Basic Documentation
Table Of Contents
- About this Application Guide
- Chapter 1–Introduction
- Chapter 2–Goals of the Laboratory Environment
- Chapter 3–Unique Ventilation Needs of a Laboratory Facility
- Chapter 4–Ventilation Systems Classification
- Chapter 5–Laboratory Facility Exhaust Systems
- Chapter 6–Laboratory Containment Units - Ventilation
- Chapter 7–Room Ventilation, Makeup Air, and Pressurization Control Systems
- Chapter 8–Laboratory Temperature and Humidity Control Systems
- Chapter 9–Laboratory Emergencies - Ventilation System Response
- Chapter 10–Laboratory Ventilation System - Validation
- Chapter 11–Laboratory Ventilation System - Commissioning
- Glossary
- Index
Chapter 1–Introduction
Chapter 1 introduces laboratory control and safety solutions. It includes the following topics:
• Laboratory control and safety solutions
• Intended Audience
Laboratory Control and Safety Solutions
Proper laboratory room ventilation is an absolute requirement for maintaining the health,
safety and well being of laboratory facility occupants. Inadequate ventilation poses serious
health and safety risks to the occupants of a laboratory room due to the wide range of
hazardous airborne substances that may be present at times within the room. In addition, an
inadequately designed or operating laboratory ventilation system can create a hazard beyond
the laboratory rooms since it can spread potentially dangerous substances throughout an
entire facility.
The performance of laboratory ventilation systems is subject to a growing number of
standards and regulatory requirements. Aside from not providing adequate occupant
protection and incurring high operational costs, improperly designed and poorly operating
laboratory ventilation systems can be a liability risk for both the designer and facility.
Intended Audience
This guide is intended to serve the needs of a wide range of interests:
• Persons with overall laboratory facility management or administrative responsibilities
should find this guide a comprehensive source of information on laboratory
ventilation requirements and proper system functionality. This will enable them to
effectively communicate with their own safety professionals concerning ongoing
facility operational issues. In addition, this guide will make the reader aware of the
different types of systems available and the choices applicable to new facilities or
renovations to existing ones.
• Facility safety professionals and senior laboratory staff members can refer to this
guide for specific data to determine if existing ventilation systems and their operating
conform to laboratory safety standards and regulations.
HVAC system designers should find the descriptions of operation and associated control of
the different laboratory ventilation systems informative and helpful for choosing one type of
system over another, and as an aid in properly configuring a system to meet specific
applications.
Siemens Building Technologies, Inc. 1