Independent HVAC assessment to start at Newcastle’s Mater as hospital remediation continues

newy.com.au – An independent assessment of heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems and broader building infrastructure at Newcastle’s Mater campus will begin next week, as the NSW Government presses ahead with remediation works across the site.

On-site inspections will start on Monday, 16 March, and continue for several weeks. The work will include an audit of the HVAC systems and a detailed building condition report covering buildings across the campus, with the full report due later this year. Cladding replacement is also advancing, with the first new panels scheduled to be installed next week after site establishment works, while the hospital continues operating during construction.

The latest step follows weeks of scrutiny over conditions at Calvary Mater Newcastle. NSW Health said in February that non-compliant external cladding had contributed to some water leaks and that multiple notices of breach had been issued to facilities manager Novacare after delays to remediation works. The department also said improvement works to the HVAC system began on 14 January, and that pest control issues had been rectified and patients had returned to an affected ward.

The broader building condition assessment is being commissioned separately from the public-private partnership responsible for facilities management. Parliamentary answers later said slightly elevated mould levels were detected on 30 and 31 January in the ICU, the anaesthetics bay and two other rooms, prompting immediate precautionary action. A NSW parliamentary inquiry into the management, maintenance and operational issues at Calvary Mater Hospital was established on 4 February, and in budget estimates earlier this month Health Minister Ryan Park said staff had been raising concerns about mould and rectification works and that the government had decided to step into the contract because progress was not moving fast enough.