RoomTemperatureBiologicalSampleStorage

StanfordUniversityPilot

Preparedby

GregoryD.Jensen,ManagementConsultant,SustainableBioVentures

May2009

LandCommunity Transportation Students WasteWater BuildingsEnergy

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FigureA 10YearAccumulatedSavings

ExecutiveSummary

StanfordUniversitycouldcutusageofelectricitybyfortymillionkilowatthours(kWh),reduceitscarbonfootprintbyanestimatedeighteenthousandmetrictonsandsave$16milliondollarsinoperatingcostsoverthenexttenyearsbytransferringbiologicalsamplesfromfrozenstoragetoroomtemperaturestoragetechnology.(FigureA)

Background:Over350laboratoriesandthousandsofresearchersacrossStanfordUniversityareadvancingbiologicalandbiomedicalresearchgeneratinglargecollectionsofbiologicalsamples.Thesesamplesarebothscientificallyandfinanciallyvaluabletotheresearcherandtheuniversity.Oftenirreplaceable,samplecollectionsatStanfordaregrowingatanescalatingrate.Hundredsofscientificfreezersacrosscampusareneededtosafelystorethecurrentsamplecollectionconsuminglargeamountsofenergy,preciousresearchdollars,andvaluablespace.

Objective:ThepilotstudysetouttoallowadiversegroupofStanfordresearchlaboratoriestotransferbiologicalsamplesfromfreezerstoroomtemperaturestorage.Thestudyalsointendedtoevaluateandgenerateaforecastofenvironmental,financialandadditionalbenefitsofauniversitywideprogramtoimplementthetechnology.

Methods:StanfordSustainabilityandEnergyManagement(SEM)recentlycommissionedandcompletedapilotprojecttoestimatepotentialbenefitsofroomtemperaturesamplestorageusinganewtechnology.StanfordsuppliedreagentsandmaterialstotwelvepilotlaboratoriesfromtheSchoolofMedicineandBiologyDepartment.Asophisticatedforecastmodelwasdevelopedusinginformationfromapilotgroupoflabs,fourteenadditionallaboratories,otherStanfordspecificdata,andindustrytrendstoestimatethepotentialcampuswidebenefits.

KeyFindingsandConclusions:

Anestimatedninetothirteenmillionsamples(representing2025%ofthetotalStanfordsamplecollection)couldbemovedfromfreezerstoroomtemperaturetechnology.

Theinitialinvestmentintransferringthesesamplescouldberecoveredwithinthreetofiveyearsunderabroadimplementationprogram.

TheprogramcouldgenerateanestimatedeleventotwentymilliondollarsincostreductionsaswellaspreventseventeentotwentythousandtonsofCO2fromenteringtheenvironment.

Inadditiontodirectbenefits,transferredsampleswouldbeshieldedfromdegradationduetopowerdisruptions,andthousandsofsquarefeetoflabspacecouldbeliberatedforbetteruse.Benefitsrevealedinthisreportcouldberealizedimmediatelyandcontinuetogeneratesavingsformanyyears.

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Figure1 TenYearAccumulatedEnergyandCosttoMaintainFreezer

RoomTemperatureSampleStoragePilotProjectReport

StanfordUniversityisarecognizedleaderinsustainability,asacknowledgedbytheSustainableEndowmentsInstituteinits2008CollegeSustainabilityReportCardi.Eventhoughmuchhasbeenachieved,asignificantopportunitytoimprovesustainabilityatStanfordremainsuntappedwithinthefreezersofitsbiologicalandmedicallaboratories.Stanfordhousesnearly2000freezersinmorethan350laboratoriesacrossitscampus.Eachyearthesefreezersconsumeanestimated39,700MillionBTUs(MBTU)ofenergy,generate3,600tonsofcarbondioxide(CO2)andcost$5.6milliontooperate.

