LABORATORY REGISTRATION

In compliance with the University's Laboratory Safety and Registration of Laboratories policies, Principal Investigators/ Laboratory Supervisors are required to register their laboratories through Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) in our newly implemented Laboratory Registration System. 

• Benefits of the Laboratory Registration System
  • Assisting Principal Investigators (PIs)/Laboratory Supervisor in conducting a Hazard Assessment tailored to their laboratory's specific hazards, encompassing biological, chemical, radiological, and other potential risks.
  • Identifying necessary training requirements based on hazards pinpointed during the registration process.
  • Streamlining the reporting of chemical and biological inventory data essential for federal regulations, such as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Biological Select Agents and Toxins (BSAT) requirements. Please note that radiological inventories managed by the EH&S Radiation Protection Services (RPS) group are also accessible within the system.
  • Create Emergency Contact Information to be displayed at the laboratory entrance, providing vital details about laboratory hazards and operations for emergency responders.

  Additionally, EH&S is actively enhancing the system by introducing new features as it expands.

• Which types of laboratories are required to register?

  According to the EH&S Laboratory Safety policy, a laboratory is defined as a room or space equipped with chemical, biological, radiological, or other hazardous materials, research animals, or mechanical equipment, and is utilized for teaching, research, observation, or measurement purposes. This includes academic, research, clinical, engineering labs, machine shops and makerspaces. However, the following types of laboratory spaces are exempt from laboratory registration:

  • Computer labs
  • Storerooms without chemicals or biological materials
  • Chase-ways
  • Mechanical rooms
  • Shops not associated with laboratories (as defined above) that support other university operations

  If you are uncertain about whether your lab needs to be registered, please reach out to us at labsafety@stonybrook.edu for clarification.

• What is a permit, and why do I need one?

  Before EH&S assigns laboratory registration to each Principal Investigator (PI)/Laboratory Supervisor, a permit is generated in our Safety Management System. This permit serves as a tool to allocate the assessments required for registering your laboratory space. It doesn't authorize specific tasks but assists EH&S in organizing each department and PI efficiently.

• If you haven't received an email and have no pending assessments, do you still need to register your laboratory space?

  Yes, all laboratory spaces are required to be registered. EH&S will reach out to each individual Principal Investigators(PI)/Laboratory Supervisor for Lab Registration. However, this process takes some time. If you haven't received the lab registration email but wish to register immediately, please contact labsafety@stonybrook.edu for assistance in starting the process.

• What information do I need to have to register my lab space?

  To register your lab space, you'll need the following information:

  • Room numbers for all the lab spaces you utilize
  • Names of all laboratory personnel
  • Awareness of the types of hazards and hazardous materials you're working with, including biological, chemical, radioactive, and physical hazards
• Can I assign the registration process to someone in my lab?

  Yes, please email labsafety@stonybrook.edu and provide the name of that person so that we can grant them access to register for your lab.

• Where can I access the Emergency Contact Information for display at the laboratory entrance?

  Upon completion of the review and approval of your laboratory registration, EH&S Laboratory Safety group will send the responsible person the door signage via email. The responsible person can then print and display it at the laboratory entrance. Additionally, we are collaborating with our Safety Management System to streamline this process, and we hope to provide more convenient options in the future.