Stroger Hospital & Campus - Mission-Critical IT Services

Level-1 delivered mission-critical IT infrastructure for Stroger Hospital, including a data center, fiber plant, and resilient healthcare networks.

As the anchor of Cook County Health and one of the busiest trauma centers in the country, the 1.1 million-square-foot John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital plays a central role in serving the 3rd largest county in the U.S. Each year, Stroger treats approximately 120,000 patients in its emergency department alone, making it a critical node in Chicago’s public healthcare safety net. 

During the construction of the new Stroger Hospital in the early 2000s on the site of the historic 150-year-old Cook County Hospital Level-1 Global Solutions was brought in to complete and correct the work left unfinished by a previous contractor that ceased operations post-9/11. This opportunity marked one of Level-1’s earliest major contracts and laid the foundation for its continued leadership in mission-critical IT delivery for healthcare institutions. 

Level-1 was responsible for designing, implementing, and coordinating the entire data communications infrastructure across the new Stroger campus. This included a campus-wide cable plant and network, 39 telecommunications closets, a technology warehouse, and a central data center that continues to support data operations for the entire Cook County Health system today. 

What We Delivered 

• Design and construction of Stroger Hospital’s primary data center, including full power protection, HVAC, and environmental monitoring systems 
• Development of a fiber-optic campus cable plant featuring both single- and multimode distribution to support high-bandwidth clinical applications 
• Redundant electrical systems including UPS, conditioned power, static and automated transfer switching for disaster resilience 
• Reengineering of structured cabling infrastructure and coordination with MEP teams to meet hospital-grade compliance standards 
• Relocation and protection of sensitive medical imaging equipment, including MRI systems near a Green Line ‘L’ station, by isolating them from vibration and electrical interference 
• Low-voltage design and implementation for the Stroger Campus mixed-use redevelopment project, supporting voice, data, video, A/V, physical security, and building automation systems 
• Long-term operational reliability through infrastructure that still supports mission-critical communications across the entire hospital and campus 

From critical trauma care to integrated urban redevelopment, Level-1’s work at the Stroger Campus reflects a deep commitment to the operational continuity of public health services. By equipping Stroger Hospital with fault-tolerant, future-ready infrastructure, we helped ensure that both frontline care providers and community partners can serve Cook County residents with security, speed, and resilience.