Accordingtocapitalequipmentrecords,theUniversitypurchasesanaverageof40newultralowtemperaturefreezerseachyeartoaccommodategrowthofitsbiologicalsamplecollectionandreplaceagingequipment.iiWhilemaintainingthecurrentsamplecollectionseemsdaunting,industryexpertsanticipatethesamplegenerationratetodoubleinthenexttwoyears,drivenbyanincreasingnumberofsamplesgeneratedbyagrowingnumberofclinicaltrials,newtechnology,personalizedmedicineandstemcellresearch.

CurrentChallenges

EnergyUse:Stanfordsfreezercollectionisprojectedtoconsume564,000MBTUandgenerate51,000metrictonsofCO2atanaccumulatedcostof$69Millionduringthenexttenyears.Figure1illustratesthechallengefacingStanfordnowandoverthenexttenyearsduetoitsrelianceoncurrentmethodsofstoringandprotectingitsbiologicalsamples.

SpaceUtilization:Inadditiontotheescalatingcostandenergydrain,eachfreezeroccupies30squarefeetofvaluablelabspace,whichisputtingpressureonplanningforfuturegrowth.Assumingthecurrent5%peryeargrowthrateforthefreezercollection,Stanfordwouldhavenearly3,000freezersintenyears,whichwouldoccupynearly96,000squarefeetoflabspaceoraboutonefifthofthetotalwetlabspace,notincludingsupportspaceiii.

AprojectionofthegrowthofStanfordsfreezercollectionbelowinTable1isbasedonahistoricalgrowthrateof5%peryearforultralowfreezers.However,theexpectationsforhiringmedicalschoolfacultyandexpandingcurrentprogramscoulddrivethecurrentandfuturegrowthratesignificantlyhigher.Accordingtoprojections

StanfordUniversityToday350*Laboratories2000*Freezers610,000SquareFeetWetLabSpace*EstimatebasedonStanforddata

AnnualSampleStorageImpact40,000MillionBTUs3,600metricTonsofCO2$5,600,000operatingcost

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fromtheofficeofinstitutionalplanning,theSchoolofMedicineplanstohirenearlyonehundrednewresearchfacultyby2014a33%increase.ivInadditiontoanincreaseinfaculty,medicalschoolleadershipanticipatesanincreaseinsamplegenerationratefromresearchersconductinganincreasingnumberofpopulationstudies.

Freezers 20082013Forecast

2018Forecast

UltraLowTempfreezers80C 735 938 1,197

LowTempFreezers20C 1224* 1,562 1,994

TotalFreezers 1,959 2,500 3,191

FreezerFootprint(SQFeet) 58,770 75,007 95,730

AdditionalFactorsnotIncludedAboveLikelytoexacerbatefreezergrowthfiguressignificantly

33%growthexpectedinmedicalschoolfacultyby2014 Projectedincreaseinsamplegenerationratesduetonewtechnologyandpopulationstudies Newlabconstructionspacelimitations

*Estimatednumberof20basedonpilotgroupdata

Table1PredictedFreezerGrowthatStanford

TheOpportunity

GiventhegrowthexpectationsofStanfordsbiologicalsamplecollection,whichincreasinglydemandsmoreenergy,spaceandmoneytomaintain,asustainablealternativeisneededtoslowfreezerdemand.Nonfreezerdependantstoragetechnologiesarealternativestocurrentpracticesthatpromisetoreduceenergyconsumption,spacedemandsandescalatingcostsgeneratedbylaboratoriesstoringsamplesinfrozenenvironments.

StanfordUniversityPilotStudyObjective

TheobjectiveofthispilotstudywastoevaluatethepotentialofroomtemperaturestoragetosaveenergyandreducecarbonfootprintbyallowingStanfordsresearcherstosafelystorebiologicalsampleswithouttheneedoffreezers.

WhileroomtemperaturetechnologyhasthepotentialtohelpreduceStanfordsdependencyonfrozenstorage,thishypothesisneededtobeproven.Tothisend,theDepartmentofStanfordSustainabilityandEnergyManagement(SEM)initiatedapilotstudyofanewtechnologyduringthefallof2008.

