Re: [Phys-l] new construction help

[John Denker <jsd@av8n.com>]

On 10/14/2008 05:43 AM, Paul Lulai wrote:

> We are currently planning a renovation of our science rooms.  We are
> continually being told to design world class labs for the next 100
> years.  
.......
> 2-	Any suggestions for room construction that we might have missed
> on the list above.


Item 0:  Safety! Safety! Safety!

For the last 7 years, there has been nonstop bloviation about
homeland security.  But the biggest threat to students doesn't
come from snipers or suicide bombers ... it comes from prosaic
things like fire and electrocution.

I assume the "science labs" include biology and chemistry labs.

A few specific constructive suggestions:

 *) More exits, so if there is a fire in front of door A, you
  can get everybody out via door B.  I suggest a left-front 
  door and a right-front door that go to the main corridor, 
  *plus* a fire escape that goes directly to outside.

  Don't tell me it's a security problem.  Such problems can 
  be solved by latches and alarms.

 *) Electrical emergency-shutoff switches.  One by each door.

 *) Gas emergency-shutoff switches.  One by each door.

 *) Phone.  I know this sounds silly given that so many
  students have cell phones ... but some schools forbid
  students to being cell phones to class.  The phone is
  really useful if there is a medical emergency.  It is
  also useful for telling the fire department that you
  pulled the fire alarm not because of a fire but because
  of a toxic spill.  Etc. etc. etc.

  If there's not going to be a wired phone, demand a
  guarantee of wireless phone coverage.  This cannot be
  taken for granted in basement and/or rural locations.
  Negotiate with the phone company.  They might be willing
  to pay *you* for the privilege of putting a wireless base
  station on top of the school.  This would also ensure 
  that the school receives excellent high-bandwidth 
  internet connectivity (over the same line the base
  station uses for backhaul).

 *) A file listing all chemicals used in the lab plus the 
  MSDS for each one.  One copy of the file in the lab,
  plus another copy of the whole file in an established
  location across the street.  The point of the latter
  is that the fire department doesn't want to run into
  the burning building to obtain the file that tells
  them what they are up against.

 *) Fire suppression sprinklers built in.  You would think
  this would be required by code for all new construction,
  and super-especially for school construction, but in
  some jurisdictions it is not.

 *) Fume hoods.  If the ducting for these is not designed
  in, it's a huge nightmare to retrofit it.

 *) Multi-speed fans on the fume hoods.  The building 
  manager will be constantly scheming to find ways to
  turn off the fume hoods, because of the load they
  place on the HVAC system.  But some of the hoods must 
  not be turned off, because they are being used to 
  /store/ chemicals.  The compromise is to turn these
  fans to "low" during off-hours and off-months.

 *) GFCI on all circuits.  Again you would think this
  would be required by code, but in some jurisdictions
  it is not.

 *) Emergency shower + eye wash station, with alarm.

 *) Fireproof countertops, fire-resistant chairs, etc.

 *) Suitable niche for the fire extinguisher, first aid
  kit, et cetera.  Ditto for the circuit breaker panel.
  The point here is that you don't want to rely on a
  sign that says "do not block access" when there is
  temptation to block access.  Design it to minimize
  the temptation.

 !! This is just what pops to mind.  You need to make a
 !! more systematic list.

A list of additional resources:
 http://www2.umdnj.edu/eohssweb/aiha/technical/labdesign.htm

Lots more can be found by googling.

There are lots of things I could say that aren't safety-
related, but I will save those for another day.