New fee procedures allow more people to use KTH's laboratories
The government's new “Ordinance on fees for research infrastructures” will apply at KTH starting spring semester of 2024. This means that as of January 1, 2024, KTH's research infrastructures can charge companies and industrial partners who want to use laboratory equipment and research facilities.
Hello Malin Hedengran , Senior Research Advisor at the Research Support Office:
What are the new fees for external use of KTH's research infrastructures?
“Some labs have fixed, annual bench fees, while others charge for the service provided. This may include, for example, the cost of reagents and materials. Research infrastructures have the option of basing the fee on full cost.”
What should external stakeholders do to gain access to KTH's research infrastructures?
“Start by contacting the director of the laboratory in question. Contact information and links to the laboratories' websites are listed on KTH's website under Research infrastructures.”
What are the requirements for a user who wants to gain access to research infrastructures?
“The requirements are different for different infrastructures. For example, there may be requirements of internal training, security reviews, or a requirement for a steering group being in place in order to prioritizes which projects can be run.”
“Some infrastructures can only be accessed through research collaborations, while other labs provide services where users send in samples for analysis and receive results back.”
How is the use of a research lab prioritized if, for example, access is limited?
“Some laboratories have strict queuing systems, while others have a steering group that prioritizes different types of projects.”
KTH's Deputy President Mikael Lindström points out that the new fee procedures benefit society as a whole in several ways.
“The biggest advantage of the fee system is that external researchers, companies and students can now have increased access to KTH's laboratories. The fee procedures make our research infrastructures more easily accessible to different users.”
“In addition, the fees can help finance the maintenance and upgrades of our laboratory environments. This increases the quality of the services offered.”
Katarina Ahlfort
Photo: Elias Sado