RoomTemperatureSampleStorageTechnology

Thenewtechnologyevaluatedinthisstudyenablessafestorageofbiologicalmaterialatroomtemperature.Thetechnologypreventsthedegradationofbiologicalmaterialsatroomtemperature,eliminatingtheneedforcoldstorageandcoldshipping.Biomolecules,suchasDNA,RNAandbacteriacanbestabilizedatambienttemperaturesprovidingacosteffectivealternativetostoringsamplesinfreezersandcoldshipping.

ThetechnologyisbasedonextremophilebiologyoriginallyidentifiedbyDr.JohnCrowe,ProfessorEmeritusUCDavis.vUsingextremophilebiology,organismssuchastardigradesandbrineshrimpareabletoprotecttheir

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DNA,RNA,proteins,membranesandcellularsystemsforlongtermsurvivalinadriedstateoranhydrobiosis(lifewithoutwater)andlaterrevivebysimplerehydration.Thistechnologymimicsthenaturalmolecularmechanismsusedbytheseorganisms.Thetechnologyworksbyformingathermostablebarrierduringthedryingprocesstoprotectsamplesfromdegradationduringstorageatroomtemperature(Figure2and3).

TheproductsevaluatedinthispilotprovidelongtermstorageofpurifiedDNAandRNAsamples.Thetechnologycaneasilyaccommodateavarietyofstoragecontainers,therebyfacilitatingefficientsampletransferfromexistingcollectionsorthecreationofnewones.

PilotGroupLaboratorySelection

ResearchersrespondedenthusiasticallytotheinvitationtoparticipateinthepilotstudyfromtheStanfordDeanofBiologyandSr.AssociateDeanofResearchintheStanfordSchoolofMedicine.Thepilotgroupwasestablishedwithintwoweeks,andmanyadditionalinterestedlaboratoriesappliedtoparticipate.

TwelvelaboratorieswithavarietyofresearchfocusareaswereselectedfromStanfordsSchoolofMedicineandBiologyDepartment.Adiversesetoflaboratoriesinthepilotgroupprovidedinsightintotheapplicabilityoftheroomtemperaturetechnologywithinavarietyoflaboratorysettings.Inaddition,thegroup,whilenotarandomsample,doesprovideareasonableproxyformakingpredictionsaboutthebroaderpopulationoflaboratoriesatStanford.Labsbeyondthecorepilotgroupprovidedinformationaboutsamplecollectionsandlabequipmentincreasingtheamountofknowndatatoimproveforecastaccuracy.

Figure2Structuralpredictionofbiostabilitymatrixinteractingwithnucleicacids

Figure3 Electronmicrographofprotectivethermostablebarrier

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PilotParticipationGroup

Thepilotgroupincludeslaboratoriesfromtendifferentdepartments,amicroarraycorecancerfacility,apediatricpsychiatryclinicallab,onetissuebankandoneplantbiologylaboratory.Alllaboratorieshavecommonsamplerequirementsofbiologicalresearchlaboratorieswithmolecularorcellularfocus(Table2).

LaboratoryDescription MedicalSchool Biology

Morethan100,000addressablesamples(Corefacilityandlargegenomiclab)

1 1

1,000to10,000addressablesamples 4 Lessthan1,000samples 6

Totalsampletransferlaboratories 11 1

Laboratoriesonwaitinglist(samplecollectiondataonly) 13 1

Totallaboratories 26

Participantsprovidedextensiveinformationabouttheirsamplecollections,includingsampleformatsandtypes,freezerstoragetemperature,samplegenerationrates,andthenumberoffreezersusedtocontaineachsamplecollection.Thedatafromthelabsprovideddetailaboutthesamplesstoredineachlabincludingthenumberofcandidatesamplesandprovidedbetterunderstandingofsamplemanagementpractices.

