POWER NEED

The St. Luke Foundation for Haiti was founded in 2000 by a group of local leaders to establish medical clinics and schools in the densely populated shantytowns around the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince.

Led by Fr. Rick Frechette, the foundation has grown into an organization with more than 1,600 staff and volunteers who offer an integrated system of programs including high-quality healthcare for more than 60,000 patients every year; education for more than 15,000 students at 35 schools across the country; support for food production and small business development; and emergency services, clean water, disaster relief and other humanitarian aid.

These services have been critical for local residents, particularly in the wake of devastating natural disasters such as the January 2010 magnitude 7.0 earthquake and 2016’s Hurricane Matthew.

The residents of Haiti lack access to many basic needs, so the St. Luke Foundation must generate its own electricity to support its main hub of operations in the Port-au-Prince commune of Tabarre.

“It’s enormously difficult to organize and sustain anything here because of all the challenges with the infrastructure and poverty,” Fr. Frechette observed. “When you come here, you’re on your own for security, water and power. So, we have to generate our own electricity.” 

In the mid-2010s, foundation leaders planned the construction of St. Luke’s Hospital & International Training Center, a high-level medical facility in Port-au-Prince that would provide life-saving care to patients from across the country through emergency and critical care, specialty and elective surgeries, a gastrointestinal laboratory, a cholera treatment center and radiology services. Reliable power would be critical to the hospital and the health of its patients.

“We have critical patients on heart monitors, ventilators and oxygen supplies to stay alive,” said Dr. Nathalie Colas, medical director of St. Luke Hospital. “We need power every day, and at any time.”

SOLUTION

In 2017, Caterpillar and Cat dealer Haytrac installed a new Cat 3512 diesel generator set to provide more than 1 MW of power for the hospital and other operations of the St. Luke Foundation for Haiti.

Cat generator sets have a proven track record of supporting hundreds of healthcare facilities with power solutions that sustain lives for millions of patients a year, including those seeking treatment at some of the world’s largest hospitals. These solutions are engineered to operate at peak efficiency and deliver power when it’s needed most.

“The partnership with Caterpillar is an old one. The equipment is unbelievably reliable,” Fr. Frechette explained. “I have a backhoe that’s probably 25 years old, and it’s never needed a major repair. We’ve also bought our generators from Caterpillar over the years, and we’ve always had great service.”

The Cat 3512 diesel generator set is built on the 3500 engine platform, the industry standard for heavy-duty diesel and gas engines worldwide for 35 years. With more than 190,000 engines in the field and 3 billion operating hours in mining, rail, electric power, oil & gas and marine applications, the 3500 exemplifies Caterpillar’s long-standing commitment to technical innovation and continuous improvement in the interest of customers’ business success.

“The Cat 3512 generator set is a great choice due to the quality and reliability of the unit,” said Hermann Gerdes, sales manager for Cat dealer Haytrac. “It will power the whole facility – the hospital, the schools, the residences, everything.”  

The generator set was assembled at the Caterpillar Lafayette Engine Center in Indiana, USA. “It’s just incredible to see it go from all our engineers who designed it and all our technicians who built it to another part of the world where it can help support life at that hospital,” noted Rodney Sherman, 3500 engine product management for Caterpillar.

RESULTS

St. Luke’s Hospital & International Training Center opened in early 2017, and administrators celebrated the inauguration of the facility by hosting an international conference titled “The Haitian Acute Care and Emergency Care Conference.”

“This conference strengthens Haiti’s healthcare system by creating a unique platform for the promotion of training, teaching and sharing between healthcare professionals,” said Dr. Marc Edson Augustin, medical director for St. Luke Mission. “It furthers our primary goal of bringing quality and dignified care to the most vulnerable.”

The St. Luke’s Hospital medical team has continued to expand the services it offers to the community by setting up a center and programs enabling care for trauma patients. Administrators have designated 20 beds for trauma patients and conducted intensive training in ultrasound, fracture stabilization and emergency techniques such as chest tube insertions and dressing of wounds. Leaders plan to open a dedicated trauma unit in 2019.

Supporting all these operations is a Cat generator set that supplies power to support the mission of the St. Luke Foundation and bring hope for the future. “The Haitian people are so durable through all kinds of calamities and difficulties,” Fr. Frechette said. “We feel strengthened by the power of Caterpillar, not just for their products, but also for their humanity, interest and concern.”

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