Have you ever walked into a lab as a tech and wondered, "Who in the world designed this space?" Experienced techs can easily recognize a lab space where operators were not involved in the design.
Lab buildouts and renovations can be huge projects that involve multiple resources, including architects, lab planners, contractors, and laboratory executives. These project participants bring their own expertise, but few have day-to-day lab operations experience. Often, the executives commissioning the build may understand the laboratory’s strategic goals without detailed knowledge of current bench workflows and operational dependencies. It’s not uncommon for teammates with that information to be invited to the design process too late. Once lab representatives are included, major decisions may already have been made, preventing optimal use of the space.
Bring operational input in before design decisions are locked
Typically, lab design projects follow five phases: site selection and programming, schematic design, design development, construction documents, and construction and commissioning. Operational input is most influential in the schematic design phase. By the design development phase, most spatial decisions are confirmed. Almost any change after the construction document phase results in significant cost penalties. Operational considerations are best identified before schematic design begins to avoid costly issues.
Alternatively, some projects bring in too many people to design conversations. A room full of techs from different departments can create lots of confusion. Both approaches can lead to the same result: a poorly designed lab. Poor design decisions can create lasting consequences for the lab team. Workflow inefficiencies that affect TAT, ergonomic issues, and even safety concerns can all result from the wrong people making design choices. These effects can be costly to both the company and patients.
Assign an operational gatekeeper
Who can prevent many of these issues? I call this person the operational gatekeeper, the individual responsible for coordinating operational input during the design process. The gatekeeper knows which SMEs to involve at each design stage. They can filter the information provided and translate it into actionable guidance for design teams. This gatekeeper is not required to know the workflows in every department, but they do need to identify and engage the appropriate SMEs. The gatekeeper’s role is not to make every decision, but instead, ensure that design decisions are based on operational expertise before they are too expensive to correct.
Interested in lab design?
Instinctively, you might think that the lab manager would be the right candidate for gatekeeper. For many labs, that may be true. In larger laboratories, though, there may be various technologies and workflows to consider. The lab manager is likely not an SME in every department, so their input will be limited. Another consideration is that managers who have been in administrative roles longer may have outdated workflow knowledge. The lab manager must be able to determine, if they are not the right candidate, who is. Good candidates include:
- A bench supervisor with interdepartmental knowledge/experience.
- A lead tech that covers multiple departments regularly. They are comfortable managing daily workflows.
- An outside operations consultant who has exposure to multiple versions of departmental workflows. They could assist with creating optimizations within the new design.
An effective gatekeeper has two qualities:
- Operational credibility: They have a good understanding of the different workflows, departmental challenges, and dependencies. They know what works, what doesn't, and why. They also understand how department staffing patterns may influence workflow.
- Organizational authority: They are trusted by the SME team, and they can gather relevant information. They can also effectively communicate the needs of the lab to the design team.
If this gatekeeper does not have both qualities, the information they provide the design team will be incomplete and unreliable.
Define the lab manager’s role
The lab manager’s responsibility is to appoint the gatekeeper. They inform them of the scope and expectations and hold regular check-ins throughout the design and buildout process. The check-ins should be structured to review finalized decisions, compromises made, active risks, and items requiring executive escalation. Delegating the gatekeeper role to another does not relieve them of accountability. The lab manager remains responsible for the quality of the operational input provided to the design team, even if they don’t personally coordinate its collection.
During design meetings, the gatekeeper coordinates the lab's operational voice. They will provide the design team with departmental requirements and limitations in the early stages of the design. They will review proposed floor plans and schematics and speak to potential conflicts or issues in real time. It is important to give the design team clear direction. Sometimes, they may request additional time to review a detail with the SME team and follow up accordingly.
Surface design constraints early
The gatekeeper must stay up to date on finalized design decisions and communicate that information with the lab manager regularly. Design limitations will create contingencies. These should be surfaced and discussed as early as possible. For example, a laboratory may prefer to create a workflow space that requires a water source, but the spatial design prevents it from being installed. If plumbing to the area is the obstacle, the gatekeeper can help the team determine if the workflow can be relocated or if an alternative water source would meet the requirements without compromising safety, quality, and efficiency.
The gatekeeper facilitates regular SME team meetings between design meetings. They review the proposed designs with the team for acceptability and gather feedback and suggestions if designs need adjustments. They take that feedback and translate it into actionable notes. Examples of some feedback from the SME team to a design team could be:
- Workflows that have changed during the design process that create new requirements.
- Realization of a need for more equipment clearance than spec sheets show.
- Shift staffing considerations that require different layouts to support capacity.
Another responsibility of the gatekeeper is helping the SME team understand limitations of space. They may also help with managing their expectations. They can help the SME team distinguish between their needs and wants for a space and advocate appropriately.
Account for the details design teams may miss
Due to their limited lab knowledge, some design teams won’t know to ask these specifics about clinical lab spaces:
- Equipment validation space: The extra temporary space required to hold instruments that require side-by-side validations during relocations. These duplicate instruments may not be a part of the final workflow.
- Clean and dirty spaces: Most labs have designated clean and dirty spaces. Walking paths to these areas and high-traffic zones must be considered.
- Specimen movement: The actual physical movement of specimens through a lab space. Sometimes the “on paper” version of these movements is not accurate.
- Flexibility of volume shifts: Volumes in labs are rarely static, and the capacity of the peak volume must be the baseline. Potential room for growth is also a factor to include.
- Automation lines: The presence of conveyor belts and other automation requires planning for walking paths and standing clearance.
- Instrument clearance requirements: The user-identified clearance required to use multiple instruments simultaneously without workflow impediment. Also, the clearance to perform maintenance. This is not found on instrument spec sheets.
Appoint the gatekeeper early
If you know your lab is planning a buildout or renovation soon, identify the gatekeeper as early as possible. This will allow them time to create a strong strategy for collecting and providing information. I recommend inviting them, even as an observer, to the site selection process and any early spatial design meetings.
Moving into a new or renovated lab space is stressful. Moving into a space that didn't consider workflows can be even more frustrating. For the lab manager and the gatekeeper, this front-end work is a real investment. This investment creates a much better outcome for the laboratory. Smoother construction phase, fewer change orders after construction, an easier move-in, and significant cost savings are all rewards of a good design strategy. The best lab spaces are created by design teams that have the right resources from the beginning. Done right, no one will walk into your new lab and wonder who designed it. They’ll know.
