Smith + Andersen's work on the New Western Memorial Regional Hospital has earned both an Award of Excellence and the prestigious Schreyer Award at the 2026 Canadian Consulting Engineering Awards, one of Canada's highest honours for consulting engineering projects. The Schreyer Award is the competition's top distinction, presented to the projects that best demonstrate technical excellence and innovation, while the Awards of Excellence celebrate projects that showcase exceptional engineering, innovation, and technical achievement.
Smith + Andersen provided the mechanical, electrical, communications, security, and intelligent integrated systems design for the hospital, along with sustainability services through Footprint. The facility serves as a critical healthcare hub for western Newfoundland.
At the heart of the project is Canada's largest geothermal system in a healthcare setting. Located beneath the hospital's parking lot, the system includes approximately 375 boreholes and nearly 500,000 linear feet of piping, providing 100% of the hospital's heating and cooling requirements under normal operating conditions without relying on fossil fuels.
The innovative design reduces energy consumption by 36% compared to the ASHRAE 90.1-2010 baseline and delivers approximately 9.6 million kWh in annual energy savings. The hospital also achieved LEED v4 Silver certification and has reported greenhouse gas emissions 62% lower than the next best-performing comparable healthcare facility in North America.
The award highlights the project's success in combining technical excellence, sustainability, and long-term value to support patients, healthcare workers, and the broader community for years to come.
Congratulations to our team and project partners on this incredible national recognition.