Birmingham contractor hired to convert Miami convention center into field hospital

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April 9, 2020

Robins & Morton, a construction company based in Birmingham, has been selected by the Army Corps. of Engineers to convert a Miami convention center into a 450-bed field hospital. They have two weeks to complete the task.

The selection of Robins & Morton was announced Wednesday at a press conference by representatives from the Army Corps. alongside Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

The construction firm has a mandate that the facility must be ready for sick patients by April 21. The group is being paid $22.5 million to make it happen.

The Miami area in Florida is the state’s most-concentrated collection of coronavirus patients. Almost half of Florida’s cases are in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, 7,826 of 15,698 total.

The floor of the convention center before the conversion into a hospital (Contributed)

“As we were wrapping up details of the contract, we were already working on the logistics and had our key project team members in place within 24 hours so that work could start the next day,” said Robins & Morton senior project manager Johnathan Peavy in a release.

The company brought 40 members of their core team to Miami for the project and has hired 210 more people to complete the job as quickly as possible.

Robins & Morton have a permanent office in Orlando, Florida. The firm specializes in large facilities like sports venues and government buildings.

The assembled teams will be working around the clock in two shifts, while also following all necessary COVID-19 precautions.

The group did not waste any time getting to work. Isolation pods are being assembled already.

“Projects like these are rewarding – the ones that really make a difference. They make being a builder so meaningful. We are grateful for the opportunity to contribute to preparation efforts in the community at this difficult time,” said Robins & Morton President and COO, Robin Savage.

“Turning an empty space into a hospital in such a short time is a huge undertaking, but everyone on the project is committed to working with the Army Corps of Engineers to get this done. We know how important this is to the State of Florida and the Miami Beach Community during the public health emergency,” added Peavy.

Henry Thornton is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can contact him by email: henry@new-yhn.local or on Twitter @HenryThornton95.