Common Instrumentation Area and Services Unit (CIAS) The Common Instrumentation Area and Services Unit (CIAS) has the objective of providing the Investigators at UCC with the major equipment and services that are needed for developing and executing high quality research projects. There are over 25 very active investigators (many with projects funded by RCMI, SNRP, MBRS, DOD, INBRE and CNS) who rely heavily on this core facility. The CIAS houses instrumentation such as high speed and ultra-centrifuges, a gel documentation system, a scintillation counter, a gamma counter, water distillers and ice machines that are not available elsewhere at the University and therefore, the CIAS fosters equipment sharing and centralizes maintenance of equipment. In addition, the CIAS provides a common cell culture room for new and established investigators who do not have the facilities in their own laboratories and as a backup facility for investigators with cell culture hoods and incubators. Under the umbrella of the CIAS, there is a machine shop and an electronics workshop. These workshops are maintained by two technicians who are dedicated to fulfilling the needs of the scientific community at UCC. In this proposal, we request funding to continue to conserve and upgrade the existing facilities and resources initially funded by RCMI including the common instrumentation, the electronics shop and the machine shop The following specific aims form the basis of our plan to maintain, fortify and expand our infrastructure for scientific research.
Aim #1 : to provide UCC faculty with the necessary equipment to be productive researchers.
Aim #2 : to update the existing instrumentation.
Aim #3 : to develop an equipment calibration service Aim #4: to continue the electronics workshop and precision machine/carpentry shop components.
Aim #5 : to continue the Facilities Monitoring System (FMS).
The Common Instrumentation Area and Services (CIAS) is core area housing major equipment such as ultracentrifuges, freezers, spectrophotometers, and gamma counters, as well as the centralized cell culture facility. CIAS fosters equipment sharing, centralizes maintenance of equipment and provides repair for the equipment of all the projects and is supported by two technicians to see to the needs of the scientific community. The CIAS is indispensable for the maintenance and future development of research at UCC.
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