Roughly a year and a half into a major Lean initiative, the vivarium at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center has reduced its operating budget by at least 25 percent, cut overtime by more than 60 percent, and closed a 15,000-sf satellite, moving all employees into the original facility. Still a work in progress, the streamlining effort is applying a blend of Lean concepts and holistic, out-of-the-box thinking, with careful attention to both the hard and soft side of operations. Among the efficiencies instituted are a revamped cagewash schedule, staff trained in basic colony management, and the redesign of animal holding rooms so that PIs and husbandry personnel can comfortably work in the same space simultaneously.

Research into the causes of and potential treatments for neurodegenerative diseases has always been inherently multidisciplinary, combining basic sciences with numerous medical specialties. At the same time, neuroscience research requires a variety of targeted specialized spaces. Facilities that support that research, therefore, must be designed to accommodate both the interdisciplinary and the specialized. “As we approach these projects, we need to have a completely open mindset and expect the unexpected,” says Alex Munoz, SmithGroup princpal and senior lab planner. “The facilities must be designed with flexible standards that are both highly specialized for current research and capable of being relevant in the future.”

The growing complexity of research has heightened vivarium design requirements, making it imperative that facility operators and users work closely with the architect and engineers in the early planning stages of construction and renovation projects. Resolving these 10 recurring issues up front can help avoid problems down the road.