Checklist: What You Need Before Building a New Science Lab

Checklist: What You Need Before Building a New Science Lab is a planning framework that outlines essential requirements—including space layout, utilities coordination, safety compliance, accessibility standards, and classroom lab furniture selection—to ensure new educational laboratories are safe, adaptable, fully functional, and built for long-term instructional performance and cost efficiency.

Space Planning & Classroom Layout

Define Room Size & Student Capacity

Before selecting furniture or utilities, schools must establish maximum student capacity and square footage requirements. Overcrowded labs create safety hazards and reduce instructional effectiveness, while undersized rooms restrict layout flexibility. Proper capacity planning ensures adequate workstation spacing, instructor mobility, and compliance with safety codes. Many space-planning best practices are outlined on the CampbellRhea design blog to help districts estimate room dimensions accurately before construction begins.

Establish Aisle Widths for Safe Traffic Flow

Clear aisle widths are critical for both safety and functionality. Students carrying glassware or equipment require unobstructed pathways between workstations, sinks, storage zones, and exits. Wide aisles also allow instructors to reach any station quickly for supervision or assistance. These circulation paths must remain clean and uninterrupted regardless of furniture configuration. Furniture layouts designed around safety spacing are demonstrated across the CampbellRhea furniture collections.

Maintain Instructor Sightlines

A successful lab layout ensures instructors maintain visibility to all work areas at all times. Peninsula benches, angled pods, or linear workstation orientation reduce blind spots where unsafe behavior can occur unchecked. Sightline planning supports classroom management during chemical handling and heated experiments. Sample layouts highlighting effective visibility control can be seen in the CampbellRhea classroom portfolio.

Plan Emergency Egress & Safety Access

Egress routes must remain unobstructed, with direct access to exits, fire extinguishers, safety showers, and eyewash stations. Furniture placement should be coordinated to preserve straight-line escape paths even as layouts shift for different teaching modes. Accidentally blocking these paths is a common design failure in poorly planned labs.

Segment Learning Zones

Modern classrooms require multiple functional zones to support different instructional methods:

Lecture and demonstration areas
Hands-on experiment benches
Collaboration team pods
Prep and supply access zones

Planning zones before selecting furniture allows the room to support both instructional lecture formats and active lab learning simultaneously.

Choose Furniture that Aligns with Layout Strategy

Selecting furniture before finalizing spatial planning often results in cramped or inflexible rooms. Education-specific systems such as CampbellRhea Educational Wood Casework provide layout adaptability while maintaining fixed safety and spacing standards needed for compliance.

Develop Layouts with Expert Support

Schools frequently work through regional experts located via the CampbellRhea dealer locator or directly with CampbellRhea to coordinate safe classroom layouts that align space capacity, instruction flow, and long-term flexibility before final furniture specifications are locked into place.

Utility Infrastructure & Technology Needs

Plan Electrical Power Distribution

Every modern lab requires reliable power for microscopes, robotics gear, computers, smart boards, hot plates, and ventilation controls. Electrical outlets must be distributed evenly across teaching zones rather than concentrated in a single wall location.

Smart electrical planning includes:

Wall outlets for fixed stations
Ceiling or overhead drops for flexible benches
Floor boxes for open-area work zones
GFCI protection near sinks and wet work areas

Classroom systems designed to integrate power safely can be reviewed within the CampbellRhea furniture solutions used in completed science lab projects.

Provide Adequate Data & Network Ports

STEM instruction depends on connectivity. Coding modules, simulation software, and collaborative research projects all require network access at student workstations—not just teacher desks. Data ports should be co-located with electrical service to eliminate running cables across aisles that create trip hazards. Technology planning strategies are often discussed on the CampbellRhea design blog to help schools avoid under-provisioning connectivity.

Coordinate Gas & Water Services

Science labs using burners or wet experiments require gas and water services positioned to support safe student access without crossing traffic paths.

Key utility placement priorities include:

Sinks adjacent to primary experimentation zones
Gas service isolated from high-traffic aisles
Emergency shutoff valves accessible to instructors
Backflow prevention systems for water safety

Furniture and casework such as CampbellRhea Educational Wood Systems are engineered to integrate these services directly into workstations without compromising accessibility or compliance.

