How to Build a BSL Lab
Register for this free webinar from Lab Design to explore the strategies behind designing and delivering safe, adaptable biocontainment laboratories. Join industry experts as they examine how biosafety risk assessments drive facility requirements—from containment strategies and airflow to specialized HVAC systems, personnel and material flow, and decontamination. The session will also address commissioning, regulatory compliance, collaboration among project teams, and strategies for building flexibility into high-containment environments to support evolving research needs and safety standards.
Wednesday, August 26, 2026
1:00pm ET
Register for free
Biocontainment laboratories are critical environments designed to safely contain biological agents and protect both personnel and the surrounding community. As research involving infectious materials becomes more advanced and multidisciplinary, the need for well-planned, adaptable biocontainment facilities is increasingly important.
This webinar will explore the full process of designing and building a biocontainment laboratory—from early programming and risk assessment through design, construction, commissioning, and ongoing operational validation. Participants will gain an understanding of how different biosafety levels (BSL-1 through BSL-4) influence facility requirements, including containment strategies, airflow design, pressure differentials, specialized HVAC and filtration systems, and how all these factors are driven by the risk assessment, with particular emphasis on high-containment, or BSL-3.
The session will also address key considerations such as regulatory compliance, commissioning protocols, and how to coordinate effectively among architects, engineers, biosafety officers, and end users. Special attention will be given to integrating flexibility into high-containment environments to accommodate future research needs and evolving safety standards.
Attendees will leave with practical insights into aligning safety, functionality, efficiency and risk assessment while ensuring a BSL laboratory is resilient, compliant, and prepared to support long-term scientific advancement.
Lab Design is an AIA CES approved education provider
Learning objectives:
Identify the fundamental differences between BSL-1 through BSL-4 laboratories.
Understand the principles of a biosafety risk assessment and how that process drives design and operational decision making.
Describe critical components of biocontainment facility architectural and engineering systems that support the health and safety of the personnel but protecting the research.
Assess and identify mechanical system needs, including directional airflow, pressurization control, and comfort.
Evaluate the flow of personnel, materials and waste and identify potential conflicts and possible measures to mitigate them.
Identify the different types of space decontamination and be able to select the most appropriate methodology based on the biosafety risk assessment while considering material incompatibilities with finishes and other building components.
Describe commissioning and facility performance verification.
Review trends in biocontainment facility design, operations, and performance, including new technologies.
Speakers
Jeff Owens
Laboratory Subject Matter Expert
HERA Laboratory Planners
Andrew Borkon
Senior Laboratory Planner
HERA Laboratory Planners
Register
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