Animal Research Facilities 2024 Schedule

What you will learn:
Participants will come away with a basic understanding of the terminology, concepts, processes, standards, numbers, types of equipment, and furniture (as applicable) involved in the planning and design of animal research labs and support space including related mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems. 

Who should attend:
This course is designed for those involved in the planning, design, construction, or operation of animal research laboratories including project managers, architects, facility engineers, construction engineers, facility managers, facility planners, biosafety professionals, EH&S personnel, veterinarians, and researchers employed at colleges and universities, medical facilities, pharmaceutical facilities, A/E/C firms, government health centers, and public health labs.

Space is limited and enrollment is subject to approval.

Cost:
$1,300 Fundamentals Course only
$1,100 with registration to the two-day conference immediately following
(Fees include course materials, continental breakfast refreshment breaks, and lunch)

A hosted beer and wine bar along with light snacks will be served.

Attendees may sign-in and pick up their registration materials here, or the next morning at the conference ballroom foyer.

Guests welcome.

See the full list of participating exhibitors and event hosts.

Demand for animal space is spiking now. When “new building” dreams are put on hold, what quick-turnaround options can deliver the capacity that expanding programs need? Ron Wilson and Duncan McIlvaine illustrate opportunities, decision making criteria, and tradeoffs for densification and capacity increase strategies at Penn State College of Medicine. They examine cascading impacts to consider, short-term and long-term solutions, pain points, and what is working. They detail space conversions, equipment and infrastructure requirements, design and operating considerations, and development of a strategic renovation plan.

Lean vivarium operations depend on engaged, enthusiastic, and efficiency-minded employees -- and many organizations took a big hit on that front during the pandemic. Here you’ll see how Massachusetts General Hospital is bouncing back, building morale, and returning to the business of improving vivarium space use and efficient workflows. Gerry Cronin and Steven LaMacchia set out findings from MGH and the Vivarium Operational Excellence Network for turning the tedium of husbandry into fun team-based activities, engaging front-line workers in daily problem solving, and navigating a multi-generational workforce. They chart the improvements over the last three years in terms of job satisfaction, productivity, and process improvement.

Large-scale mouse facilities built in phases over time can be a double-edged sword: Each subsequent phase allows for iterative improvements incorporating technology advancements, evolving best practices, and lessons learned, but at the risk of study disruptions, infrastructure complexity, and consistency of maintenance and operational models. Session leaders illustrate how phased construction has played out for The Jackson Laboratory’s four-phased barrier facility in Ellsworth, Maine. They set out top planning and design considerations for process areas and MEP system expansion, strategies for maintaining consistency of products and systems, and solutions for mitigating the effects of noise. They relate feedback from facility operators which contributed to design refinements in each phase.

One contributing factor to the study reproducibility crisis may be variability of environmental factors in animal facilities. This session examines technology that enables the measurement and documenting of environmental variables and events that humans might otherwise miss – ultrasonic noise, vibration, temperature, humidity, light, as well as impacts from staff activity and construction and renovation projects. Jeremy Turner illustrates the use of Sensory Sentinel cages for both ongoing daily and project-specific scopes to detect and mitigate study disruptions and improve animal welfare. He provides case studies, implementation strategies and technical requirements, and examines the results being achieved.

Lunch hosted by Strobic Air Technologies

Demand for animal resources and shared core facilities is up, but capital resources are strained; Master planning for research needs and facility assets has never been more critical. Session leaders use a case study from Penn State University to illustrate facility use and condition data gathering, user group input, and research growth projections to establish a practical short- and long-term phased program growth roadmap. They detail a series of renovation initiatives, leveraging new equipment capabilities, updated space use models, and temporary housing options. They illustrate how to prioritize projects, and implementation methods that minimize program impacts.

Sustainability and CO2e emissions reduction have risen on the priority list for all  research organizations. In this session  we look at facility operations and caging options and discuss  the tradeoffs made in achieving those goals. Session leaders will track the lifecycle of a cage and highlight the equipment decision points, ramifications, and results that contribute to or detract from CO2e emission reduction. They examine the impacts from caging design and material use, transportation, in-facility use, and end-of-life processes, and the relative impacts of products and processes on a facility’s carbon footprint.

