Carleton Laboratory Site-Specific Training

This training introduces Carleton Lab users to the policies and procedures pertaining to safety, hazard communication, equipment use, and emergency response. It also provides an outline to user amenities, equipment-specific training protocols, equipment reservation, machine shop use, fabrication requests, and guidance to obtaining all necessary trainings to work safely in the lab. This training program is required of all laboratory users.

At the conclusion of this course you must take a short quiz to verify that you have completed the course and understands its contents. Upon passing the quiz (80% correct answers are required to pass); you should print certificate as a proof of course completion and present it to your shop supervisor and arrange for a machine specific training before using any machine. The Site-Specific Training expires after two years and must be completed again to retain access.

Please go to the Rascal Training Center to take the Carleton Laboratory Site-Specific Training course. The training course can be found: Training Center > Safety Courses > TC2600 - Carleton Laboratory Site-Specific Training.

Shop Safety Training

Hand and power tools are routinely used in various machine shops at Columbia University. When not used properly they can cause serious and sometimes fatal accidents and injuries. Personnel using tools, machines and equipment in academic shop are required to attend this training because understanding of potential hazards and observing proper safety guidelines can help to reduce accidents and injuries.

This training program provides a basic overview of hazards associated with the use of hand and power tools that are found in academic machine shops. The training covers types of hazards, general shop safety rules, ways to keep shop clean, usage of safe work practices and use of proper personal protective equipment for the task. This training, however, IS NOT a substitute for a machine specific safety training that must be provided by your supervisor before you use any machine in the shop. The course also meets the training requirements of various OSHA Standards and University policy.

At the conclusion of this course you must take a short quiz to verify that you have completed the course and understands its contents. Upon passing the quiz (80% correct answers are required to pass); you should print certificate as a proof of course completion and present it to your shop supervisor and arrange for a machine specific training before using any machine. The Shop Safety Training expires after two years and must be completed again to retain access.

Please go to the Rascal Training Center to take the Shop Safety training course. The training course can be found: Training Center > Safety Courses > TC0600 - Shop Safety Training.

Laboratory Safety/Chemical Hygiene/Hazardous Waste/Laboratory Fire Safety Training

Environmental Health & Safety policy requires that all persons with Research level laboratory access attend an initial training session and perform a refresher training every two years thereafter. Persons who have not completed this training will not be allowed to handle any chemicals.

Please go to the Rascal Training Center to take the Lab Safety, Chemical Hygiene, and Hazardous Waste Management Initial Training course. The training course can be found: Training Center > Safety Courses > TC4951 - Lab Safety, Chemical Hygiene, and Hazardous Waste Management Initial Training.

Certificate of Fitness (C-14) Training

Carleton Laboratory is required to have a C-14 Certificate of Fitness holder present at any time when the laboratory is in operation. This is a simple certification by the FDNY that proves an understanding of basic fire safety in a laboratory environment. Both the manager and assistant manager of Carleton Lab hold C-14 certifications, so all activities performed during normal operating hours of the lab do not require the individual user to be certified.

However, any researcher who works in the Carleton Laboratory (including Burmister Laboratory) outside of normal operating hours (9:00am to 5:00pm M-F) must obtain a C-14 Certificate of Fitness. Columbia Environmental Health and Safety (EH&S) holds a free one-hour certification class every Tuesday, from 2:00pm to 3:00pm. The only other qualification is an M.S. or Ph.D. degree or a BS degree with two years of laboratory experience. A copy of your diploma must be brought to the certification session. The certification process is sponsored by Columbia University, so the application process is free to all students, faculty, and staff.

Please see the EH&S Website for further information on the C-14 Certificate of Fitness.

Rascal Training Center

The Rascal Training Center is an online testing portal for Columbia University. The Carleton Laboratory Site-Specific Training and the Machine Shop Safety Trainings are both on Rascal.

Environmental Health and Safety

The office of Environmental Health and Safety (EH&S) is responsible for managing programs related to promoting a safe and healthy work environment. Please see their website for further information on their programs, including the Laboratory Safety/Chemical Hygeine/Hazardous Waste/Laboratory Fire Safety Trainings and the C-14 Certificate of Fitness.