ELECTRIFICATION
physical inspections and prevented downtime, protecting patient services over 87,000 annual surgeries.
l Modular backup UPS: At Haapsalu and Narva hospitals in Estonia, UPS systems now protect surgical capability during outages. Their modular nature allows for partial upgrades to speed up deployment and lower long-term cost.
These measures allow hospitals to extend equipment longevity and drive down maintenance costs. As energy prices fluctuate globally, and public scrutiny on NHS expenditure grows, these ‘hidden’ ROI pathways will become increasingly valued in the UK.
Aligning energy security with NHS Net Zero Resilience is not just about surviving outages. It also supports the future state the NHS and global health systems aim to reach: low-carbon, digital-first, well- connected care systems. This is particularly vital now, as the NHS targets Net Zero by 2045. In March 2025, Great British Energy
announced a £180 million investment programme to retrofit solar panels on top of 200 schools and 200 NHS sites. In parallel, the Department for Transport launched a £63 million EV Charging rollout for NHS ambulance fleets. These moves make energy use more decentralised and renewable-heavy, but that in turn demands greater capability in local control and buffering, so that core services are not exposed during cloudy days or grid-side congestion. Smart energy platforms, connected
microgrids, and UPS-backed storage are what keep sustainability goals grounded. To be plain: there is no green electrification of healthcare without power security.
As part of a £1.5 million contract, we designed and delivered a complete suite of smart electrical systems, including distribution boards, Automatic Transfer Switch units, and MCCBs (Moulded Case Circuit Breakers). Together, these components form an intelligent and modular low-voltage backbone – capable of isolating faults instantly to avoid risks, switching securely to backup supply during outages, and delivering stable power to every department within the building.
ABB UPS installed in Estonian hospital.
Defending networks to protect grid As energy systems evolve, so do the threats against them. Healthcare was a top target of ransomware attacks in 2023/24, with the organised raid of sensitive patient data from the Synnovis blood pathology lab in London being a chilling example. Electrification increases the cyber-
physical overlap. If a hospital’s BMS is exposed to attackers, they can switch off air handling units, power doors, or server cooling. KNX Data Secure protocol ensures encrypted communication across devices. Updates can be delivered in real time via the cloud, mitigating vulnerabilities much faster than legacy IT systems on site. For NHS Trusts and international health bodies alike, cybersecurity must now be considered as part of the critical infrastructure remit, not just an IT operations issue. Energy resilience and data integrity are increasingly one and the same.
Case study: smart power protection for London eye care centre A compelling example of forward-thinking energy resilience can be found at one of the UK’s most exciting new healthcare developments: a state-of-the-art ophthalmic treatment and research centre currently under construction in Camden, central London. Set to open in 2027, this integrated
centre brings together Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, and Moorfields Eye Charity under one roof. The ambition is to create a leading hub for eye care, research, and education that will quickly turn research into tangible improvements to patient outcomes. From a power engineering perspective,
ABB team at Helsinki University Hospital. 90
the complexity of such a facility is significant. Specialist diagnostic devices, research-grade laboratory technologies, and climate-sensitive storage for pharmaceuticals and biological samples all demand continuous, uncompromised electricity. ABB Electrification was appointed by main contractor Bouygues UK to ensure that the centre’s low-voltage infrastructure would meet these unique technical challenges.
Modularity was a clear priority. In an
institution destined to evolve with rapid advances in diagnostics and clinical computing, the system was deliberately specified to allow future retrofitting with minimal intrusion or downtime. The installation also overcomes one of the common issues seen in legacy hospital infrastructure: congested cabling and limited visibility over fault management. By adopting a digital-ready architecture from day one, the site management team gains long-term operational clarity – and patients, clinicians, and researchers benefit from uninterrupted care and work. The main challenge of this project was
delivering complex technical systems into a constrained footprint in the heart of central London. But by working closely with all stakeholders and strategically sequencing the installation, we minimised disruption and ensured that resiliency, safety, and sustainability were delivered at every stage. Once operational, this facility will demonstrate how smart energy infrastructure can enable excellence in specialist medicine at a national and global level.
Engineering confidence into the most critical building There is no building more essential to society than a hospital. As healthcare modernises, that one physical building becomes a hub of diagnostics, automation, public health response, emergency readiness, and clinical care. And yet, too many hospitals are relying on 20th-century systems to manage 21st- century risk. Electrical resilience is no longer a niche concern for facility managers but a clinical issue, a policy issue, and in many cases, an ethical one. Whether here in the UK or across Europe, Asia or the Americas, hospitals face volatile energy markets, demanding Net Zero targets, and rising patient expectations. Squaring all three requires leadership, clarity, and action. Power reliability, environmental
responsibility, and safety should not be competing priorities. After all, the question is not whether hospitals can afford to upgrade their energy resilience. The real question is: how long can we afford to wait?
IFHE IFHE DIGEST 2026
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