ERDMAN is honored to receive a National Award of Merit in the Healthcare Facilities category from the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA) for The Family Health Pavilion at Lehigh Valley Hospital Muhlenberg in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, for Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN).

A panel of industry experts judged eligible projects based on excellence in design, team performance, and the quality of the design-build process. Beyond achieving budget and schedule goals; award-winning projects must also demonstrate advanced and innovative use of total integrated project delivery and design-build best practices to achieve exceptional results.

Success most often occurs when projects are approached with collaborative partnership as a core value. Brian Happ, Chief Executive Officer of ERDMAN said, “We are honored to be recognized by the DBIA and the Architectural, Engineering and Construction industries as a leader in true design-build. LVHN was seeking a better, more efficient and transparent delivery methodology to break through the barriers of traditional design/bid/build and recognize greater control and flexibility in managing quality, schedule, and cost. Most importantly, we helped LVHN improve the lives of the community they serve, which is ERDMAN’s ultimate goal.  We are proud to be their trusted partner.”

This 160,000 SF hospital expansion strengthens LVHN’s commitment to families in the community by offering exceptional obstetric care, mother and baby/newborn care services and providing inpatient rehabilitation services to create a more seamless continuum of care. The project includes a mother-baby unit comprising 20 private, comfortable rooms that foster in-room baby care, a Level II NICU with 10 private rooms, and an inpatient rehabilitation facility with 28 private rooms, activities of daily living suite, and physical therapy gym. The project re-established the campus’s South entrance to reinforce the connection to community and downtown Bethlehem. Valet parking, a gift shop, café, lactation rooms, rehab therapy healing garden, and enhanced wayfinding on exterior and interior of the building were all thoughtfully incorporated into
the design.

A primary goal of this project was to offer the families of Bethlehem a comprehensive care environment. And the results have been staggering – 800 births were projected in the first year of operations, this number was exceeded with over 1,000 babies born in the first 9 months alone. The Family Health Pavilion has become the place for mother baby care within the regional system and The Inpatient Rehabilitation Center, with its welcoming environment, is helping people regain their independence.