Every laboratory project begins with urgency. A team is growing, the science is advancing, and the current space no longer fits. At that point, owners are focused (rightly) on function and budget. However, time and again, I’ve seen the same thing happen when that mindset leads to renovations. The pressure of delivering a program now pushes out the deeper questions that matter most over the next 10, 20, or even 50 years.
Across sectors, including higher education, water, food and beverage, energy, and federal, the same critical concerns emerge. These concerns tend to surface too late, once construction has begun or operations are already underway. But if you ask important questions early and answer them honestly, they will shape a lab that serves your science for decades.
Here are the questions that matter—especially the ones lab owners often overlook.
1. Futureproofing: Will we need to renovate in 10 years?
→ What owners often think: We’ll worry about future change later. It’s not today’s problem.
→ What actually happens: Five years down the road, your science changes. Your instruments change. And your space becomes an obstacle.
Most lab owners want their design to be “flexible,” but when faced with immediate program needs and a hard budget, flexibility is often dismissed as over-design and unnecessarily expensive. I see this pattern often: the idea of adaptability is appreciated in theory but sacrificed in execution.
True futureproofing is less a luxury and more a risk mitigation strategy. Flexible casework is only the surface layer. The deeper story is what’s behind the curtain. Is the mechanical, electrical, and plumbing infrastructure scalable? Can it accommodate evolving processes without disruptive construction? Consider those contingencies that protect your investment.
2. Operating Costs: Are we building a budgetary trap?
→ What owners often think: We’ve made the case for capital. Operations will figure itself out.
→ What actually happens: High air changes, redundant systems, and energy-intensive equipment create long-term costs that erode value.
Laboratories are inherently energy-intensive. However, many of the systems that drive these costs—ventilation rates, HVAC zoning, power distribution—are shaped during design, not operations.
Owners typically aren’t blindsided by their first year’s utility bill. The shock comes later, when costs compound and efficiency upgrades require major retrofits. That’s why operational cost modeling during design is essential. Lifecycle thinking means evaluating energy, maintenance, and staffing costs before you finalize plans, not after occupancy.
3. Workflow: Will my scientists be productive—or frustrated?
→ What owners often think: We’ve allocated the necessary square footage. People will make it work.
→ What actually happens: Scientists adapt to space, but the science slows down.
In labs with poor layouts, inefficiencies show up in unexpected ways. This can look like more sample handling errors, lower collaboration, equipment clustering, and frustrated staff turnover. I’ve seen labs that look great on paper but produce fractured workflows and physical bottlenecks that limit throughput.
Designing for productivity means more than a “nice space.” It means walking through actual protocols. It means watching how a sample or material moves through a team. And it means using tools—now increasingly AI-enabled—that let owners test multiple workflow iterations before committing to a design.
Flexible furniture alone doesn’t solve this. You need a design process grounded in how your team actually works.
4. Health, Safety, and Compliance: Will this lab protect people—and pass inspection?
→ What owners often think: We’ll meet code. That’s enough.
→ What actually happens: The regulatory landscape evolves, and your lab struggles to keep up.
Codes and regulations don’t stand still. Between evolving OSHA standards, changing NFPA codes, and stricter environmental compliance, labs designed only to “pass inspection” on Day 1 often become risks by Year 5.
But safety goes beyond regulation to embrace resilience. I’ve worked on labs that were compliant but failed to include redundant exhaust paths, gas monitoring systems, or chemical-resistant materials where they were clearly needed. Designing safety into your infrastructure means planning for the unknown—and that’s where experience matters most.
5. Infrastructure & Maintenance: What’s behind the walls—and will we regret it?
→ What owners often think: If it’s hidden, it doesn’t need investment.
→ What actually happens: The first renovation turns into a full demo.
Infrastructure isn’t glamorous. Yet it determines whether you can pivot, expand, or upgrade without tearing your lab apart.
I’ve seen lab owners pour resources into cutting-edge instruments—then mount them on undersized power systems or inaccessible plumbing. Years later, even minor adjustments require invasive, expensive workarounds. Infrastructure is a lab’s backbone. If it’s not designed to adapt to change, that lab’s lifespan shrinks.
Plan for maintenance. Plan for upgrades. If you can’t touch a pipe or wire without moving three walls, the design has already failed.
6. Change Management: Will our team embrace the new space?
→ What owners often think: We’ll involve the scientists once the layout is mostly set.
→ What actually happens: Mistrust, resistance, and disengagement.
While lab design centers around the space, it’s also about the people who’ll use that space the most. If the team that will work in the lab doesn’t trust the process, they may never fully embrace the results.
In my experience, the most successful lab projects build buy-in early and often. That means engaging users in visioning sessions and involving them in mock-ups to confirm the lab reflects their actual needs instead of assumptions. When users understand how their input shapes the space, they use it more effectively, and morale stays high.
Final Thoughts
Lab design that incorporates technical processes as well as thoughtful strategy can impact science, operations, and people for decades. Owners who ask the right questions early and consider infrastructure-forward answers, find that their labs achieve peak longevity, performance, and employee trust.
A well-designed lab goes beyond solving today’s problems to anticipating tomorrow’s challenges.