Engineer Floor & Ceiling Drops for Flexibility

Hard-wired wall utilities lock classrooms into static layouts. Floor boxes and ceiling drops allow furniture to rotate or relocate without reworking building infrastructure. These connection points maintain flexible zoning capabilities for robotics builds, collaborative pods, and mobile bench groupings.

Address Ventilation & Fume Hood Requirements

Ventilation planning occurs early—before furniture layouts are set. Whether full fume hoods, localized exhaust, or general dilution ventilation systems are needed depends on chemistry curriculum scope and air quality rules.

Ventilation planning should evaluate:

Class size
Chemical use frequency
Heat generating equipment
Ceiling clearance and duct routing

Examples of fully coordinated ventilation and furniture integrations appear across completed classroom installations shown in the CampbellRhea project portfolio.

Avoid Utility-Driven Layout Lock-In

When utilities are installed after furniture planning, layouts often become fixed permanently—limiting adaptability for future programs. Utility coordination must be completed before furniture selection to preserve instructional flexibility over decades of classroom use.

Leverage Expert Coordination Support

Schools coordinating infrastructure planning typically consult regional design partners found through the CampbellRhea dealer locator or collaborate directly with CampbellRhea to align technology, utilities, compliance requirements, and seating layouts into a single, future-proof classroom plan.

Safety Compliance & Furniture Selection

Install Required Emergency Safety Equipment

Science labs must meet safety requirements before instruction can begin. Eyewash stations and safety showers must be placed within clear, unobstructed access zones so students can reach them quickly during chemical exposure incidents. Fire extinguishers, gas shut-off controls, and first-aid access points should all remain visible and reachable from instructional stations. Many classroom configuration guidelines addressing emergency equipment placement are discussed on the CampbellRhea design blog.

Provide Proper Chemical Storage & Ventilation

Safe chemical handling depends on correct storage and ventilation planning. Flammable, corrosive, and volatile substances belong in dedicated, vented cabinets—never in general classroom storage. Ventilation placement must align with instructional activities, ensuring that fumes are captured at their source rather than circulated through the room.

Key safety storage elements include:

Vented chemical storage cabinets
Locked acid and flammable material enclosures
Secondary containment trays
Instructor-accessible safety shutoff valves

Furniture solutions integrating chemical storage and ventilation coordination can be reviewed within the CampbellRhea laboratory furniture systems.

Maintain ADA Accessibility

Safety and compliance extend to accessibility. Every lab must include workstations that accommodate students with disabilities, offering clear knee space, adjustable-height work surfaces, compliant aisle widths, and reachable safety equipment controls. Accessibility cannot be an “add-on”—it must be embedded directly into the furniture layout to provide equitable participation.

Classroom-adaptable systems such as CampbellRhea Educational Wood Casework are designed to accommodate ADA requirements without compromising overall classroom layout efficiency.

Use Non-Slip, Chemical-Resistant Flooring

Flooring contributes significantly to lab safety. Surfaces must provide traction during wet conditions, resist chemical degradation, and allow for easy sanitation. Slip hazards near sinks, showers, and experiment stations should be minimized with textured or treated floor finishes and properly sealed joints.

Specify SEFA-Compliant Furniture

Furniture compliance is a cornerstone of lab safety. SEFA standards ensure laboratory furniture meets strict load capacity, durability, and chemical resistance criteria for educational environments.

SEFA-compliant furniture features include:

Reinforced cabinetry frames
Weight-tested shelving systems
Chemical-resistant countertops
Drawer and hinge systems rated for high-frequency student use

Examples of SEFA-rated installations across active classrooms are showcased in the CampbellRhea project portfolio.

Treat Furniture as a Safety Investment

Furniture is not only about function—it directly impacts safety outcomes. Reinforced casework prevents collapses, chemical-resistant surfaces reduce contamination risks, and ergonomic workstation designs minimize accidental tipping or crowding. Selecting high-quality furniture delivers dual value: immediate safety protection and long-term durability for districts managing tight replacement cycles.

Coordinate Safety through Professional Support

Many schools ensure full safety compliance by working through experienced partners available via the CampbellRhea dealer locator or collaborating directly with CampbellRhea to align furniture selection, safety equipment placement, and regulatory adherence early in the design process.

