The Management Regulations for the Public Service Platform of Environmental Research Facilities (PSP-ERF) of the School of Environmental Science and Engineering
The Public Service Platform of Environmental Research Facilities (PSP-ERF, hereinafter referred to as the “platform”) of Environment Experimental Center, the School of Environmental Science and Engineering at Huazhong University of Science & Technology, (hereinafter referred to as the "Experimental Center") is an important technical support platform for scientific research and teaching. The Regulation is hereby formulated to strengthen the management of instruments and equipment in the instrument platform， control the use of platform instruments, improve the utilization rate of instruments and the degree of openness and sharing, create a good operating environment and better serve for scientific research. All platform users must strictly follow the Regulation.
Chapter I Safety Administration Regulations
1. Clothing must meet the experimental requirements. Users must wear a white gown and non-slip shoes protecting the entire feet. It is forbidden to open and close the door with gloves. Long hair must not droop directly so as to avoid personal injury.
2. The liquid and solid wastes generated in experiments must be separately collected and disposed of. Liquid wastes must be classified into organic and inorganic liquids, and transferred into the liquid waste barrels designated for the platform. If solid wastes cannot be disposed of as ordinary domestic waste due to toxicity, potential biologic safety or other reasons, users within the school must bring it back to the user's laboratory for sorting and disposal, and users inside or outside the university must bring it to the exclusive sorting and disposal point of the experimental center. It is forbidden to pour liquid wastes and experimental solid wastes into the water tank.
3. The users are strictly forbidden to bring unrelated personnel into the platform laboratory without permission.
4. No use of plug boards. No use of platform socket for charging and no use of other self-contained electrical equipment. No use of electric stoves and open flames and smoking in the platform laboratory.
5. It is not recommended to perform overnight experiments in the laboratory. If overnight experiments are required, an overnight experiment request must be submitted as required. No carrying of flammable, explosive, toxic and hazardous substances/reagents into the platform laboratory
6. Sharp objects such as glass, blades and needles must not be discarded into the trash cans. Users within the school must bring it back to the user's laboratory for sorting and disposal, and users inside or outside the university must bring it to the exclusive sorting and disposal point of the experimental center.
7. The instruments and experimental table must be cleaned after completing the experiments. Personal experimental articles must be brought away from the platform. The experimental environment must be kept clean and tidy. The requirements for the economy and safety must be executed. The last person who leaves the laboratory must check and turn off water, electricity and gas, and close the doors and windows.
8. Platform users must have a strong awareness of fire protection and be able to use firefighting equipment. Hidden fire hazards must be reported in a timely manner.
9. The activities unrelated to experiments must not be performed in the platform laboratory, such as entertainment, eating, and making loud noise.
10. If any emergency or suspicious person is found, immediately contact the platform manager and report to the gatekeeper of the building.
11. Safety related to the use of gas cylinders should be strictly implemented in accordance with the relevant documents of the School and university.
Chapter II Regulations on the Administration of Instruments
1. The platform manages the research instruments and equipment of Schools sponsored by the "Double First-Class" project in a unified manner, guarantees the operation. The overall goal of the platform construction is to provide services for discipline construction and development of the School, and to build an interdisciplinary public technical support system with advanced equipment and management level.
2. Platform instruments are divided into three categories: (1) instruments subject to dedicated management and use, such as Ion Chromatograph and Total Organic Carbon, etc, to be operated by the management personnel or under on-site guidance of management personnel; (2) instruments for conditional use, to be operated by the trained user with permission, such as Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometer (ICP), Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS), X-Ray Fluorescence Spectrometer (XRF), Scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and laser scanning confocal microscope (CLSM), etc. (3) instruments for self-service, to be used after self-training.
3. All instruments will be charged. For charging details, see the separate file “List of Instruments Available on Public Service Platform of Environmental Research Facilities”(non-scheduled updated).
4. The platform manager implements the management of post A and Post B. Post A is the person in charge of instrument management, responsible for the overall affairs of the instrument. B is an auxiliary post, which is mainly held by other teachers or doctoral students of the instrument platform of the experiment center, and is responsible for assisting the management and guidance of the instrument.
5. Equipment and articles that do not belong to the platform shall not be placed on the public platform. Students shall not conduct experiments unrelated to the platform on the public platform. Platform users must not move out/in the instruments or lend public instruments without permission. The laboratory manager also has no right to lend instruments without permission.
6. Users must take care of instruments, strictly follow the operating procedures of instruments, and report any problem to the manager in a timely manner. Unauthorized operation is prohibited so as to avoid damage to instruments. Any abnormality, loss or suspected theft of instruments must be reported to the platform manager in a timely manner.
7. It is forbidden to remove and modify the instrument components, change the instrument parameter settings without authorization, change the indoor ventilation and temperature control without permission. If indeed needed, these operations must be approved by the manager, and original settings must be restored after use.