DataAnalysisandMethodology

Nearlyonemillioncandidatesampleswerediscoveredinthefreezersofparticipatinglabsinthepilotgroup.Basedontheirsamplecollection,eachpilotparticipantreceivedroomtemperaturestoragetechnologyreagents,storagecabinetsandsampletrackingsoftware..Thesematerialsfacilitatedthetransferofnearlyseventythousandsamplesoutoftheonemillionaddressablesamplesdiscoveredinthepilotgroup.Samplecollectionsoftwentysixlaboratorieswereassessed.

Aninteractiveanalysistoolwascreatedusingaspreadsheetprogram,toprovideanaccuratemodelofthecostsoffrozenstorageperbiologicalsample.Themodelwasdesignedtoaccountforvarioussamplestorageformats,samplelocations,laborrequirements,maintenancerequirementsandnumerousotherparameters.AllassumptionswereverifiedbyreliableindustrysourcesandvalidatedthroughextensiveinterviewsofStanfordpersonnelinutilities,facilitymanagementgroup,purchasingandtheSchoolofMedicine.Assumptionswerefurthersupportedthroughactualdatagainedfromdetailedsurveyresponsesfromthepilotgroup.Energyandcostsavingsdatafromthepilotgroupwerecalculatedtoprovidethebasistoforecastthecampuswidesamplecollection.Finally,theprojectionsinthemodelallowedinputofvariousgrowthratestoenablegenerationofconservative,moderateandaggressivescenarios.

Thepilotdataprovidedthebasisforusingthemodeltomakeaconservativeestimateofthetotalnumberofaddressablesamplesoncampus.Theprojectionishighlyinfluencedbythepredicteddistributionofsample

Table2PilotParticipantGroup

PilotGroup Results

NumberofaddressableSamples 923,000(DNAandRNA)

NumberofFreezers 34UltraLow(70C80C)

59LowTemperature(20C)

Table3 PilotSurveyData

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containerformatandwasguidedbythepilotgroupsamplecollection.Usingthepilotgroupdataanddistributionofsamplecontainerformat,apredictionofbetweenninetothirteenmillionaddressablesampleswasgenerated.Thecontainerformatofthesesamplesisclassifiedintofourcategoriesbasedonthefourmostcommoncontainervolumesfoundinresearch.ThedistributionassumptionsusedinthemodelarelistedinTable4.

ContainerFormatTemperature

HighDensity MediumHigh MediumLow LowDensity

UltraLow(80) 4% 6% 57% 0%

Low(20C) 4% 6% 23% 0%

EnergyConsumptionPerSample LowHigh

Table4CampuswideProjectionofContainerFormatDistribution

Highdensitysamplecontainersoccupysmallervolumespersampleandthereforeconsumelessenergypersamplevolumethanlowdensitycontainerformats.Themodelwasdesignedtoallocateenergyconsumptionofasamplebyformat;thereforecarefulconsiderationhadtobegiventotheformatdistributionofthepilotgroup.Thedistributionpercentagesofthepilotgroupguidedareasonabledistributionforthepredictednumberofsamplesoncampus.EvidencethatthepercentagesinTable3areconservativewasprovidedbyapreviousfreezerstudyconductedintheSchoolofMedicinein2007,whichfoundthatnearly90%ofsamplesinultralowtemperaturefreezerswereinmediumlowcategory.viIfthepercentageofsamplesatlowerdensityiscloserto90%,thenthepotentialsavingsforStanfordcouldincreasedramaticallyduetotheenergyrequiredtostoreagreaternumberoflowerdensitysamples.

