Laboratory moving in Reno and Sparks

A laboratory move has more at stake than furniture. Benches, casework, cold storage, balances, microscopes and shelves of glassware all move, and each has its own handling rules. O'Brien's lists laboratory moves among its commercial services and brings the same planning discipline it uses for offices and warehouses.

Who does what

The most important step in a lab move is dividing the work. Your lab staff, safety officer and equipment vendors prepare and release chemicals, biological materials, gases and instruments. The OSHA laboratory standard, 29 CFR 1910.1450, requires employers with laboratories to maintain a Chemical Hygiene Plan, and that plan should cover the move. O'Brien's crews then move the furniture, shelving, carts and cartons of cleared supplies.

Put the division in writing before the estimate is final. Each party signs off on its piece.

• Lab staff release and label materials
• Instrument vendors decommission and set up sensitive equipment
• The move crew handles benches, carts, shelving and cartons
• A move manager coordinates the sequence

Planning a laboratory move

1. Walk both labs with the estimator and photograph each bench and storage area.
2. List every item as move, vendor-move or dispose.
3. Match each vendor appointment to the move calendar.
4. Pack and label cleared supplies by room and shelf.
5. Move, place and reconnect in the order the plan sets.

On-site move management

On a lab job a move manager works from your floor plan, keeps the crew in the right room at the right time and answers questions from lab staff. Management on site is part of the commercial service, described on on-site move management.

Scheduling around research

Experiments run on their own clocks. Commercial crews work evenings, weekends and holidays by arrangement, so you can shut down on Friday and be back at the bench Monday. If cold storage or long incubations are involved, build the move date around them, not the other way around.

Planning resources

The guide planning a laboratory move covers timelines and questions to ask. Equipment that needs a crate is described on custom crating. Temporary holding is available through commercial storage.