Home > Security and Safety in Laboratories

Security and Safety in Laboratories

by Daniel Watch and Deepa Tolat
Perkins + Will

Last updated: 03-14-2007

Introduction

Due to the variety of toxic chemicals and hazardous materials used in a laboratory, research facility designers are challenged to create quality, productive environments while ensuring the protection and safety of scientists and other laboratory personnel. Protecting human health and life is paramount, yet protecting a facility from unauthorized access is also of critical importance. This Resource Page addresses all these related concerns about security and safety in research facilities.

Rock Crushing and Grinding Lab at Boston University-Boston, MA. The hazarda and safety features shown in this diagram are: fire extinguisher, circuit breakers, rock saw, trap door to sub basement, floor drain, benchtop drill press, first-aid box, sink, doorway, air decompressor, heat lamps, water table, electric disconnect, battery charger, jaw crusher, disk mill, and window.

Hazards and safety features of the Rock Crushing and Grinding Lab at Boston University—Boston, MA. View enlarged plan

Description

Safety requirements are often mandated by codes. Several key building and life-safety code issues must be addressed early in the design process:

Laboratory construction is typically classified as belonging to one of four types. Types 1 and 2 require noncombustible materials; Type 3 may include some combustible materials; and Type 4 requires exterior walls to be of noncombustible materials. Important considerations in determining the type of construction for a laboratory building are the types and amounts of chemicals stored in the building. The three tables below list the various types of materials, the class, and use group for construction based on the amount of chemicals stored. Type 4 construction is the least expensive to build, Type 1 the most expensive. In most cases, it is advisable to minimize the amount of chemicals in a building and to order what is needed on a daily or weekly basis from a local vendor.

Table 1: Exempt Amounts of Hazardous Materials, Liquids, and Chemicals Presenting a Health Hazarda

MaterialStoragebClosed SystemsbOpen Systemsb
Solids lbcdLiquid (gal or lb)cdGases ft3Solids lbcLiquid (gal or lb)cGases ft3Solids lbcLiquid (gal or lb)c
Corrosive5,000500810cd5,000500810cd1,000100
Highly Toxic1(1)20e1(1)20e1/4(1/4)
Irritant5,000500810cd5,000500810cd1,000100
Radioactive25 rem - unsealed source
100 rem - sealed source		100 rem - sealed sources25 rem - sealed source
Sensitize5,000500810cd5,000500810cd1,000100
Toxic500(500)810cd500(500)810cd1,000100
Other Health Hazards5,000500810cd5,000500810cd1,000100

a Quantities in parentheses correspond to the units in parentheses at the heads of the columns.
b  The total quantity in use and in storage may not exceed the amount allowed for storage.
c  The maximum allowed amounts can be increased by 100% in buildings equipped throughout with an approved automatic sprinkler system. Note d also applies and the two allowances are cumulative.
d  The maximum allowed amounts can be increased by 100% in building equipped throughout with an approved automatic sprinkler system. Note c also applies and the two allowances are cumulative.
e  Permitted only when stored in approved exhausted gas cabinets, exhausted enclosures, or fume hoods.

Table 2: Fire Resistance Ratings of Selected Structural Elements in Hours (abbreviated version of Table 602, BOCA*)

 Types of Construction
NoncombustibleNoncombustible/combustible
Type 1Type 2Type 3Type 4
ProtectedProtectedUnprotectedProtectedUnprotected(Heavy Timber)
Structural Element1A1B2A2B2C3A3B4
Exterior Walls
  Load bearing43210222
Also must comply with Section 705.2
  Non-load bearingMust comply with Section 705.2
Fire and party walls43222222
Also must comply with Section 705.2
Fire separation assemblies
  Exit enclosures22222222
  Shafts (other than exits) and elevator hoistways22222222
Fire partitions, exit access corridors11111111
Comply with Section 1011.4; fire retardant-treated wood permitted for types 1 and 2 if fire resistance rating 1 hour or less is required.
Interior bearing walls, bearing partitions, columns, girders, trusses (other than roof trusses) and framing
  Supporting more than one floor4321010Section 605 governs
  Supporting one floor or roof only321.51010Section 605 governs
Structural members supporting wall321.510101
Must not be less than supported wall; also exceptions in selected cases
Floor construction, including beams321.51010Section 605 governs
Floor construction, including beams, trusses and framing, arches and roof deck (15' or less in height to lowest member)21.511010Section 605 governs
Fire retardant-treated wood permitted for types 1 and 2 if required fire resistance rating 1 hour or less

*  This table is included only to illustrate certain design issues. Other sections of the Code will have to be considered as well, and there are possible exceptions, exemptions, or variations permitted depending upon other factors.

