Boston, MA SmithGroup, one of the nation’s leading integrated design firms, has elevated experienced healthcare architect Andrew Brumbach to lead the healthcare studio. In this role, he will lead an expert team in the delivery of integrated strategic, planning and design solutions for health systems throughout the Northeast. 

Brumbach began his architecture career at SmithGroup, and during his 12-year tenure has become a sought-after expert on issues of patient and staff safety in healthcare environments.

–in particular designing for infection control and prevention. 

As health systems globally grapple with the future of healthcare delivery following the COVID-19 pandemic, Brumbach’s leadership on these issues, in collaboration with the expertise of his colleagues in Boston, is guiding solutions to help systems evaluate interventions to improve pandemic resiliency. 

“Andrew is a versatile designer with a wide-range of healthcare expertise, whose leadership style is mission- and service-driven,” says Wayne Barger, SmithGroup Health practice director. “That mindset, coupled with his depth of experience and ability to form lasting partnerships both within and outside our firm, will be crucial for our clients as the healthcare industry charts its post-pandemic future.”

SmithGroup’s Health Practice encompasses a range of specialty expertise, including strategic facility planning and design for all types of public and private health organizations. The firm is the 6th largest healthcare architecture firm according to Modern Healthcare magazine. Brumbach’s leadership will further strengthen the firm’s presence in the Northeast health sector, where clients include Mass General Brigham, Boston Medical Center, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Baystate Health, and Maine General Health.

Numerous health organizations have benefitted from Brumbach’s medical planning and design expertise, including Newton-Wellesley Hospital, Signature Healthcare, and others. He recently led a series of complex renovation projects for Brigham and Women’s Hospital, including its inpatient oncology units, its 66-bed neonatal intensive care unit, and installation of North America’s first dedicated self-shielded neonatal MRI.

Brumbach is also passionate about public health equity and resiliency. “The best facility decisions and design solutions are rooted in evidence and data. We are helping our clients to examine community needs and trends through data, which in turn, are influencing ever-better solutions for sustainable and resilient community health,” explains Brumbach.

Brumbach earned a Bachelor of Architecture from Syracuse University. He is a registered architect in Massachusetts and has earned Evidence-Based Design Accreditation and Certification (EDAC). Brumbach is active in the local healthcare design community, serving as the current co-chair of the Healthcare Committee for the Boston Society of Architects (BSA) and a leader in the Healthcare Associated Infection Organization (HAIO), a Boston-based collaborative seeking to minimize the spread of acquired infections through innovative design solutions.

SmithGroup (www.smithgroup.com) is one of the world’s preeminent integrated design firms. Working across a network of 15 offices in the U.S. and China, a team of 1,200 experts is committed to excellence in strategy, design, and delivery. The scale of the firm’s thinking and organization produces partnerships with forward-looking clients that maximize opportunities, minimize risk and solve their most complex problems. SmithGroup creates exceptional design solutions for healthcare, science and technology organizations, higher education and cultural institutions, urban environments, diverse workplaces, mixed-use and waterfront developments, and parks and open spaces.