Animportantbenefittononfrozenstorageisthefreedomtostoresamplesathigherdensitythaninthefrozenenvironment,whichcangenerateevengreatersavings.Withinthefrozenenvironment,samplesareoftenstoredinindividualtubes,whicharetypicallymuchmorecostlyandlessefficientthanstoringmultiplesamplesinahigherdensityplatetypeformat.Researchersfavorthislessefficientenergyformatbecausetheytrytolimitthenumberoffreezethawcyclesforeachsample.Whensamplesarestoredinahigherdensityformatsuchasaninetysixwellplateforexample,theotherninetyfivesamplesarethawedwhenaresearcherneedstouseonlyonesample.Therefore,mostresearchlaboratoriesfavorindividualtubesforfrozenstorage.However,samplesstoredinambienttemperaturecanbeindividuallyaccessedwithoutanyeffecttoneighboringsampleswithinasinglestorageplate.Movingindividualtubesamplesoutoffrozenstoragetoroomtemperatureinahigherdensityformatthereforeincreasestheamountofsavingsgained.

Sinceprojectionsinthemodelrelyheavilyuponthecontainerformatsofsamplesinthepilotgroupandmanyofthesamplesinthepilotgrouptendedtostoreinhighdensitycontainers,thentheprojectedsavingsgainedbyacampuswideprogrammaybeunderstated.Therefore,aprogramthattakesadvantageofthefreedomthatroomtemperaturestorageprovidesresearcherstostoresamplesinhigherdensitycontainerformatscouldrealizeevengreatersavings.

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Cost,SavingsandResults

Accordingtomodelcalculations,transferringtheaddressablesamplesinthepilotgroupalonewouldsaveStanfordanestimated108MillionBTUofenergy,reduceCO2emissionsbyeleventonsandsavenearly$17,000everyyearbyreducingcapitalequipmentandoperationalcostsforsixfreezers.

Thepilotgroupalsoprovidedinsightintothepotentialmagnitudeofthesavingsinenergy,CO2emissionsandoperatingcoststhatcouldbebroughtaboutbymovingsamplesoutoffrozenstorageonacampuswidescale.Extensiveinterviewsofpilotparticipantsprovidedthedatafoundationtoestimatethenumberofcandidatesamplesstoredacrosscampus.Stanfordpersonnelprovidedcapitalequipmentcounts,costs,purchaseinformationandtrends,researchfacultynumbersandwetlabsquarefootagetovalidateourestimatesandmakeaccuratepredictionsaboutfuturegrowth.

Basedonthecalculationswithintheforecastmodel,Stanfordresearchlaboratoriescurrentlycontainbetweennineandthirteenmillionsamplesthatcouldbetransferredtoroomtemperaturestorage.TransferringthiscollectioncouldsavemorethantwomillionkWhofelectricity,nearlyfourhundredthousandtonhrofchilledwaterneededtocoolspace,andreducethecarbonfootprintbyasmuchaselevenhundredmetrictonsofCO2annually(Table5).

Thevaluebecomesevenmoreevidentovertenyears.Usingaconservativeannualsamplegrowthrateof10%,StanfordcouldreduceestimatedfortymillionkWhandnearlysevenmilliontonhrsofchilledwaterbyplacingcurrentandnewlygeneratedbiologicalsamplesintoroomtemperaturestorage(Figure4and5).

StanfordCampuswidePotentialAddressableSamples913millionCO2 9001100MetricT/yearElectricity 2.02.4millionkWh/yearChilledWater 340400thousandThr/year(spacecooling)

Totalenergy 1012thousandMBTU/yearCostsavings $1.21.4million/year

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ThispotentialenergyreductionwouldreducetheUniversityscarbonfootprintbyanestimatedfifteenthousandmetrictonsoverthesameperiod.Savingsofthismagnitudecouldhelpslowtheescalatingenergyandspacedemandchallengesofmaintainingthecurrentfreezerbasedsystem.