Table 3: Height and Area Limits Use Class

Type of ConstructionBusinessEducationalHazard, H-2Hazard, H-3
Noncombustible
1A (protected)Not limitedNot limited16,800
5 stories, 65 ft.		33,600
7 stories, 85 ft.
1B (protected)Not limitedNot limited14,400
3 stories, 40 ft.		28,000
7 stories, 85 ft.
2A (protected)34,200
7 stories, 85 ft.		34,200
5 stories, 65 ft.		11,400
3 stories, 40 ft.		22,800
6 stories, 75 ft.
2B (protected)22,500
5 stories, 65 ft.		22,500
3 stories, 40 ft.		7,500
2 stories, 30 ft.		15,000
4 stories, 50 ft.
2C (unprotected)14,400
3 stories, 40 ft.		14,400
2 stories, 30 ft.		4,800
1 story, 20 ft.		9,600
2 stories, 30 ft.
Noncombustible
3A (protected)19,800
4 stories, 50 ft.		19,800
3 stories, 40 ft.		6,600
2 stories, 30 ft.		13,200
3 stories, 40 ft.
3B (unprotected)14,400
3 stories, 40 ft.		14,400
2 stories, 30 ft.		4,800
1 story, 20 ft.		9,600
2 stories, 30 ft.
4 (heavy timber)21,600
5 stories, 65 ft.		21,600
3 stories, 40 ft.		7,200
2 stories, 30 ft.		14,400
4 stories, 50 ft.

These above three tables can also be used for design review. It is recommended that life and safety professionals be involved early in reviewing the design to make sure it meets health and safety requirements. The design team can build the appropriate building, but the campus health and safety staff will have to oversee the researchers to ensure that the guidelines are met. It is also recommended that local code officials be involved in the review of the design and approach to the construction as it pertains to life-safety issues. See also WBDG Secure/Safe—Ensure Occupant Safety and Health and Secure/Safe—Plan for Fire Protection.

A. Laboratory Classifications

The amount and type of chemicals will determine the building classification. The following are the four laboratory classes, with the special practices associated with each:

Low Risk

Moderate Risk

Substantial Risk

High Risk

B. Other Typical Code Issues

Other typical code issues will have to be studied and resolved. These include exit capacity, travel distance, number and size of fire stairs, door and wall ratings, exit signs, exit lights, emergency power, and restroom requirements. See also WBDG Accessible Branch and Secure/Safe Branch.

Storage of Combustible and Flammable Liquids

The following information is based on National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 30, which concerns flammable and combustible liquids. Combustible liquids have a flash point at or above 100° F (37.8°C) and are classified as follows:

Flammable liquids have a flash point below 100°F (37.8°C) and a vapor pressure not greater than 40 lbs per sq in. (absolute) (2,068 mm Hg) at 100°F (37.8°C). Flammable liquids are classified as follows:

No more than 120 gallons (454 l) of Class I, Class II, and Class III liquid may be stored in a storage cabinet. Of this total, no more than 60 gallons (227 l) may be of Class I and Class II liquids, and no more than three such cabinets may be located in a single fire area, except in an industrial occupancy, where additional cabinets may be located in the same fire area if the additional cabinets (not more than a group of three) are separated from other cabinets or group of cabinets by at least 100 ft. (30 m).

In addition to following the standards above, it will be necessary during the design phase of the project to work closely with the client representatives. The project team may have to incorporate additional requirements as laboratory and support spaces are more definitively outlined.

Fire Suppression System

Most lab buildings are designed with a water sprinkler system for code and insurance reasons. In many cases it may be less costly to provide a water sprinkler system than not to do so. Other suppression systems may be necessary, depending on the chemicals being used and the type of research being conducted. See also WBDG Secure/Safe—Plan for Fire Protection.

Seismic Design

Seismic design is mandated in some areas of the country. Seismic design considerations for laboratory facilities include the following:

Accessibility Issues

The Architectural Barriers Act (ABA) of 1968 requires access to facilities designed, constructed, altered, or leased with certain federal funds. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in programs and services conducted or assisted by the Federal government. In addition, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability within the private sector. As such, any new lab project must consider ABA/Section 504/ADA compliance, and renovations should take noncompliant elements into account. The following are considerations for accessible design in laboratories:

Photo of an ADA-compliant fume hood

ADA-compliant fume hood

ADA recommended dimensions and clearances are as follows:

Work surface height34 in. max.
Knee clearance32 in. max.
Work surface depth24 in.
Maximum sink depth6.5 in.
Shoulder-to-hand reach35-45 in.
Elbow-to-hand reach22-26 in.
Side reach24 in.
Reach height46 in.
Control height48 in. max.-15 in. min.
Door clearance32 in. (requires 36 in. door)
Aisle width48 in. min.
Clearance required to turn wheelchair60 in.
Clearance from floor to underside of work surface27 in.
Emergency shower handle height54 in. high max.

