SCOTLAND'S biggest ever hospital removals project will get underway early next year.

The Business Moves Group has landed a six-figure deal to relocate beds and medical equipment from the Western Infirmary, the Victoria Infirmary and Yorkhill Children's Hospital to the new £842million South Glasgow University Hospital.

Both the new 1109-bed adult hospital and the 265-bed children's hospital are due to be completed by early next year.

After the buildings are handed over to the health board on January 26, the company will begin moving thousands of pieces of medical equipment and furniture to the new unit.

The process is expected to be completed by the end of August 2015, by which time the new hospitals will be up and running.

The removals project will also include relocating hospital and office equipment from the old Southern General and the Victoria's Mansionhouse Unit to the new hospital.

The health board would not give an exact figure for the contract but said it was between £250,000 and £350,000.

All moves are scheduled to be completed by June 30 2015.

The health board said the old hospitals will run in tandem with the new hospitals for a short time.

The new 14-floor adult hospital will incorporate state of the art emergency and critical care facilities.

Each ward will have 28 single rooms, all with en-suite facilities.

The hospital will be physically linked to the new children's hospital and maternity building, representing the "gold standard" of healthcare.

A spokeswoman for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said: "In line with European Union public services tendering arrangements we have now awarded the contract to the Business Moves Group to provide removal services for the South Glasgow University Hospital and Royal Hospital for Sick Children.

"Thousands of pieces of equipment and furniture will be moved to the new campus from The Victoria Infirmary, Western Infirmary, current Southern General Hospital and Royal Hospital for Sick Children at Yorkhill which are all closing.

"The contract was awarded after a robust tendering process and our technical experts judged the company to offer value together with excellent experience and track record in the field.

"The contract value is worth between £250,000 and £350,000."

caroline.wilson@ eveningtimes.co.uk