishments but create a lasting first impression.
When HRH The Princess Royal was scheduled to open the new Bradford Royal Infirmary local track supplier made sure everything ran smoothly.
They worked closely with long term partners, Regal Blinds of Bradford to ensure that HRH Princess Anne had no shocks as she toured the state of the art £28 million ward.
When she recently opened the new wards there was nothing to suggest that the build had gone anything but smoothly but there were nail biting moments to the 11th hour as the two teams worked in harmony to deliver and install the new bay curtains.
A relatively simple commission to supply curtain tracking for hospital cubicles was made more complex because BRI planned bigger cubicles demanding stronger tracking to support heavier curtains.
With only days to go before the new wards opened Renaissance and Regal worked in close partnership to survey, measure, manufacture, supply and fit the new tracks and curtains in time for the first patients.
Edward Grimshaw is Operations Director for Regal Blinds. He explained: "BRI's commission for super sized bays made this project quite complex because of the potential load bearing issues. The tracks and rails had to be strong enough not just to hold static heavy curtains, but also withstand constant movement at diverse angles which potentially could add stress and weaken them faster."
"Renaissance was able to offer design advice on the quality of track that would be needed, the type of accessories and fixtures required to hold the curtains and allow free movement to reduce potential wear and tear and provide tracks which were curved to fit bespoke hospital bays.
"Commercial furnishers like ourselves have to be able to react very quickly to find high quality components in the volumes we need to manufacture for a deadline and within a strict budget," said Edward Grimshaw. "To fulfil a project like this you have to pull rabbits out of hats and that is what Renaissance did."
Rolf Smaldon is general manager at Renaissance. He said: "Healthcare is a large part of our commercial business and we are frequently asked for tracks that will support increasingly heavier cubicle curtains. Renaissance was able to survey and supply the required tracks within a tight timeline to ensure the Royal visitor had a positive lasting first impression of Bradford Royal Infirmary."
