Salas O’Brien Celebrates Grand Opening of Kaiser Permanente’s San Marcos Medical Center

Innovative electrical design leads to multiple sustainability firsts for new hospital.

IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Engineering and technical services firm Salas O’Brien joins Kaiser Permanente in celebrating the grand opening of the new San Marcos Medical Center, bringing state-of-the-art care to California’s North County region patients. Under Salas O’Brien’s electrical engineering leadership, the San Marcos Medical Center becomes Kaiser’s first new hospital designed with a microgrid system and the first to use DC lighting on patient care floors, providing the surrounding community reliable access to the latest medical technology while promoting the hospital system’s dedication to environmental leadership.

Salas O’Brien provided electrical engineering design for the new seven-story medical patient tower and 28,000-square-foot central utility plant, including 1.75 megawatts of Bloom Energy Servers for on-site power generation and provision for photovoltaic and battery connection. The groundbreaking design with the capability to function in "island mode"—entirely independent of utility power—provides a reliable power source and eliminates the risk of operational interruption due to the loss of utility power.

The team designed the hospital with low-voltage DC lighting systems with Class 2 wiring, eliminating the need for 5.6 miles of 3/4-inch conduit and 4.5 miles of metal-clad cables. The systems were the first-ever reviewed and approved by the California Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI) to use DC lighting on the patient care floors.

“Four years ago, this system was just a concept on paper, and now to see it in action brings joy to my heart,” said Duc Bui, PE, Salas O’Brien principal and client manager. “This project included many ‘firsts’ that required innovation, trust, and partnership among a large group of technical experts, and the final product is a true example of Kaiser’s dedication to environmental leadership and the highest level of excellence in patient care. I speak for everyone on the Salas O’Brien team when I say that we are incredibly proud to have played an essential role in this medical center.”

“I applaud Kaiser Permanente’s leadership for their vision with this transformative facility,” added Darin Anderson, Salas O’Brien Chairman and CEO. “San Marcos Medical Center sets a new standard for medical center design, proving that it is possible to be energy efficient and have a low carbon impact while continuing to deliver exceptional care in way that is affordable and accessible to community members.”

The project was LEED Gold-designed, and through the innovative electrical design, was ultimately awarded LEED Platinum certification, making it the second new Kaiser Permanente hospital to receive this impressive designation.

This is the latest project in Salas O’Brien’s extensive portfolio of healthcare solutions. The firm partners with healthcare systems across the U.S. and Canada to update infrastructure and support sustainability and net zero goals, leading to enhanced patient care, improved performance, and cost savings.

About Salas O’Brien

Salas O’Brien is an engineering and technical services firm focused on advancing the human experience through the built environment. Our team is engineered for impact™, helping clients achieve critical goals, advancing our team members through growth and opportunity, and operating at the center of important global issues, including sustainability and decarbonization. We are a top firm as ranked by Engineering News-Record and Consulting-Specifying Engineer, and we have appeared for the past ten years on the Inc. 5000 list of North America’s fastest-growing private companies.