RMJM, the Edinburgh-based architecture firm, has won a contract to supply advice on how best to restore a New Orleans hospital known by locals as the Big Charity that was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

RMJM, the Edinburgh-based architecture firm, has won a contract to supply advice on how best to restore a New Orleans hospital known by locals as the Big Charity that was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

The firm will complete an independent assessment of The Medical Centre of New Orleans, RMJM chief executive Peter Morrison announced yesterday. He would not disclose how much the deal is worth.

The hospital was closed by the authorities in the wake of Hurricane Katrina's devastation. The National Trust for Historic Preservation has placed the hospital on its 2008 list of America's most endangered historic places.

RMJM beat more than 40 other firms to win the contract. Morrison said: "We are delighted to embark on yet another landmark project in America with the aim of hopefully breathing life into this icon of American healthcare. The challenge is to produce a modern facility while making the most of its history."

This is RMJM's third project in New Orleans. The company's staff is also designing the new Louisiana Cancer Research Centre and a plan for Tulane University Medical School and Life Sciences.

Big Charity is the foremost example of Art Deco architecture in New Orleans and carries with it a historic legacy that reaches back more than 250 years.

Founded in 1735 to serve the indigent, The Medical Centre's social impact derived from its commitment to progressive health care for the poor.

In addition to being the second oldest continuing public hospital in the US, Big Charity was the second largest hospital in America until it closed in September 2005.

RMJM employs 1200 people across its network of 16 offices in the UK, Europe, the Middle East, the Far East and the United States. It has extensive experience in both hospital design and historic preservation.

The company, which helped design the Scottish Parliament building at Holyrood, has £8bn worth of construction projects on its drawing boards. The company recently announced that it had won a contract to design a state-of-the-art £46m biotechnology research and development centre in Beijing. The new facility is for Genzyme, one of the world's leading biotechnology companies.