Controls for technology devices in classrooms cannot be higher than 54 in. above the floor and must accommodate a parallel approach by a person in a wheelchair. Private industry may construct labs that can be modified to be accessible for persons in wheelchairs.

See also WBDG Accessible Branch.

C. General Safety Principles for Laboratories

For safety and ease of maintenance, it usually makes sense to locate a safety shower, fire extinguisher, and shutoff valves at the entry alcove of each lab. Interior glazing permits easy surveillance of the laboratory. Warning signs with the appropriate symbols should be posted at laboratory entrances. There should be two means of egress from each main lab (labs measuring 900 sq. ft. or more). Doors should swing out of main labs for safe egress in case of emergency.

In most cases, labs should be organized with the highest hazards (e.g., fume hoods) farthest from the entry door and the least hazardous elements (e.g., write-up stations) closest to the door. Write-up desks and benches should be accessible without having to cross in front of fume hoods. All lab users should be trained in emergency procedures.

Diagram of open lab design progressing from high hazard with hood alcovers, to medium hazard with the benches, to low hazard with the write-up areas.

Open lab design with the most hazardous materials located farthest from the entry door

Appropriate casework should be provided. Islands are preferable to peninsulas, since islands allow people to walk around benches. A 1 in. high Plexiglas lip along shelves prevents containers from falling off. Where overhead shelving is located above island benches and containers might fall off the back of the shelf, the protective 1 in. lip should be placed there. Personal items and clothing should be kept in lockers outside the lab area. Food and drinks are prohibited in labs.

All mechanical systems should be electronically monitored, and all safety equipment should be tested on a regular basis. See also WBDG Project Planning and Development—Building Commissioning. Fume hoods should be equipped with airflow alarms. Most labs are required to be under negative air pressure relative to the corridor.

Floor penetrations should be avoided, if possible, to prevent chemicals released during a spill or flood from traveling to the floor below. Wet vacuuming should be used instead of floor drains to contain chemical spills. (This can also help in identifying what has been spilled on an individual.)

Designers should consider placing an emergency center in a central location on each floor, to provide easy access for everyone. An emergency center consolidates reagent neutralizers, hand-held sprays, first aid, and fire control equipment in one common area. The center should contain a fire extinguisher with hanger, two 1 gal. plastic bottles, a first aid kit, a fire blanket, and a galvanized sand pail.

D. Safety Features in Laboratories

Safety Showers and Eyewashes

According to American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standards, safety showers should never be farther than 100 ft. away from any researcher, along a clear and unobstructed path. Locating safety showers within 75 ft. is the recommended and safer approach. Safety showers are usually placed in the corridor, highly visible from the lab exits. All safety showers should meet Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) criteria described above and should include an eyewash. Putting a floor drain under the shower is not recommended. A floor drain may create contamination problems in the drain piping or leak down to the floor below. It is better to allow the chemicals at the shower to be mopped up in order to identify what was on the individual.

Deluge showers should flow at a rate of 30 gallons of water per minute. All safety showers should provide low-velocity water at 70° to 90° F. Manual close valves are recommended for all safety showers. A safety shower should be designed with an automatic cutoff, but should deliver at least 50 gallons before the automatic cutoff is activated. Safety showers should not be located near any sources of electricity, especially electric panel boxes.

In each lab, there should be an eyewash and a body wash at least one sink (preferably an ADA-compliant sink). Eyewash units should supply a multi-stream cross flow of potable water at 65° to 75° F. Contaminated eyes should be flushed for 15 minutes. Eyewashes should flow at a rate of 3 to 7 gallons of water per minute. Eyewashes are not required by most codes but are highly recommended for safe laboratory practice.

Fume Hood Height

Another important issue is the height of the fume hood for people who are less than 5 ft. 9 in. tall. The typical fume hood test by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) is based on a 5 ft. 9 in. male. When the person is shorter and the sash is lower, then it is more difficult for the hood to operate properly because less air will go through the sash. If the fume hood is left higher to allow for more airflow through the hood, then a person shorter than 5 ft. 9 in. may be at risk, because the person's mouth and nose may be closer to the chemicals being used in the hood. Hoods that can be placed at different heights should be specified.

Chemical Storage

Building codes classify a project's "occupancy type" based to a great extent on the quantities of flammable chemicals expected to be kept on hand. Construction costs are directly related to this classification. If the occupancy type can be shifted by reducing storage needs, significant cost reductions can be realized.

A hazardous chemical is defined as a chemical for which there is statistically significant evidence that exposure may produce acute or chronic health effects. Storage options include the following:

  1. Supplier warehousing. Vendors can hold the chemicals for the lab, supplying them on an as-needed or just-in-time basis.
  2. On-site external storage. An appropriate external storage facility can be any one of a range of prefabricated, self-contained, environmentally controlled hazardous storage containers. The environment must be controllable because many chemicals are sensitive to heat, humidity, and light. Placement and proper management can be just as important as container type.
  3. Internal, centralized storage. Centralized internal facilities usually consist of a designated room for chemical storage, shared by all researchers on that floor or in that building.
  4. Internal, decentralized storage. In-lab storage may be combined with centralized or external storage. Chemicals are often stored in a special, labeled cabinet in each lab. Some are 7 ft., freestanding cabinets, and others are located beneath fume hoods. All chemical storage cabinets should be exhausted.

