The biological safety cabinet (BSC) is designed to provide protection to personnel and the environment when appropriate practices and procedures are followed. It is the primary means of containment developed for working safely with infectious microorganisms, so proper setup and operation is essential.

The biosafety cabinet requires regular maintenance and certification by a professional technician to assure that it protects you, your experiments, and the environment. Each cabinet should be certified when it is installed, each time it is moved or repaired, and at least annually. The Department of Environmental Safety administers a program for annual certification of all biological safety cabinets at the university with no cost to the user. Individual departments are responsible for costs of repairs or replacement of HEPA filters. Contact Hallie Heaney at (301) 405-6513 to confirm that your cabinet is included in this program, to schedule repairs or annual recertification, or for other questions.

• UM Biosafety Manual: Biosafety Cabinets
• NIH/CDC Primary Containment for Biohazards: Selection, Installation and Use of BSCs
• Working Safely In Your Biological Safety Cabinet (Video)