Architectural Considerations in a Medical Magnetic Resonance Imaging Facility

Initial discussions were carried out in May of 1981 regarding a suitable site for magnetic resonance imaging facility. At that time minimum information was available regrading the special environmental demands required for this new diagnostic modHlity. What was known for certain was that the whole body superconducting magnets were physically large (8 x 8 feet) and could not be delivered in a conventional elevator or through standard passage ways. The weight of a large superconducting magnet (fifteen thousand pounds) also precluded the siting of this unit above grade except in cases of special load bearing floors. For this reason it was decided to initiate discussions with an architectural firm to arrive at a suitable design for a standalone medical magnetic imaging facility. Initially, the siting criteria were based upon magnetic field strengths from two units of between 0.15 and 3.5 Tesla. In time however, discussions centered upon placing two magnets of 0.5 and 1.5 Tesla with a design basis for the facility of two units of 3.0 Tesla each.