Inadditiontothesignificantenvironmentalbenefits,shiftingsamplestoroomtemperaturedramaticallyreducescosts.Thesamplesthatcouldbetransferredtoroomtemperaturestoragetoday,alongwiththesamplesprojectedtobegeneratedbyresearchoverthenextdecade(assuminga10%peryearsamplegenerationrate),wouldcostoverthirtymilliondollarstomaintaininfreezers.Usingroomtemperaturesamplestorage,Stanfordcouldrealizeanetsavingsofmorethansixteenmilliondollarsoverthenextdecadeandrecoveritsinitialinvestmentwithinthreetofiveyears(Figures6).Greatersavingsandfreezerreductioncouldberealizedasnewproductsbecomeavailableforstoringblood,serum,andproteinsamples.

Theprojectedsavingsfallintoseveralcategories(Figure7).Energysavingsfromelectricityandchilledwateraccountfornearly27%ofthetotal.Capitalequipmentandmaintenanceaccountfor40%oftheprojectedsavings,and28%ofthesavingsisgeneratedfromreclaimingthespaceoccupiedbyeachfreezer.Spacecostsareinternallyallocated,andcostpersquarefootisdeterminedbyaninternalchargeoutrate.Toavoidthepossibilityofoverstatingenergysavings,allelectricityandchilledwatercostsnormallyallocatedtowetlabspaceatStanfordarenotincludedinthespacecostpersquarefootusedinthesavingsprojection.Totalsavingsremainsignificantatnearlyonemilliondollarsannuallyandclosetoelevenmilliondollarsovertenyearseven

Figure5 AccumulatedChilledWaterSavings

Figure6 TotalAccumulatedEnergyandCostSavings

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Electricity19%

ChilledWater8%

Space28%

CapitalEquip.&Maint.40%

Other5%

whenspacesavingsareexcludedaltogether.Further,theperiodrequiredtorecovertheinitialinvestmentintransferringsamplesonlylengthensbyoneyearwhenspaceisnotgivenamonetaryvalue.Whilespacechargesareaninternaltransfer,thevalueofspaceisanimportantconsideration,particularlywithcostofnewconstructionand,asstatedpreviously,thenumberoffacultyisexpectedtoincreasealongwiththepaceofsamplegeneration.

AdditionalBenefitReducingSampleRisk

BeyondthesignificantamountofspaceallocatedanddespitethehugeinvestmentStanfordmakeseveryyeartokeepbiologicalsamplesinafrozenenvironments,thesamplesthemselvesarecurrentlyatrisk.TheStanfordcollectionisvulnerabletocatastrophiceventssuchasearthquakes,firesandsevereweatheraswellasmoremundaneequipmentfailureandaccidents.Equipmentfailuresaresocommonthatinvestigatorsanddepartmentspurchaseexcessfreezercapacitytoaccommodateregulardisruptions.

Samplelossisnotonlyasetbacktoscience,butalsoamonetarylosstotheuniversity.Evenbeforeanyresearchisperformedbyscientists,clinicalsamplesneedtobeacquiredandtheacquisitioncostcanbesignificant.Clinicalsampleacquisitioncostsrangefrom$1,000persampleandcanreachashighas$10,000forsampleswithspecializedselectioncriteria.viiOncesamplesareacquiredandresearchcommences,theirvalueincreasesovertimeasnewanalysistechnologiesaredevelopedanddiscoveriesaremadeinaparticulardiseasearea.viiiBeyondtheenergyandcostsavings,movingvaluablesamplestoroomtemperaturewillhelpreducetheriskofsamplelossduetocatastrophiceventsandotherthreats.Usingcostsfromclinicalresearcherexperienceandanestimateofthenumberofclinicalsamplesofvarioustypes,theapproximatevalueoftheStanfordsamplecollectionbasedonthesampleacquisitioncostscouldbenearlythreebilliondollars(Table5).

Table5 EstimatedValueofStanfordSampleCollection

Valuepersample %ofcollection collectionvalue

$2,50010,000 1% $1.21Billion

$5002,500 9% $0.56Billion

$100500 40% $0.79Billion

$0100 50% $0.26Billion

Total 100% $2.82Billion

Figure7 CostSavingsbyCategory

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Summary

AnalysisoftheStanfordsamplecollectionthroughthepilotstudyrevealedthesubstantialamountofenergyandexpenserequiredtoprotectStanfordscurrentbiologicalsamplecollectionfromdegradationusing

freezers.Onacampuswidescaletheuniversitywillspend$68millionoverthenextdecadetomaintainand

addtoitsfreezercollectiontoprotectvaluablesamples,notincludingcoststobuildfreezerfarms.

