Installation of Energy-Efficient Cage Washers for Childrens Hospital Vivarium

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) seeks to purchase and install two high- efficiency cage washers for its principal vivarium, a 32,000 gross square feet multi-species facility that serves as an institutional animal resource for scientists and staff with PHS-funded independent research grants. The two cage/rack washers and one tunnel washer currently used in the vivarium are 15 years old and inefficient. The equipment is regularly under repair and, when functional, offers long cycle times. New, more modern cage washers will provide efficiency increases across many areas, including reduction in steam usage (48%), electricity (14%), hot water (78%), cold water (91%), and detergent (83%). These efficiency gains will decrease cost per load by 78% while reducing current cycle times from 26 minutes to just 9 minutes. On an annualized basis, these gains will translate to more than 1,000 kilowatts in electricity savings, over 1,000,000 fewer gallons of hot water used, and utilization of 405,000 fewer pounds of steam, all while significantly increasing throughput for this busy animal facility. The vivarium, located in the Abramson Pediatric Research Center, is the locus for CHOP's mission to advance translational research in pediatric diseases. It currently hosts pivotal research studies in sickle cell disease, hemophilia, pediatric oncology, fetal stem-cell therapy, fetal lung growth, cystic fibrosis, mitochondrial diseases, asthma, epilepsy, infectious diseases, and vaccine development. As CHOP's translational research programs continue to grow, the Hospital seeks to maintain a high-performing and environmentally sustainable infrastructure in support of the Abramson Center vivarium and the scientific goals of its research programs. The vivarium houses both large animal species (dogs, pigs, sheep, and rabbits) and CHOP's rodent quarantine facility. It provides biosafety level 2 rodent housing, isolating infectious diseases from rodents housed in CHOP's rodent barrier facility in the adjacent Colket Translational Research Building (CTRB). With 30 percent annual growth of laboratory animal- based research projects since 2006, including large animal species such as dogs and sheep, the demand for higher volume throughput from the Abramson Center's cage/rack washers has become more acute. Volume demands are compounded by the need to isolate within the vivarium the inbred, mutant, and genetically engineered mouse colonies relocated to CHOP by newly recruited investigators. These new colonies must first be rederived (creation of pathogen- free mice) prior to transfer to the CTRB barrier.