The overarching goals for the new Bruno & Sallie Pasquinelli outpatient surgery center at UI Health in the heart of Chicago’s Medical District, were to create a pivotal, transformative new addition to the campus and bookend a new entrance gateway into the district.

The new 200,000sf, 6-level Specialty Care Building (SCB) includes two levels of same day surgery suites, 3 levels of specialty clinics and a ground floor with check-in, pharmacy and imaging services.  The new building site completes the corner of the medical center’s campus where the outpatient and inpatient services come together.

To meet the project’s pro-forma and budget, the design team worked closely with the developer/contractor team to find local, available and cost-effective solutions for the envelope.  A local precast concrete panel manufacturer (International Concrete Products – ICP) was brought in very early in SD to work with the design team to find unique and bespoke solutions for UI Health.  The depth of precast panel and texture was tested for shade, shadow and scale during SD and DD with the design team landing on a custom serrated / sawtooth texture that changes its appearance throughout the day and throughout seasons.  Substantial mock ups for color and constructability were used to ensure the design was achievable and would match the vision of the design team. The use of vertical panels references the verticality of the neo-Gothic architecture of the existing campus and the modern use of pre-cast echoes the existing hospital’s presence.

The unique and bespoke texture and pattern of the panels give the building its Neo-Gothic reference, while doing it in a very current and modern way.