Community Nursing Unit

The new €38 million 90-bed Community Nursing Unit in Carrick-on-Shannon, Co. Leitrim, will provide long stay, short stay, and dementia-specific care across 90 beds, all in en-suite single or twin rooms. McMenamin Engineering supplied and fitted the structural steelwork and cold-rolled purlins for a complex multi-pitched roof structure for this project, in addition to supplying and fitting a bespoke staircase.

This Community Nursing Unit is designed around a person-centred, home-like model, with each "household" having its own dayroom, dining room, kitchen, and garden access. From a sustainability perspective, the building has been designed as a Near Zero Energy Building, incorporating air source heat pumps, natural ventilation, daylight harvesting, and motion-sensor lighting controls, all of which are in line with HSE Climate Action Plan targets. The two-storey structure features a dynamic pitched roof, cut stone facades, and vertical timber fins, stepping up a sloping site around two intersecting courtyard buildings. This facility will significantly strengthen healthcare services for the people of Leitrim.

The Carrick-on-Shannon Community Nursing Unit presented a highly challenging structural steel package involving the supply and installation of structural steelwork and cold-rolled purlins for a complex multi-pitched roof structure.

The roof design incorporated steel rafters and beams supported on reinforced concrete elements, with roof planes intersecting across three separate axes. Our in-house detailing team was required to take a leading role in developing and resolving the roof geometry in collaboration with the main contractor.

Our team’s technical experience proved critical in transforming the design intent into a buildable solution. Through advanced steel detailing and 3D coordination, we established the complex roof geometry and generated the precise setting-out information required for the reinforced concrete construction. This enabled the main contractor to accurately cast the supporting concrete beams to the exact levels necessary for the steel structure.

The success of the project relied heavily on close collaboration between our team and the main contractor. Continuous coordination ensured the seamless integration of the structural steelwork with the reinforced concrete frame, eliminating potential conflicts and maintaining programme certainty.

One of the project’s most significant challenges was achieving perfect alignment across the three-axis roof configuration. Our team assumed responsibility for ensuring that all roof planes were constructed to exact tolerances, allowing the roofing contractor to install the cladding system without difficulty and ensuring a flawless finished appearance. The accuracy achieved prevented visible steps or irregularities within the roof surfaces, which was essential given the complexity of the roof geometry.

To facilitate successful installation, we produced comprehensive erection drawings and detailed setting-out information for our site teams. This ensured that every rafter and purlin was installed to the correct position, level and slope, maintaining the integrity of the design throughout construction.

This project highlights our ability to overcome complex geometric and coordination challenges through engineering capabilities, detailed planning and collaborative working. By taking ownership of the design development, setting-out coordination and installation accuracy, we played a pivotal role in delivering a technically demanding roof structure that met the highest standards of quality and precision.