Core Facility Lifecycle: General principles and recommendations. By the EU-LIFE Core Facilities Working Group

Core facilities are an integral part of life science research institutions and provide centralised access to technological resources and expertise, such as equipment, databases, materials and collections, and other research resources. Operated by professional teams with specific expertise, they serve research groups that do not have the capacity to establish and run these specialised resources individually.

In contrast to large Research Infrastructures (RIs) supported at the regional, national or international level, core facilities in life sciences are primarily supported by their host institution and are comprised of multiple specialised units. By providing technological services and expertise, and through their support of research and the training of scientists, core facilities and their staff have a strong impact on the scientific performance and output of their host organisation.

Research institutes should routinely review whether core facilities are relevant to their overall scientific mission, researcher needs and demands. To support organisations through these change processes, we have described the phases and relevant considerations in key life cycle phases of core facilities; from the first idea, through planning, implementing, running, consolidating and even closing a facility. The life cycle of core facilities is a dynamic and complex process; this document sets out the general principles identified by the EU-LIFE Core Facility Working Group that should be considered throughout.