Hampden Medical Center

The Penn State Health Hampden Medical Center (HMC) is a greenfield hospital built on 44 acres near Interstate 81. It sits in the heart of one of Pennsylvania’s fastest-growing counties. The three-story facility includes 108 private inpatient beds, an emergency department with observation beds, physician offices, specialty inpatient services, imaging and lab services, and full medical and surgical capabilities.

Barton Malow, in JV partnership with Alexander, led construction management for the project. The modern hospital now provides residents of Cumberland County, Perry County, and the greater Harrisburg area with access to Penn State Health’s high-quality care—without the need to drive through congested areas like Harrisburg or Hershey.

Lean Practices to Achieve Speed to Market

To meet aggressive timelines, the HMC project required a new strategy. While the design team followed traditional phases—such as schematic design and design development—the Barton Malow team focused on enabling the earliest possible construction start.

Specific packages, including patient rooms, mill orders, and site work, were released independently of design milestones. This approach relied heavily on IPD and IPD-Lite practices. It fostered intense collaboration, built trust, and used pull planning and Target Value Delivery. The team also developed a strategic GMP and engaged eight design-assist partners.

As a result, site mobilization began just seven months after design kickoff. Steel topping out occurred only seven months later—demonstrating the success of this accelerated delivery model.