ImplementationofroomtemperaturestorageacrosstheStanfordcampuscouldnotonlyreduceenergyconsumptionandgreenhousegasemissions,butalsosavemoney,conservevaluablelabspaceandreduce

disasterriskofthecurrentsamplecollection.

Benefitscouldbegintoaccrueimmediatelyascomparedtoprojectswithlongconstructiontimelinesthatneedtooccurbeforeasinglekilowatthourissaved.

Themagnitudeofcostsavingsisdependentontherateofadoption,aswellastheanticipatedsamplegenerationgrowthrate.

Inaddition,integrationofroomtemperaturestoragetechnologiesintocurrentresearchworkflowscouldreduceexpenseandriskofcoldtransportation.Itcouldalsoprovideacosteffectivesolutionforoffsite

backuptofurtherprotectvaluablesamplecollections.

RecommendationsforImplementation

Thebenefitsofroomtemperaturestoragearesignificant,andcapturingthemwillrequireacareful,wellthoughtoutstrategytoincreaseadoptionandremoveanyobstacles.Thepilotstudyandparticipatinglaboratoriesprovidedvaluableinsightsintothepotentialadoptionofabroadprogramaswellasobstaclesthatwouldneedtobeaddressedforsuccessfulimplementation.ManyofthemostimportantobservationsfromthepilottoguidethedesignanddevelopmentofanimplementationplanaredocumentedinTable6.

Observations CriticalSuccessFactors

Enthusiasticresponsefromresearchers Interestinsustainablestoragealternativesatalllevels

Labsareslowtotransfersamples Laborsupportneededforsuccessfulimplementation

Perceptionbyprincipalinvestigatorsthatenergyandcostsavingsbenefitthedepartment,notthelab

Needtoproperlyincentivizelabstosupportsampletransfer

Valueofsamplesishighandimportant Samplesareirreplaceablevalueisveryimportantandmuchhigherthanthecostofstorage

LargenumbersofDNAandRNAhousedatultralowtemperature

Manysamplesoncampuseligibleforroomtemperaturestorage

Frozenenvironmentsarehardtoworkin;locatingsamplesdifficult,frequentthawsputsamplesatrisk

Roomtemperaturestorageimprovesproductivityandflexibilityintheworkenvironment

Table6Pilotobservationsandconclusions

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TranslatingthepilotstudytoasuccessfulprogramwillrequireastrongcommitmentfromleadershipwithintheSchoolofMedicineandBiologyDepartmentaswellasasupportfromtheSustainabilityandEnergyManagementGroup.

NextSteps

Conductdetailedsurveyoflaboratorysamplecollectionsoncampus CollaboratewiththeSchoolofMedicineandBiologyDepartmenttoalignincentivesaswellasestablish

politicalsupportwithintheorganization

Understandhowsampletransfercanbetranslatedintofreezerpurchasereductionorshutoff Createappropriateincentivesfordepartments,principalinvestigatorsandindividualresearchersto

motivateadoption

Developprogramwithlargerservicelaboratoriesorcorefacilitiestofacilitateandsupportconsistentsampletransferandmanagement

Includeformalizedprocessfororganizationalchangetotakeadvantageofeasysampletransferandeducationopportunitiessuchasretiringprofessors,newhires,andpostdoctoralandPhDturnover

Provideconsistentinformationaroundprogramincentivesandbenefits,publishsuccessandestablishfeedbackmechanisms

IdentifyamanagerandstafftodevelopimplementationplanforlargescalesampletransferStudyScopeandLimitationsTheforecastinthisstudyprovidesanestimateofStanfordsbiologicalsamplecollectionbasedondataobtainedfromasubsetoftheentirepopulation.Whilethenumberofpilotlabsissufficienttoprovideanaccuratepredictionofthebenefitsandcostsofaroomtemperatureprogramtheydonotprovideastatisticalrandomsampleandaresubjecttoselectionbias.ThegroupisintendedtoprovideadiversesamplewhichcouldrepresenttheStanfordpopulationofresearchlaboratories.

