Speed is of the essence when working on sensitive sites such as hospitals – and that’s why Hobbs Electrical selected Marshall-Tufflex’s plug-and-play MT32 system for installing power and light into a new operating theatre.

The Milton Keynes-based contractor is an expert when it comes to fitting out technically complex healthcare facilities and needed a supply partner that could provide a rapid fit product backed by great customer support. Marshall-Tufflex’s MT32 Home Run, a complex integral component of the MT32 Power Connection System, fitted the bill perfectly.

For this project (a new modular build operating theatre at the internationally renowned Freeman Hospital in Newcastle) the MT32 Home Run was installed to take power distribution and lighting systems from the hospital’s distribution boards out to a mastering unit in a local position within the new theatre.

The key feature of the pre-wired, pre-tested MT32 Home Run is the number of circuits running through it. For the Freeman Hospital project the module was supplied with nine circuits for power and light, but it can accommodate up to 10 with a maximum of 32 cores. It can be configured for any combination of power and light and for conductor sizes from 1.5mm2 to 10mm2.

“The real benefit of the MT32 Home Run is in not having to run lots of cable back to the main distribution board,” said Mark James, Marshall-Tufflex’s Technical Services Manager. “The Home Run distributes all power from the main board and is pre-wired, pre-tested and manufactured to the required length. Electrical contractors just need to bolt it into place and connect it up. And it is compatible with all our MT32 systems.” 

Roy Sherrock, Hobbs Electrical’s Purchase Manager, said: “By using modular buildings, new facilities – such as the theatre at the Freeman Hospital – can be on-site and working within 10 weeks with no disruption to the day-to-day workings of the hospital. However, such a tight schedule does rely upon all the trades, including electrical, being able to complete on time.

“That’s where MT32 came in. We wanted a plug-in power connection system for two reasons – they are far quicker to install and can be disassembled when the building is decommissioned. We have been really impressed with MT32 and now plan to use it across most, if not all, of our contracts.”

Services at the Freeman Hospital range from general surgery, hip and knee replacement and digital hearing aids, through to the latest developments in restoring hearing or treating complex liver, pancreatic and kidney diseases. It is a regional urology centre, recognised as having one of the top clinical research programmes in Europe, and has one of the few specialist sleep studies teams in the UK.