Join this enlightening panel for key findings and lessons learned from Northwestern University's switch to cage wash automation. Speakers chart the critical labor and throughput requirements needed to double rodent cage capacity, and the data used to overcome management and cost hurdles. They profile feasibility study and upgrade processes, timelines, and swing space solutions, and common problems to watch for. They illustrate the efficiency and effectiveness outcomes of cage wash transformation in terms of space use, fostering collaborative work environments, prioritizing staff health and safety, and supporting research program expansion initiatives.

The Jackson Laboratory made the decision to adopt LED lighting in their Ellsworth barrier facility during the final phases of construction. Here you’ll see what had changed from initial project conception to drive that decision, and key considerations for design, construction, implementation, and validation going forward. Norm Burdzel and Karen Murphy examine how to evaluate LED technology’s impact on animal welfare, equipment selection and control strategy considerations, and what’s to be gained in terms of life cycle cost savings and energy efficiency.

Courtesy of Tradeline

Have tradition, design replication, rules of thumb, and metrics from a different technology era been unnecessarily limiting the efficiency of animal facilities and driving up costs? Jeff Zynda and John Hasenau look at recent data from legacy designs and how new models can deliver improvements in study reproducibility, space efficiency, and cost by shedding outdated concepts. They assess opportunities stemming from advances in micro vs. macro environments, dusk to dawn lighting, temperature, and color, acoustics and RF/EMI interference, environment monitoring, animal observations, and interactions. They provide answers for commonly-raised concerns when adopting next-gen solutions in risk-averse organizations.

In 2023 Brigham and Women’s Hospital Center for Comparative Medicine experienced the most severe flooding events in the program’s history, prompting an immediate, multifaceted response to protect animals, staff, and the future of critical research endeavors. Renee Thompson and Mary Spencer deliver lessons learned and recommendations that will equip other organizations to prevent, prepare, mitigate, and respond efficiently to emergencies. They identify critical facility design elements that saved the day, and the equipment, storage, and swing space needs to plan for. They detail innovative processes, operational and administrative measures to put in place for disaster management and research impact mitigation.

Many Veterinary Diagnostics Laboratories face operational challenges stemming from aging facilities, which can create biosafety risks and hamper testing efficacy and turnaround time. This session delivers planning and design lessons learned from the latest generation of facilities with a view to optimizing operations. Using multiple recent case studies, Jim Chen illustrates criteria and best practices for sample receiving/processing and testing workflows, circulation strategies that improve biosecurity/biosafety, optimized animal handling and necropsy, and BSL3 containment lab programming. Attend this session to make more informed facility decisions when developing specific program requirements.

Workplace wellbeing is being prioritized by leading organizations to increase employee satisfaction, engagement, productivity, and retention, but the animal research context is one of the most challenging environments to launch new initiatives in this area. Here you’ll see the workplace wellbeing journey that Tufts University has embarked on for its vivarium workers, both the rewards and the challenges encountered along the way. Session leaders deliver findings on launching a new program including gathering feedback, tailoring activities and offering, discovering different domains of wellbeing, low effort/high reward activities, and finding times and options for maximum engagement.

Don’t gloss over decisions on door design and flooring materials in your vivarium construction and renovation projects – these two components can make or break successful operations. Session leaders examine what’s been learned and where the industry is heading that will influence door and flooring decisions, including “smart doors,” automation, new international standards, and best practices. They chart advantages for space use and operating efficiency, and identify legacy practices being phased out as research organizations demand further improvements in maintenance requirements and operating cost reduction. They provide a cost/benefit analysis of different floor and door options, and deliver renovation and installation strategies that minimize disruption and facility downtime and maintain research environment integrity.

Demand for animal resources and shared core facilities is up, but capital resources are strained; Master planning for research needs and facility assets has never been more critical. Session leaders use a case study from Penn State University to illustrate facility use and condition data gathering, user group input, and research growth projections to establish a practical short- and long-term phased program growth roadmap. They detail a series of renovation initiatives, leveraging new equipment capabilities, updated space use models, and temporary housing options. They illustrate how to prioritize projects, and implementation methods that minimize program impacts.