Replacement of Two Autoclaves for Oakland University's Biomedical Research Support Facility - PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
The Biomedical Research Support Facility (BRSF) is an essential core facility at Oakland University (OU).
Investigators from six different departments and campus units rely on it to conduct basic and applied research.
Originally constructed in 1999 (with support from NIH funding), it has been continually in use since OU took
occupancy the following year.
Not only has the building aged in terms of its mechanical systems and physical infrastructure, we are placing
even heavier demands on it than ever before, precisely at the time when its systems are beginning to fail. Of the
19 investigators with current approved projects running in BRSF, nearly half of them were hired within the last
three years.
This is particularly true of the two autoclaves supporting research and day-to-day operations in BRSF. We have
a large Getinge Castle M/C 3633 autoclave in the cage processing area that has not been operable for some
time due to an ongoing inability to secure replacements for parts that have failed or worn out. A smaller Getinge
Castle Model 133 autoclave with a bioseal is still operating between the (clean) anteroom and the (contaminated)
procedures room in the BRSF biocontainment suite, but it suffers from the same problem in terms of replacement
parts. This smaller autoclave is also increasingly used for research: two of our newly hired investigators each
use adenovirus or lentivirus particles for transfection; another of our researchers works with stem cell
therapeutics; a fourth does microbiological and gross anatomical work in rodent models of colitis. All four
research teams generate medical waste that must be decontaminated before it is disposed of.
OU has committed more than $1.2 million this fiscal year to replace the obsolete boilers and both the cage and
tunnel washers in BRSF. This proposal seeks funding to replace the two autoclaves as well – since they connect
to many of the same systems, it makes sense to tackle these replacements at or near the same time, to minimize
the need for repeated service interruptions that will also impact ongoing research underway in BRSF.
We have selected replacement models that are very similar to the obsolescent instruments they are designed to
replace. The replacement instruments are much the same size as the existing models, use mostly the same size
connections, and have roughly similar power requirements – one of several factors that influenced our choice
for replacements. We are also requesting water-saving packages on both of the replacement instruments, as
part of OU's sustainability initiative. We anticipate saving as much as 20,000 gallons of water annually with the
replacement instruments, even with the increased load as our biomedical research enterprise expands.