8. Never leave the operation site while using the instrument. For ICP, CLSM, etc., users can leave the operation site with the approval by the manager, however have to fill the expected departure time and the contact information in the use record form when leaving. When the user is absent, the working status of platform instruments must be checked on a regular basis.
9. The use record form must be truthfully registered. Abnormalities must be recorded in the “Remarks” column and reported to the manager. The platform manager will check the use record on an irregular basis based on the reservation record.
10. Experimental data must be saved in the designated folder of the computer and processed in time. Data disks will be cleared regularly and not be kept for a long time. Please copy data using a CD-ROM or a single data transmission system. Users are not recommended to copy data using a USB flash drive.
Chapter III Regulations on Training assessment and Appointment Management
1. Users need to pass the training and assessment before obtaining the use permission. Users must register in the platform to get permission and make a reservation for the use of platform instruments. For the specific registration and reservation process.
2. Reservation must be made for the use of all instruments of the platform. Reservation, card swiping and use must be performed by the same person. Reservation and use must not be performed on behalf of others.
3. All instruments in the platform must be reserved in advance and the preferred time for reservation is working hours. To ensure normal operation of instruments and save costs, the appointment on the same day must be arranged continuously without interruption unless special circumstances. In case of special circumstances, such as equipment failure, teaching conflict and other events that affect the normal testing, the users should follow the unified arrangements of the platform administrator.
4. Users of the platform must fill in the reservation information accurately and complete the test as agreed. If the test cannot be completed on time due to special circumstances or the actual use is inconsistent with the reservation, please contact the platform administrator at least two hours in advance for the adjustment and fill in the usage record truthfully. If the adjustment is not made within the specified time, the instrument will be used normally by default, and the fee will be charged according to the appointment.
5. Independent operation of the instrument, must go through the instrument management personnel training and recognition, sign the "safe operation commitment", issued the instrument training certificate, valid for three months, in strict accordance with the instrument operation procedures to correctly use the instrument, a year later need to pass the instrument management personnel assessment, change the certificate (valid for one year) before independent operation of the machine.
6. Training and assessment instruments include but not limited to: (1) inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer; (2) X-ray fluorescence spectrometer; (3) Laser scanning confocal microscope; (4) Atomic force microscope; (5) Electron paramagnetic resonance spectrometer; (6) Fluorescence spectrometer; (7) Atomic absorption spectrometer; (8) Scanning electron microscopy; (9) X-ray diffractometer, etc.
7. The platform administrator will release the instrument training information from time to time, and then the users can register and attend the relevant training on time as needed. For users who fail to attend the training on time, the platform will not arrange centralized training, but permit them to study by themselves or make reservation for individual training, and attend the assessment.
8. If requesting individual training, please contact the platform administrator in advance, and the training fee will be charged according to the using time of instruments or the training time.
9. The training fee will be waived for the first-time registration on the training. Users who are absent without any reason after registration will be charged according to the actual training time. Those who repeat the training will be charged according to the actual training time.
10. The fee for the first assessment of each instrument will be waived; those who take repeated assessment will be charged according to the actual assessment time.
Chapter IV Penalty Regulation for Violations
1. A 8-week suspension of the permission for platform use if duplicating access control cards without permission and unauthorized removal of instruments or related accessories from the platform. If instruments are lost for the above reasons, the user’s research team must be responsible for the compensation at the original price, and the personnel concerned will be transferred to the School security office or public security agency.
2. Damage to the instruments or accessories for the following reasons (subject to the inspection conclusion of the manufacturer’s engineer) will be deemed as a liability accident:
1) Noncompliance with the operating procedures of instruments;
2) Unauthorized disassembly or modification of instruments;
3) Damage to instruments due to changes in their parameters;
4) Noncompliance with the instrument manager’s instructions or use without authorization;
5) Unauthorized use of USB flash disks, resulting in viruses and software crash in the computer.
The permission for the user concerned will be suspended for 4 weeks, and the user concerned must be trained again until he/she passes the assessment again. Meanwhile, the user’s team must be responsible for the compensation with the same object or at the original price. In the case of partial damage or loss that does not affect use after repair, compensation must be made at the actual maintenance cost.
3. Compensation must be performed at the original price if other facilities (e.g. the air-conditioner, dehumidifier and laboratory bench) of the platform are damaged, and the permission for platform use must be suspended for 2 weeks.
4. If instruments are damaged during the normal use, the user concerned must notify the instrument manager immediately. In the case of continued use without reporting or no reporting that negatively affects the subsequent use, the permission for platform use must be suspended for 2 weeks.
5. If the user fails to report the abnormality (e.g. abnormal sound or noise, liquid leakage, water overflow of the air-conditioner and dehumidifier), loss or suspected theft of the instruments to the platform manager in a timely manner, the permission for platform use must be suspended for 2 weeks.
