COVID-19 Information for FIRST-Lab and FIRST-CLA

For FIRST-CLA, see below!

Please see this page, maintained by the safety/security/health/environment department of ETH, and observe rules defined there also while in FIRST-Lab!

FIRST-Lab after 2020/21 ETHZ pandemic regulations

(22-7-1 until further notice)

FIRST-Lab operates on normal opening hours, with normal nightworking rules.

A reduced number of FIRST team members may be on premise. Presence is scheduled and indicated through the Team section in the NEMO Calendar and Status dashboard (link below). In general, FOT members can be reached by phone on the usual internal numbers (call forwarding) during office hours.

FIRST-Lab team calendar

Entering cleanroom cabins

• wash your hands before entering the wardrobe area
• place personal magnet on whiteboard in the cleanroom or service section, depending on where you will work
• use disposable face mask and gloves for entering cleanroom // Note: wearing washable masks used outside of FIRST is prohibited
• wear overall as usual, reuse if you have a hanger (see below)

Leaving cleanroom

• if you know you will not re-enter FIRST-Lab during a week, please put the overall into the box for washing, to save a hanger for somebody else (always do that on Wednesday afternoons/evenings)
• if there are free hangers in the wardrobe, select your personal hanger (mark it as usual in the provided lists) and store overall
• if all hangers are occupied, put overall in box for washing service
• remember to remove name tags, ballpens etc from your overall before putting it into the box for washing
• put back magnet on left section of whiteboard when leaving the lab

In case of questions, please contact the safety responsible for FIRST-Lab (Yargo Bonetti).

FIRST-CLA specific rules

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FIRST-CLA Lab operation since Phase 3.3.4

(from 18.01.2021)

This document details the rules for FIRST-CLA Labs (in addition to its general user rules and the rules defined by BAG and the specific rules by ETH for access to laboratories as defined in the COVID-19 masterplan) for restricted operation during COVID-19 pandemic.

The rules imposed by the Swiss federal and Zurich cantonal governments and by ETH especially those regarding physical distancing, utilization of facemasks and hygiene; continue to apply to all FIRST-CLA users. All activity not conforming to these rules is forbidden; the FIRST-CLA Labs Management Team (FCMT) may allow for exceptions in case of urgencies, after consultation with the corona team (SGU).

• Only trained users may work in the FIRST-CLA.
• Daytime (07:00 - 19:00, Mon.-Fri.) work is allowed keeping all work alone rules if applicable. Nightrules apply from 19:00 to 07:00 and during the weekends and holidays.

Personal protection

• Official rules (BAG, ETH) must be strictly followed; in particular, minimal 1.5 m distance between all people must be kept always, even wearing facemasks.
• The use of gloves, googles and facemasks covering simultaneous both nose and mouth is mandatory in cleanroom and service area. Wearing a facemask is obligatory while in transit to and out of FIRST-CLA. If more as two persons are in the same FIRST-CLA room they must wear FFP2 or better masks.
• Only personal or cleaned goggles are permitted, and their use is mandatory even for working at microscopes outside of the clean-room area (for example at A22.1) if one-time applicable plastic foil is not used.
• Before entering and after leaving the lab, all users must thoroughly wash hands with soap and water.
• All surfaces touched by bare hands must be cleaned with disinfectant before starting and after finishing your work in all FIRST-CLA rooms.
• Overalls must be labeled with user name and put on hangers separated from each other, in addition, users must make sure overalls never touch each other. People, who will not use the lab another time within 3 weeks, shall put their overalls in the wash box for cleaning when leaving:in order to leave more space for frequent users. Overalls used seldom should be placed in the individual protecting bag labeled with name of user.

Room occupancy

• A minimum distance of 1.5 meters must be kept between two occupied workstations in the same CR cabin — please consider this fact booking the equipment.
• Except staff, maximal three users are allowed in the cleanroom A, four users in the cleanroom B; and five users in A 22.1. The distancing rules must be fulfilled at the same time.
• Passing through A22.1 into cleanroom A is permitted also, when SEM, Wirebonder and Parylene coater are occupied.
• Only one person is allowed to be in the dressing room at the same time.

Equipment

• Equipment may only be used by one person at any time. Collaboration and introductory trainings are restricted in order to fulfill distancing rules.
• Support is restricted to maintenance and remote assistance, i.e. no on-premise consulting with responsibles or lab staff is possible.
• Adjacent equipment can be interlocked in the reservation system to prevent users from working in close proximity.
• The reservation in the NEMO calendar before planned entering of the clean room is mandatory for the users. Until further announcement, the equipment utilization plan have to be declared to Donat Scheiwiller (and CC to Miro Haluska), who will set slots in such a way that people from different groups work at different times.
• Maintenance and service by external specialists are allowed.

Everybody must organize all safety issues related to the work alone case in the laboratory with own group and the group safety responsible person.

Thank you for your cooperation and for responsible behavior.

Dr. M. Haluska, CLA G1.2
077 213 45 45, 044 63 27640, haluskam@ethz.ch

D. Scheiwiller, CLA H 35
044 63 24665, 076 5338038, scheiwiller@first.ethz.ch

(FIRST-CLA management team)

(2022-7-22 // Y.Bonetti/FOT)