Why CampbellRhea Simplifies the Entire Process

Over 70 Years of Education-Focused Expertise

CampbellRhea brings more than seven decades of experience designing science labs specifically for educational environments—not adapting furniture built for industrial use. Their process begins with understanding how students learn, how teachers instruct, and how safety requirements intersect with daily classroom workflow. Many planning concepts rooted in this classroom-first philosophy are shared on the CampbellRhea blog as guidance for district leaders preparing new lab projects.

U.S.-Made Furniture Systems Built for Education

From reinforced cabinetry to chemical-resistant work surfaces, CampbellRhea manufactures laboratory furniture in the United States to meet the durability demands of high-traffic classrooms. Their modular classroom layouts are engineered to support evolving teaching styles without sacrificing safety compliance or structural integrity. These purpose-built systems can be explored across the CampbellRhea product collections that showcase complete education-grade furniture solutions.

Specialized Educational Casework

CampbellRhea’s Educational Wood Casework provides a durable foundation for classroom labs. Sealed surfaces resist chemicals and moisture, reinforced cabinet frames support years of repeated student use, and repairable finishes extend service life well beyond disposable furniture alternatives—lowering long-term replacement costs while maintaining safety performance.

Professional Planning with AutoCAD & BIM

CampbellRhea integrates AutoCAD and BIM design services into every lab project, enabling accurate coordination of:

Furniture footprints and work zones
Utility placement and ceiling/floor service drops
ADA accessibility clearances
Emergency egress pathways
Safety equipment locations

This modeling-first approach prevents layout conflicts, eliminates costly field changes, and ensures furniture systems fit seamlessly within building infrastructure.

Complete End-to-End Project Delivery

CampbellRhea serves as a single-source solution throughout the entire lab development process:

Early space planning consultation
Furniture specification and layout design
Engineering coordination and compliance verification
U.S.-based manufacturing
Local delivery and professional installation

Completed turnkey lab transformations can be reviewed in the CampbellRhea classroom project portfolio.

Local Support Through Certified Partners

Schools maintain access to on-site expertise through certified regional representatives found via the CampbellRhea dealer locator or by coordinating directly with CampbellRhea for nationwide design support and project management.

Built for Decades of Educational Performance

Rather than designing labs for one-time installation, CampbellRhea delivers learning environments engineered for decades of safe, adaptable use. By coordinating space planning, utilities, safety compliance, and durable furniture selections in a streamlined process, schools rely on CampbellRhea to create science classrooms that continue delivering value long after the ribbon is cut.

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Frequently asked questions Checklist: What You Need Before Building a New Science Lab

What should schools consider before building a new science lab?

Before building a new science lab, schools should clarify their curriculum needs, grade levels, class sizes, and types of experiments. It’s also essential to plan utilities, ventilation, storage, safety equipment, accessibility, and long-term flexibility so the lab can support evolving teaching methods and technologies.

Why is a pre-construction checklist important for science labs?

A pre-construction checklist helps schools avoid costly redesigns and change orders. By organizing requirements for utilities, casework, work surfaces, safety gear, and storage in advance, districts can align architects, administrators, and teachers around a clear scope before construction begins.

What safety requirements must be planned for a new school science lab?

New school science labs should include properly sized fume hoods, eyewash stations, emergency showers, chemical-resistant work surfaces, secure chemical storage, clear egress routes, and appropriate ventilation. These safety elements must be coordinated with code requirements and integrated into the lab layout early in the design process.

Who should be involved in planning a new science lab?

Effective science lab planning includes input from science teachers, department chairs, facility managers, administrators, architects, and lab furniture specialists. Bringing this group together ensures the space supports curriculum goals, safety, maintenance, and long-term durability, not just the initial construction budget.

How does CampbellRhea help schools prepare for new lab construction?

CampbellRhea supports new lab projects with education-focused casework, durable work surfaces, and classroom layouts, plus AutoCAD and BIM design assistance. Their team helps schools verify utility needs, safety requirements, storage solutions, and furniture selections so the lab is functional, code-compliant, and ready for decades of science instruction.

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