First of four surgical hubs opens following AECOM’s successful delivery and handover for Ireland’s Health Service Executive

The surgical hub at Cork University Hospital is the first of four to be delivered by AECOM, of the six total hubs commissioned by the HSE, helping to reduce waiting times in the shorter term ahead of the rollout of the Elective Hospitals programme.

DUBLIN (September 28, 2026) - The first of four surgical hubs opened today, following the successful delivery and handover of the site to the Republic of Ireland's Health Service Executive (HSE) by AECOM, the trusted global infrastructure leader. These medical facilities are located in Ireland's regional cities as part of the HSE's Surgical Hubs programme, and are being developed in key locations on sites operated under the governance of Model 4 hospitals. The surgical hub at Cork University Hospital was opened today by the Irish Taoiseach, Micheál Martin. Three other hubs, located at University Hospital Waterford, University Hospital Limerick's O'Connell Avenue site and Merlin Park University Hospital Galway, are set to follow suit.

Each surgical hub is a ring-fenced surgical facility containing operating theatres, treatment rooms, recovery beds and other services necessary to deliver ambulatory, minor and day-case procedures, located in a separate area or building within a larger hospital campus. They have been designed to provide high-volume, low-complexity care, intended to enhance surgery and increase ambulatory capacity to address waiting list pressures in the shorter term ahead of the delivery of elective hospitals in Dublin, Cork and Galway.

The surgical hubs have been delivered through a rapid-build construction solution, using a modular approach involving a single design across three of the sites to help fast-track the decision-making process and increase efficiency of delivery. These projects range in size from 5,000 square metres to 6,000 square metres, and include operating theatres and all associated theatre department support and storage areas, procedure rooms, post-operative recovery, consultant exam rooms, staff facilities, and public and patient changing facilities.

Stuart Griffin, Director for Ireland at AECOM, said: "We were delighted to attend the opening of the first of these new surgical hubs, following AECOM's completion and handover of the site, which will play a vital role in supporting Ireland's healthcare system in the years ahead. These new hubs will improve our healthcare system's capacity to deliver high-volume, low-complexity procedures - reducing waiting times for patients and ensuring they have direct access to key health services at a regional level. AECOM is proud to support the HSE's efforts in this key area, building on the deep bench of expertise held by our team in Ireland as they help deliver critical infrastructure across the country."

AECOM had been appointed to provide a range of services on the project, including project management, cost management, employer's representative, assigned certifier and BIM oversight services. The firm also selected sub-consultants Varming Consulting Engineers and Catalyst to provide additional design services concerning energy efficiency optimisation and building regulation compliance, respectively.

About AECOM

AECOM is the global infrastructure leader, committed to delivering a better world. As a trusted professional services firm powered by deep technical abilities, we solve our clients' complex challenges in water, environment, energy, transportation and buildings. Our teams partner with public- and private-sector clients to create innovative, sustainable and resilient solutions throughout the project lifecycle - from advisory, planning, design and engineering to program and construction management. AECOM is a Fortune 500 firm that had revenue of $16.1 billion in fiscal year 2025. Learn more at aecom.com.