Before you leave for the winter closure …

The Laboratory's annual winter closure is Dec. 25 through Jan. 2, 2004. While facilities management teams will inspect major and problem buildings during the closure, all employees should take precautionary steps to help secure their work space before leaving for the break.

To that end, the Office of Security Inquiries (S-OSI) and the Facility and Waste Operations (FWO) Division offer the following guidelines:

Turn off and unplug all electrical equipment, including coffeepots, space heaters, humidifiers, office machines and all experimental equipment that can be turned off.
Leave thermostats at their normal settings.
Close all exterior doors, windows and blinds to conserve heat. Where feasible, leave internal doors open to allow heat to circulate.
Remove all private vehicles from Lab parking lots and park government vehicles where they will not interfere with snow removal operations.
Make sure plants have enough water to survive through the holidays.
Secure or lock all exterior doors from the outside.

"The procedural guidelines for closing up leased space during the winter break should be the same as for Lab facilities, with regard to tenants unplugging their equipment and checking and securing doors and windows. However, residents of Lab-leased space should communicate with their landlord about specific concerns and procedures related to their facilities during the closure," said Kenneth Schlindwein of Diversified Facilities (FWO-DF).

The Security and Safeguards (S) Division also offers the following reminders to ensure that security controls work smoothly during the closure:

On the last business day before the closure, authorized workers must properly secure all classified matter.
Area-access custodians with travel plans or other holiday activities that will prevent them from performing duties on Dec. 24, such as end-of-day checks, should designate an alternate, authorized worker ahead of time to ensure that a substitute is available.
Ensure that one or more of the authorized workers on the area-access list is available during the closure to make contact with the fire department and protective force personnel during emergency situations, or in case a vault/vault-type room has to be re-entered. Update the access list if necessary by completing Form 1088 and send it to Security Systems (S-3) at Mail Stop G725 through interoffice mail or by fax to 5-8477. If the available workers are at the bottom of the list, consider posting a memo on the vault/vault-type room indicating which authorized workers to get in touch with during the closure to speed up the contact process.

The Laboratory is scheduled to reopen on Monday, Jan. 5, 2004.

-- Kathryn Ostic