Sensor Lab: Policy & Guidelines

The Sensor Lab (slab, s-lab or sensorlab) is open 22 hrs/week. The Sensor Lab Open Hours are posted @ website: https://slab.concordia.ca, https://www.concordia.ca/finearts/design/facilities/sensor.html and outside EV 6-705.

An annual fee of $50 applies to each year of study in the DCART program. It is recommended that the The Departmental Fee be paid within the first two weeks of the fall semester. The Departmental Fee covers access to all DCART Labs (Sensor, Computation, Visual Communication, Soft Surface and Documentation Labs), the fee covers the acquisition and maintenance of new or current equipment, along with the replenishment of consumable resources.

Payments can be made online at: Fine Arts Fees. On the landing webpage, scroll down to the Fine Arts (banner) look for “Pay Your Fees Now”, click on the link will guide you to the Student Hub. Some workshop-based studios may require a minimal materials fee, which will be announced during the first class. In all other courses, professors will provide a detailed list of any materials that are required for projects, to be purchased by the student at their expense. Non-payment of The Department Fees will disallow access to the Sensor/Soft Surface/Visual Communications, Computation and Documentation Labs, furthermore students’ will not be permitted to borrow department-owned equipment.

The Sensor Lab can accommodate a maximum of 8 persons at any one time. To request an appointment during lab open hours. Each person will be allowed to reserve a time slot for a period of up to four hours a day, with the maximum of two days in a row. A reservation will be held for a 15-minute grace period. After 15-minutes, the session will be given to any student(s) waiting.

AFTER HOURS ACCESS: After hours access to the Sensor Lab is privilege based, and will be decided upon by your Professor and Sensor Lab Coordinator. All the cabinets will be locked and access to certain tools will have to be negotiated in advance.

The Sensor Lab collaborates with faculty and the student cohort with regards to workshops and in-class tutorials offered throughout the Autumn and Winter semesters. The exact nature and semester schedules for the workshops is usually published near the beginning of each semester and available @ website: https://slab.concordia.ca, https://www.concordia.ca/finearts/design/facilities/sensor.html and outside EV 6-705.

IN-CLASS TUTORIALS & PRESENTATIONS:
The Sensor Lab Coordinator welcomes all requests for in-class tutorials from faculty throughout the active semesters, scheduling of an in-class session requires that the following procedure be followed:

• At a minimum, a two week notice in necessary
• A concise and clear description with respect to the requested in-class tutorial
• The duration of an in-class tutorial will be a maximum of two hours and the requester should be present.

WORKSHOPS:
The Sensor Lab Coordinator offers workshops throughout the Autumn and Winter semesters. Workshops are primarily open to all DART, CART and MDes, and the greater Fine Arts community.

• The duration of a workshop will be a maximum of 4 hours
• Students must sign up for the posted workshops in advance: either by using the signup sheet located outside the Sensor Lab (EV6.705) or via email. A workshop will be only take place with a minimum of 3 persons and a max of 8 persons
• Workshops announcements will be sent out to the CART, DART & MDes student mailing list and will be available on the Sensor Lab website. The Sensor and Computation Lab is open to any requests or ideas for potential workshops. Please contact the Lab Coordinator in person or by email

PROJECTS: Students are expected to bring or buy their own equipment and materials for the realization of their academic projects. Students are therefore encouraged to consult the Sensor Lab Coordinator early in their project development to get an overview of technologies vs cost vs availability vs complexity.

BORROWING: Students who have paid The Departmental Fee can borrow certain equipment from the Sensor Lab. Borrowed equipment must be returned on time, unaltered and in working order.

LIABILITIES: Students are liable for the repair or replacement cost of any equipment they borrow from the Sensor Lab, which has been lost or damaged whilst in their possession.

STUDENTS MUST LEAVE THEIR I.D. CARDS WITH THE SENSOR LAB COORDINATOR IN ORDER TO BORROW ITEMS FROM THE LAB.

POWER TOOLS: The use of power tools is not permitted in the Sensor Lab.

CHEMICALS: The ventilation in the Sensor Lab is not designed to clear the air of toxic chemicals. IF IT SMELLS BAD, DON’T USE IT HERE.

NO PAINTS OF ANY KIND: See CHEMICALS, therefore paints are not allowed.

DON’T USE THE SENSOR LAB EQUIPMENT TO MANIPULATE TOXIC OR PERMANENT MATERIALS THAT MAY CAUSE HEALTH HAZARDS OR EQUIPMENT DAMAGE. NO CHEMICALS OR PAINTS OF ANY KIND.

CLEAN UP STARTS 30 MINUTES BEFORE CLOSING: All Sensor Lab users are expected to help clean when they make use of the lab.

PUT THINGS AWAY THAT HAVE BEEN LEFT OUT: All equipment should be put away and the lab left neat. If you are the only person in the Sensor Lab and you leave, put all tools away whether you took them out or not. This includes soldering irons, soldering aids, all hand tools, and any mess made by your tools.

IF YOU STAY LATE (AFTER HOURS ACCESS), CLEAN UP IS YOUR JOB.

The Sensor Lab is a common workspace shared amongst DART & CART students with a limited capacity for long-term storage i.e. all semester. Ask if it possible to store your items in the lab. If permitted, store only what is absolutely necessary and label everything with your name, email and phone number. Anything that is not labelled (or collected by a set date) will be transferred to CUCCR or will be made available to the Sensor Lab community (end of semester). When setting up or cleaning up, take note of all your possessions and where you put them. Use your locker if items are valuable.

STORE IT IN THE RIGHT PLACE: Never block the exit or the flow of traffic.

DISPOSE OF IT APPROPRIATELY: Look for appropriately marked containers: a donation (free) bin, junk shelf, recycle bins etc.

TAKE THINGS HOME: There is limited storage space in the lab. So, ask if it possible to store your items in the lab. If so, store only what is absolutely necessary for your active project.

At the end of the semester, ensure that you have collected all your materials, projects (digital or physical), backed up all your files stored on the Sensor Lab workstations. As, all files will be deleted from the workstations and uncollected projects or materials will be transferred to CUCCR or incorpoarted into the Sensor Lab resource inventory – all done in order to make room for others.