Manyoftheassumptionsinthispredictionarebasedonconservativeassumptionsandthereforemayunderestimatethesavingspotentialofaroomtemperatureprogram.Studyresultsarebasedoncurrentlyavailabletechnologyandshouldbeupdatedasnewtechnologyenablesagreaternumberofsampletypestobestoredatroomtemperature.

Otherroomtemperaturestoragetechnologiesdoexist;however,thescopeofthispilotdidnotincludeevaluationoftheseproducts.Inordertoaccuratelyforecastthebenefitsofothertechnologies,additionalproductspecificinformationwouldbeneeded,includingtransferprotocolsandlabortime,productcosts,supportingequipmentcosts,storagesampleformatsandaddressablesampletypes.Duringthepilotstudymanybenefitswereuncoveredinadditiontothosegeneratedbymovingsamplesoutoffreezerswhichcouldbestudiedingreaterdepthtoquantifythesebenefitsingreatermeasure.

InformationInquiriesForfurtherinformationregardingthisstudypleasecontactGregJensenatjensen_greg@gsb.stanford.eduorSusanKulakowskiatsusank@bonair.stanford.edu.

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AcknowledgementsThisreportisthecompilationofinsightsandexpertiseofmanypeopleincludingthoselistedbelow.InadditiontotheseindividualsseveralorganizationscontributedtotheinformationinthisreportincludingStanfordUniversitySchoolofMedicine,StanfordMapsandRecords,StanfordProcurement,andStanfordSustainabilityandEnergyManagement.ProjectLeadGregJensen,ManagementConsultant,SustainableBioVenturesStanfordSustainabilityandEnergyManagementSusanKulakowski,DemandSideEnergyManager,SustainabilityandEnergyManagement(StanfordLead)MikeGoff,DirectorofUtilities,SustainabilityandenergyManagementJoeStagner,ExecutiveDirector,SustainabilityandEnergyManagementStanfordSchoolofMedicineDr.DariaMochlyRosen,SeniorAssociateDeanforResearchJuliaTussing,AssociateDeanforEducationalPrograms&ServicesCathyBooth,LaboratoryManagementTimGadus,Space&AssetsManagerDonRust,HealthandSafetySpecialistJohnColler,StanfordFunctionalGenomicsFacilitySpecialthankstoJaimePerena,DataAnalysisExpert,SustainableBioVenturesforhisexpertiseandadvicedevelopingtheforecastmodeltoanalyzeandcharacterizetheeconomic,energyandenvironmentalbenefitsofroomtemperaturestoragetechnology.iStanfordPressRelease,September24,2008,Stanfordscoreshighforsustainabilityinnationalstudy,http://newsservice.stanford.edu/pr/2008/prcard092408.htmliiCathyBooth,LaboratoryManagement,MolecularandCellularPhysiologyDepartmentStanfordUniversityiiiTimGadus,SpaceandFacilities,StanfordSchoolofMedicineivDavidObrien,OfficeofInstitutionalPlanning,StanfordSchoolofMedicinevCroweJH,etal.,(1999).Ann.Rev.Physiol.1998;60:73103viDonRust,HealthandSafetyManagement,StanfordSchoolofMedicineviiPersonalconversation,Dr.JoachimHallmayer,PediatricPsychiatry,StanfordSchoolofMedicine,December12,2008viiiPersonalconversation,Dr.DavidHirschberg,DirectorHumanImmuneMonitoringCenter,StanfordSchoolofMedicine,December16,2008