Biological safety cabinets (BSCs) serve as the primary means of protecting laboratory workers and their surrounding environments from pathogens. At the UW–Madison, many BSCs were procured more than two decades ago. These old units are more likely to fail, presenting a biological safety risk for laboratories. Additionally, they lack recent advances in BSC technology that enhance performance, sustainability, durability, energy efficiency, and user comfort.
To address this issue, FP&M’s Environment, Health and Safety created the BSC Replacement Program in 2016. renewed BSC Replacement Program assists labs with BSCs aged 15 years or older in acquiring new units at discounted rates and has resulted in the replacement of over 250 BSCs thus far.
To measure effectiveness, EH&S partnered with the Office of Sustainability to assess impacts of the BSC Replacement Program. The work was led by a College of Engineering master’s student and included three categories of data collection and assessment:
- Ergonomic Assessment: The student distributed a survey to 500 BSC, receiving 50 responses from users who assessed their experience with the BSC Replacement Program and their use of the new units.
- Energy Use Assessment: The student used clamp meters to measure energy use in old and new BSCs in active use and modeled annual energy use for each type.
- Incentive Assessment: They researched and engaged with energy efficiency incentive providers to determine opportunities to identify additional incentives that could support the growth of the program.
Findings revealed:
- Significant energy savings were achieved. On average, an annual energy use reduction of ~6,000 kWh or approximately 75% reduction in peak energy, translating to about $530 in energy cost savings were attributed to replacement BSCs, which are more energy efficient and have a hibernation-derivative ReadySAFE mode setup option.
- Additionally, the analysis identified new financial incentives from the State of Wisconsin Focus on Energy Program offering rebates of an additional $250 to $360.
- Ergonomic assessments highlighted the tangible benefits of new BSCs, with survey respondents reporting improved user experience, including reduced noise levels, enhanced technological design, and increased productivity.
Due to the BSC replacement program’s success, it is on a 5-year renewal plan. They have committed to funding 60% of the program ($2.9 million), and with the 40% laboratory contribution ($1.9 million) represents a total investment of $4.8 million. With this the program plans to replace approximately 375 BSCs.
by Tony McGrath, Alex Frank & Shirley Obih
Tony McGrath is the Biocontainment Program Manager. He joined EH&S in 2018 and oversees the Biocontainment Program, including the Biocontainment Laboratory Services team and Biosafety Cabinet Program.
Alex Frank is the Project Portfolio Manager for the Office of Sustainability (OS). He joined OS in 2019 and has partnered with EH&S to evaluate and promote the Biosafety Cabinet Replacement Program since 2023.
Shirley Obih was a Master’s Student in the Biological Systems Engineering program and graduated in Summer 2024. Her thesis evaluated the environmental, ergonomic, and energy-savings impact of the Biosafety Cabinet Replacement Program.
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