Expectations of Users

Certain items are prohibited from the lab at all times: 

  • No food, beverages, or gum
  • No sandals, slides, flip-flops, Crocks, and absolutely no bare feet
  • No platforms, wedges, high heels, or boots
  • No deeply grooved shoe soles such as heavy lugged boots
  • No extremely fuzzy fabrics
  • No backpacks or bulky bags
  • No garments with high, turtle neck type collars, or hoods will be permitted in the Cleanroom

Seasonal Instructions - November 1 through March 31:

  • Shoes worn into Benedum Hall from outside may not be worn into the NFCF
  • You must change shoes immediately before entering the main NFCF door
  • There are chairs in the hallway outside the main door – Shoes should be left in the outer hallway under the locker unit coat rack, which is located across from the main entrance of the lab.

Lockers:

  • The NFCF administers a set of lockers, located opposite from the lab main entrance.
  • Lockers are available by request for NFCF lab users.  Users may be asked to share with lab mates to accommodate limited number of locker units.
  • If you would like to request a locker, please email nfcfadmn@pitt.edu

General Lab Courtesy

  • All shared areas, such as hoods and counters, should be kept clean
  • Always make a reservation in FOM to use an instrument or other lab resource.  Sign in before use and sign out after use so all users have access to the instrumentation

Lab Closures

The NFCF has abbreviated hours for the University of Pittsburgh annual Winter Recess, which takes place in late December and early January.  Please see the Academic Calendar for dates.

The NFCF may also experience short term closures due to laboratory maintenance or building facility maintenance.  These closures will be announced through FOM.

Equipment Use

There are two ways that the NFCF equipment can be used:

  • Service Mode: operation of tool by one of our staff members with or without the user in the lab
  • User Mode: independent operation by users who have completed all applicable training, and are fully authorized by NFCF staff.

Reservations for use must be made by internal users through the FOM system; written requests will not be accepted and may cause a delay in user research. Before use of any instrument, each user must sign in using the FOM system before beginning work and must sign out when finished. Charges are based on the usage time, so a failure to sign out may lead to unnecessarily high charges.

 

Questions or Comments

 

For additional information, please read the NFCF Policies.

All questions or comments should be directed to the facilities technical director, at nfcftdir@pitt.edu.

If you encounter a problem with an instrument in the NFCF, please call 412-383-8001 immediately and document the issue in FOM.  Phones are provided through out the facility for this purpose.