CRA Facility Operations & Maintenance 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which standard governs the design and construction of laboratory ventilation systems to protect researcher health and safety?
- ANSI/AIHA Z9.5 (Correct answer)
- NFPA 101
- ASHRAE 62.1
- 29 CFR 1910.94
Correct answer: ANSI/AIHA Z9.5
ANSI/AIHA Z9.5 is the Laboratory Ventilation standard that establishes minimum requirements for lab exhaust and supply air systems.
Question 2: A deferred maintenance backlog refers to:
- Maintenance work completed ahead of schedule
- Maintenance work postponed due to budget or resource constraints (Correct answer)
- Emergency repairs performed without prior authorization
- Routine preventive maintenance logged in a CMMS
Correct answer: Maintenance work postponed due to budget or resource constraints
Deferred maintenance is work that was not performed when due or planned and has been postponed, often creating increasing repair costs over time.
Question 3: In the context of research facility planning, a 'swing space' strategy is used to:
- Store surplus laboratory equipment
- Temporarily relocate research operations during renovation (Correct answer)
- Expand the institution's gross square footage
- House visiting researchers on short-term appointments
Correct answer: Temporarily relocate research operations during renovation
Swing space provides temporary laboratory or office space for researchers displaced during building renovation or construction.
Question 4: Under 2 CFR 200, the use rate for institution-owned equipment charged to federal awards must be based on:
- The original purchase price of the equipment
- Historical cost and the useful life of the equipment (Correct answer)
- The current market replacement value
- Annual depreciation as determined by the sponsor
Correct answer: Historical cost and the useful life of the equipment
2 CFR 200.436 requires depreciation charges to be based on the acquisition cost and the useful life of the asset.
Question 5: Which type of maintenance strategy uses sensor data and predictive analytics to schedule repairs before equipment failure occurs?
- Corrective maintenance
- Preventive maintenance
- Predictive maintenance (Correct answer)
- Run-to-failure maintenance
Correct answer: Predictive maintenance
Predictive maintenance leverages real-time monitoring and data analysis to anticipate failures and schedule maintenance proactively.
Question 6: An institution allocates space to a federal grant and charges the sponsor for that space usage. The basis for calculating this charge should be:
- The square footage multiplied by a federally negotiated space rate (Correct answer)
- An estimate provided by the department chair
- The market rental rate for comparable commercial lab space
- The actual cost of all utilities consumed in the building
Correct answer: The square footage multiplied by a federally negotiated space rate
Space charges to federal awards must be based on the institution's negotiated use allowance or depreciation rate applied to assigned square footage.
Question 7: A research facility manager discovers that a fume hood's face velocity has dropped below 100 fpm. The FIRST action should be to:
- Notify all building occupants via email
- Remove the fume hood from service and restrict access (Correct answer)
- Request a capital budget increase for a replacement
- Document the finding in the next annual safety report
Correct answer: Remove the fume hood from service and restrict access
A fume hood with inadequate face velocity poses an immediate inhalation hazard; it must be taken out of service until repaired and re-certified.
CRA Facility Operations & Maintenance 3
Which standard governs the design and construction of laboratory ventilation systems to protect researcher health and safety?