6. Compensation must be made with a certain discount if an instrument is not shut down as required after use, resulting in the shortening of the service life of expensive consumables (e.g. the confocal laser), and the permission for the user concerned must be suspended for 1 week.
7. The person who uses the platform without registration will be reported to the School guards and security office. If a registered person uses the platform without the operation authorization, the permission for platform use must be suspended for 4 weeks.
8. All instruments of the platform must be used with reservation; otherwise, the permission for platform use must be suspended for 2 weeks.
9. The reservation, card swiping, and operation must be consistent; otherwise, the permission for platform use must be suspended for 2 weeks. Anyone outside the school who uses the accounts of teachers and students of the school to make an appointment without permission must be suspended for 2 weeks and fined 3 times the price of the test.
10. If an experiment is not completed within the reserved period and lasts to next reserved period, negotiation is recommended first. If negotiation fails and further causes the losses to next user, the permission for the user involved in overtime use must be suspended for 2 weeks.
11. The permission for platform use must be suspended for 1 week If data is copied with USB flash disks without permission,
12. The permission for platform use must be suspended for 1 week if the record form is not filled out truthfully after use.
13. The first violation of safety management regulations of the platform will lead to a warning. In the event of further violations, the permission for platform use must be suspended for 1 week. If serious consequences are caused, the platform permission will be revoked. If the equipment or accessories are damaged due to violation of the platform safety management regulations, the research group shall make compensation accordingly.
14. For other violations not listed in the above regulations, the management teachers of the platform will discuss and decide how to deal with them. If the circumstances are serious, they will be reported to the School to discuss and decide how to deal with them.
15. For all the aforesaid violations, real-name notifications and criticisms will be made in the platform management QQ group in addition to the corresponding punishments.
Chapter V Incentive System (Trial)
1. In order to improve the use efficiency of large instruments, fully mobilize the enthusiasm of the relevant staff of the instrument platform, encourage users inside and outside the school to use the instrument and equipment of the platform to carry out analysis and testing, and produce more and higher levels of scientific research results on the basis of making full use of the platform equipment, According to the "Huazhong University of Science and Technology Management Measures for Large Instruments and Equipment" (campus [2010] No. 15) and "Huazhong University of Science and Technology Implementation Measures for Various Types of Income Generation Income Distribution" (Campus finance [2016] No. 6), the platform will implement an incentive system.
1.1 The School set up a large instrument and equipment use efficiency award to promote the sharing of large instrument and equipment resources, strengthen the open service inside and outside the school, and improve the use efficiency of equipment. The School will reward assistant management students who have made outstanding contributions to the use and management of large instruments and equipment with certificates of awards, and give priority to the maintenance costs of large instruments and equipment.
1.2 Research groups that introduce faculty and students from outside the School or joint training to our large-scale instrument platform for testing, will be rewarded with an appropriate amount of testing machine hours (up to 20% of the fee charged outside the School)..
2. In order to encourage users inside and outside the school to use the platform's instruments and equipment, and to produce more and high-level results on the basis of making full use of the platform's equipment, the platform will implement the machine-time reward system on a trial basis. At the end of each year, the platform will determine the total amount of additional machine-time reward based on the use of platform equipment. Each research group can apply for additional machine-time reward for the next year based on the important research results obtained by using the resources of the platform.
2.1 Reward standard
The platform will confirm the impact factors and classification of the articles according to the School documents, and reward of machine-hour charges.
1）According to the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) division in the year the paper is published, articles included in SCI category 1 journals: 100 CNY/ research group；article included in SCI category 2 journals: 50 CNY/ research group；
2）The reward of article published in the school collaboration may be equally divided based on the research group of the communication contact;
3）The incentive fee can only be used to offset against the testing expenses on this platform (year-end settlement).
2.2 Whether the research results obtained use the resources of the platform is defined as follows:
1) Users have used the resources of the platform, completed the corresponding research work and obtained results with the assistance of the platform personnel. First, acknowledgments of the platform should be provided, and the suggested acknowledgment template is: “The research was conducted on the Public Service Platform of Environmental Research Facilities within the School of Environmental Science and Engineering at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST)” (or other more concise sentences); and secondly, list of the platform's associated personnel in the authors list or in the acknowledgements, depending on the level of involvement；
2) Users have used the resources of the platform to engage in relevant scientific research work and obtained corresponding results, acknowledgements of the platform should be provided, and the suggested acknowledgement template is: “The research was conducted on the Public Service Platform of Environmental Research Facilities within the School of Environmental Science and Engineering at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST)” (or other more concise sentences).
The revised Regulation on Use and Management of Instruments of environmental Science Research Sharing Platform is officially implemented as of 1st November, 2023.
Environment Experimental Center, School of Environmental Science and Engineering
December 14, 2023
