Guidelines for Laboratory Design

Overview

What you will learn

The key benefits of the Guidelines for Laboratory Design course offered by Harvard University are:

Architects will be able to:

• Evaluate laboratory design options related to health, safety, and environmental considerations using risk assessment and cost-effectiveness parameters

• Apply appropriate design information for laboratory types used in industry, academia, and hospitals

• Demonstrate familiarity with mechanical systems vital to state-of-the-art laboratory functions

• Understand the primary principles of safety, health, and environmental responsibilities and impact of these considerations on planning and sustainable design of laboratory facilities

• Learn details of laboratory systems and planning strategies to reduce risks to occupants of laboratory facilities

• Learn to plan laboratories so that chemical fume hoods and other potential hazardous processes and equipment perform safely

• Decommission, decontaminate, renovate, and reconstruct old laboratories

Design and facility engineers will be able to:

• Apply laboratory design information regarding heat loads from research equipment, ventilation requirements, optimum air flows, and contamination control through air pressure regulation

• Identify recent developments in the design of HVAC systems for laboratories, including variable air volume (VAV) systems, high performance hoods, air exchange rates, ductless hoods, recirculation of air, and the application of energy conservation measures

• Learn to use computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis to improve performance of chemical fume hoods

• Incorporate into practice important information about the design of hazardous waste-handling facilities, safety shower and eyewash stations, and research support facilities

Occupational health and safety professionals will be able to:

• Complete structures that are safe and free of health hazards by consulting with architects, contractors, owners, and users during program scope definition, design, and construction

• Identify design features that provide solutions for the unique health and safety hazards associated with laboratories used for different functions

• Become familiar with CFD and how it is used in laboratory design

• Provide detailed specifications regarding laboratory support facilities for hazardous waste storage, packaging, and shipping

• Identify the unique needs of specific types of laboratories such as biosafety, chemistry, microelectronics, animal facilities, and engineering

• Understand the perspectives and constraints of architects and engineers, and the need to communicate with them from the earliest stages of the project through completion