Sweetwater Construction Corp. Broadens Its Health Care Facility Expertise to Include Veterinary Hospitals

Sweetwater Construction Corp. Two Large Animal Hospitals Under Construction

Sweetwater Construction Corp., a recognized leader in New Jersey construction, management and general contracting with an established expertise in health care centers, is broadening its expertise to include animal hospitals. Sweetwater, which has built 11 surgery centers over the past five years, was recently awarded contracts for construction management services for two large animal hospitals.
The first is the $3.5 million, 10,500-square-foot Winslow Animal Hospital at 640 Sicklerville Road in Sicklerville, N.J., a section of the Camden County community of Winslow Township. The hospital, which is expected to open in September 2009, will be the largest non-specialty animal hospital in Camden, Gloucester, Burlington and Atlantic Counties, said the owner, Dr. Philippe Coudrai. Work on the new facility is expected to begin in December.

The second is a $9 million, 33,000-square-foot veterinary specialty and emergency trauma center in the Mercer County community of Robbinsville, N.J. The center, whose name has not yet been decided upon, will replace the existing 5,200-square-foot Veterinary Surgical and Diagnostic Specialists facility in Millstone Township, N.J. Work is due to begin in the spring of 2009 on the hospital, which will be located at 315 Robbinsville-Allentown Road. The facility is scheduled to open in May 2010.

Headed by Dr. Daniel Stobie, the new Robbinsville facility will be among the state's largest and most sophisticated, providing services in surgery, internal medicine, ophthalmology, oncology, radiology, dermatology, emergency care, critical care, cardiology, complementary therapies and much more. The hospital will be fully staffed and prepared to admit emergency cases around-the-clock, seven days a week, and provide critical care in a specialized intensive care unit.

Except in emergencies, patients will be referred by primary care veterinarians from throughout the region.

Sweetwater, based in Cranbury, N. J., was chosen for both facilities because of its extensive experience in building health care facilities.

"Although these are two very different facilities -- the Winslow Animal Hospital is a general practice facility and the Robbinsville hospital will offer specialty and emergency trauma care for patients referred by primary care veterinarians -- we are delighted to be working on both," said Ron Witt Sr., president of Sweetwater Construction Corp. "We welcome the opportunity to broaden the work that we have been doing in the health care field into the veterinary arena."

In addition to medical facilities, Sweetwater, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, also specializes in the corporate, science and technology, hospitality, multi-family and institutional sectors.

Winslow Animal Hospital is currently located in a facility at 530 Berlin-Cross Keys Road in Sicklerville (about a half-mile from the new location), which is only about a fifth of the size of the new facility. The need to expand is due to the extraordinary population growth in the area, which is in southern Camden County, about 20 minutes outside of Philadelphia, Dr. Coudrai said. The new facility will eventually employ eight full-time veterinarians and have about 4,500 active clients.

The new specialty hospital in Robbinsville is at the forefront of a nationwide trend to provide more sophisticated medical care to pets, said Brie Messier, hospital administrator for Veterinary Surgical and Diagnostic Specialists. She attributed the demand to the close relationship between people and their pets that is fostered in a culture that recognizes the benefits of owning a pet to owners' health and well-being, as well to as a willingness to pay for a higher level of medical care.

The architect for both facilities was Jeffrey L. Grogan of Conshohocken, Pa., who specializes in veterinary facilities.

About Sweetwater Construction Corp.
Established in 1974 and headquartered in Cranbury, N.J., Sweetwater Construction is guided by a proven management team and a client-centric business philosophy. Sweetwater provides clients with expert preconstruction and construction services backed by professional commitment and personal accountability. Sweetwater's project teams possess proven track records in the corporate, healthcare, science and technology, hospitality, multi-family and institutional sectors. Sweetwater's notable project methodology delivers expertise in budgeting, estimating, constructability, lifecycle reviews, and project control methodology, all of which come together to help ensure a successful project. For more information, visit www.sweetwatercorp.com.

For more information on the Winslow Animal Hospital, visit www.winslowanimalhospital.com.

For more information on Veterinary Surgical and Diagnostic Specialists, visit www.vsds.net.

For more information on Jeffrey L. Grogan Architects, visit www.jlgarch.com.