In any lab where shelving is used to store chemicals, the shelves should be no higher than eye level. The shelving should be made of a chemically resistant material.

Storage strategies must be compliant with all NFPA and OSHA regulations. Flammables must be stored separately in an NFPA/OSHA-approved flammables cabinet, usually beneath a fume hood. Flammables cabinets should be sealed, requiring no exhaust ducting. If flammables storage cabinets are not tightly sealed, volatile fumes can accumulate. Exhausts vents are usually not recommended, because the volatile vapors can escape into the building and some ductwork may not withstand a fire.

Chemical storage rooms should be ventilated by at least 15 air changes per hour and should have dedicated exhaust systems. Chemicals should be stored in plastic or metal containers whenever possible, not in breakable glass. All chemicals should be properly labeled, and should be arranged on the shelf in chemically compatible families, not alphabetically. Chemicals should never be stored in a fume hood or on the floor.

Chemical Wastes

Pouring chemicals into a drain that flows directly into the public water system is not permitted. Chemicals must be handled locally in the lab or with dilution tanks in or near the building. Local handling is the most affordable approach: the researcher pours the chemical into a specific container that is later picked up by a waste-management staff person or by a vendor. If chemicals are allowed to be poured down the drain, then all the drains must be constructed with chemical-resistant piping, which can be very expensive. The holding tanks will take up a few hundred feet, at a minimum, at the basement level.

Security Systems

There are several options to consider for the design of a security system. The least costly, initially, is the lock-and-key system. But there are problems: keys can easily be copied, are difficult to manage, and are costly to replace when lost or stolen.

Swipe reader combination keypad security system

Swipe readers can be used in combination with keypads for a higher degree of security than either technology could provide on its own.
(Courtesy of Tyco Safety Products)

Access-card systems use identification cards with a magnetic strip, which works as an electronic key. Cards and card-readers are programmed to allow only authorized people into particular areas. When an unauthorized person tries to enter the area, an alarm occurs and the control panel immediately transmits a signal to the host. So-called "smart card" (or "one card") systems can be used for a variety of administrative purposes beyond security, for instance, for student registration, cafeteria debiting, and so on. Using an access-control system with an integrated database, student and employee status can be updated immediately, without the expense and administrative time necessary to mail new cards. Other security options to consider are computerized alarm systems, electronic locks, and video surveillance. See also WBDG Secure/Safe—Provide Security for Building Occupants and Assets.

Application

Representative Examples

Photo of laboratory technicians using a swipe reader to enter restricted area.

As part of the laboratory's comprehensive security system, entry to the storage area requires two individuals with separate pass codes.
(Courtesy of Cord Blood Registry)

Cord Blood Registry's Laboratory, Tucson, Arizona
Cord Blood Registry's laboratory, in affiliation with the University of Arizona, Tucson, has been processing and storing cord blood since 1992 and was the first family cord blood stem cell bank in the world. In order to ensure that the processing, quality-control, and quality-assurance metrics are in accordance with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines and American Association of Blood Banks accreditation, the state-of-the-art laboratory incorporated such features as backup generators, computer monitoring systems, and a paging and faxing system that maintains constant contact with their technicians while monitoring the laboratory and cryogenic vaults. The storage facilities are under twenty-four-hour security and surveillance and the entire facility is alarmed and monitored. Also, the laboratory is located in Tucson, Arizona, a location that historically has not been subject to extreme weather conditions or major environmental disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes, and tornadoes.

Relevant Codes and Standards

The following agencies and organizations have developed codes and standards affecting the design of research laboratories. Note that the codes and standards are minimum requirements. Architects, engineers, and consultants should consider exceeding the applicable requirements whenever possible.

Major Resources

WBDG

Building / Space Types

Office Building, Research Facilities, Animal Research Facility, Research Laboratory, Academic Laboratory, Government Laboratory, Private Sector Laboratory, Laboratory: Dry, Laboratory: Wet

Design Objectives

Accessible, Aesthetics, Cost-Effective, Functional / Operational, Productive, Secure / Safe, Sustainable

Products and Sytems

Federal Green Construction Guide for Specifiers

Project Management

Building Commissioning

Tools:

LEED® Version 2.1 Credit / WBDG Resource Page Matrix, LEED®-DoD Antiterrorism Standards Tool

Publications

Others

Related Resource Pages
View Resource Page Index
WBDG Services Construction Criteria Base