“GDS not only designed and planned the Interior Signage Program, but also fabricated and installed the System.”

In August of 2009, St Vincent’s Medical Center in Bridgeport, CT partnered with GDS Signs to develop an Interior Signage Program for their construction of a new 150,000 square foot building. The “North Building” was part of a larger Master Facility Plan that also included renovations to another 150,000 square feet of existing hospital space. The North Building was built to include an expanded and refurbished Emergency Department, a Comprehensive Cancer Center, and an Education and Conference Center.

In addition to designing the room identification and wayfinding signage, GDS was asked to design donor recognition displays and marketing signage for various departments within the Cancer Center. GDS met every Wednesday for over three months with a Signage Committee, listening to the opinions of hospital staff and giving design guidance.

The final signage design harmonized with the architectural intent of St. Vincent’s architecture firm, Perkins Eastman. The typography, use of brushed aluminum, and color scheme reflected the character and interior finish of the North Building. A flexible Sign System was developed that was durable enough for the Emergency Room space, welcoming enough for the Cancer Center space, and practical and affordable enough to be eventually implemented across the entire Medical Center.

The Hospital Administration was very pleased with the final signage design.

Although the Cancer Center and the Emergency Department were both housed in the North Building, the building was designed to have two separate and distinct entrances in order to create the perception for Cancer Patients that they were walking into a space that was unique for their needs.

The wayfinding signage for all of the North building needed to reinforce this idea that patients and visitors should only be directed to specific departments within the North Building. Hospital Administration was adamant that the public should never be wandering around the new building, especially in the Cancer Center.

Each of the four floors in the North Building provided separate services to the public, therefore the wayfinding issues were more related to vertical travel as opposed to horizontal travel. Also, the North Building connected to the existing building through several hallways, so it was difficult for visitors to navigate between the buildings. Lastly and most significantly, St Vincent’s had ongoing renovations of existing space and the traffic flow between the existing hospital and the North Building was going to be changing and being disrupted for at least another year.