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A security guard turned off an ultra-cold freezer in a lab at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), one of America’s most prestigious universities. This destroyed “decades of scientific research” and cost Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute at least $1 million. In response to this incident, the university in question filed a complaint against the company that hired the worker in question.
The freezer in question contained cell cultures, samples and other research elements that were stored at -120°F (-80°C) until September 2020. At that time, a Daigle Cleaning Services employee tripped a circuit breaker, causing the temperature to rise to -25.6 degrees Fahrenheit (-32 degrees Celsius). As the temperature rises, the elements in the freezer are damaged or destroyed.
After the circuit breaker was turned off, an alarm sounded, and the Daigle Cleaning Services worker turned it off because the alarm was annoying. After turning off the warning sound, the freezer also turned off. This was while there was an explanation on the entrance door of the freezer about the reason for the alarm sound.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s lawyer says that 25 years of scientific research was wasted overnight as a result of the worker’s “negligence”. The production of the research elements in question requires at least one million dollars of funding. This research series examines photosynthesis and can ultimately have valuable effects on the development of solar panels.
CEO of Daigle Cleaning Services, headquartered in Albania, upon request Times Union He did not respond for further clarification.
In the fall of 2020, Daigle received a $1.427 million contract to clean up RPI facilities, including a research facility called the Cogswell Building, owned by Prof. Kiwi. Lakshmi had signed Lakshmi is a professor of chemistry and chemical biology at RPI.
Lakshmi’s research materials were kept at -112 degrees Fahrenheit, and the warning was supposed to stop at -108.4 degrees Fahrenheit (-78 degrees Celsius) and -115 degrees Fahrenheit (-81.6 degrees Celsius). Changing the temperature above or below the mentioned points would damage or destroy the samples.
In September 2019, due to temperature change, the freezer alarm was turned off. Lakshmi and her students noticed that the samples were not damaged. They contacted the freezer’s manufacturer to have the repair done, but the coronavirus pandemic delayed it by a week.
A sign in large English letters was placed on the door of the freezer stating that the reason for the alarm was that it needed to be repaired. The sign said please do not move the freezer or unplug it: “No cleaning required in this area. If you want the sound to be muted, you can hold the alert button for five to 10 seconds.”
It is stated in the court file that on September 17, 2020 (27 September 2019), one of Daigle’s employees, who went there for cleaning, turned off the circuit breaker. When the circuit breaker was turned off, the freezer was disconnected from the electricity. A day later, members of Lakshmi’s research team realized that the temperature had risen too high, and therefore took measures to preserve the samples; But most of them were gone.
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