Science Laboratories Infrastructure (SLI) Program
Overview
Overall, Office of Science (SC) invests over $400 million dollars annually in needed maintenance, repair, and upgrades. These investments are from a variety of funding sources, including federal appropriations for line-item construction projects and General Plant Projects (GPPs), as well as overhead-funded investments in institutional GPP work and routine maintenance and repair. The SLI program provides two important pieces of this overall strategy: line-item construction projects that benefit the objectives of multiple programs, and a suite of infrastructure support investments that focus on laboratory core infrastructure and operations.
In November 2013, the Secretary of Energy chartered the National Laboratory Operations Board (LOB) to assess facilities and infrastructure across the national laboratory complex, among other things. These enterprise-wide assessments resulted in a rigorous and consistent analysis of the condition, utilization and functionality of the facilities and infrastructure that are the most critical to mission accomplishment. Building on these assessments, SC worked with each of its laboratories to develop comprehensive Campus Strategies, integrated with the SC Annual Laboratory Planning process. Each Campus Strategy identifies activities and infrastructure investments (e.g., line-item construction, GPPs) required to achieve the core capabilities and scientific vision for that laboratory. SC leadership used these Campus Strategies to establish the corporate facilities and infrastructure priorities going forward.
Science Laboratories Infrastructure Program
The Science Laboratories Infrastructure (SLI) Program mission is to support scientific and technological innovation at the SC laboratories by funding and sustaining mission-ready infrastructure and fostering safe and environmentally responsible operations.
The SLI Program provides the infrastructure necessary to support world leadership by the SC national laboratories in the area of basic scientific research, now and in the future. The SLI program’s primary focus is on long-term modernization of SC laboratory facilities and infrastructure to ensure the mission readiness of SC laboratories with state-of-the-art facilities and infrastructure that are flexible, reliable, and sustainable in support of scientific discovery.
This is accomplished through funding of line-item construction projects, as well as the Infrastructure Support subprogram. The Infrastructure Support subprogram provides funding for SC stewardship responsibilities at the Oak Ridge Reservation and provides infrastructure support for the Office of Scientific and Technical Information and Oak Ridge Institute for Science Education in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. This subprogram also provides facilities infrastructure support for the New Brunswick Laboratory at the Argonne site and provides Payments in Lieu of Taxes to local communities around the Argonne, Brookhaven, and Oak Ridge National Laboratories.
