What are the best core facility resource sites for planning a shared lab purchase?

Here are some of the best core facility / shared lab resource sites to use when planning a shared purchase. I’m focusing on sources that help with instrument selection, budgeting, vendor comparison, workflows, and operations.

Best core-facility planning resources

1) NCCF / core facility association resources

If you mean “core facility” in the broader institutional sense, the best starting points are professional association resources:

• SACNAS / ABRF (Association of Biomolecular Resource Facilities)
  • Good for shared-facility operations, purchasing considerations, benchmarking, and community advice.
• NCI Cancer Center Cores / shared resource examples
  • Helpful for real-world models of how institutions structure and equip shared labs.
• Association of Biomolecular Resource Facilities (ABRF)
  • Especially useful for genomics, proteomics, imaging, and sequencing core planning.

2) Vendor-neutral instrument buying guides

These are useful when you want to compare platforms without getting locked into a vendor pitch.

• Labcompare
  • Strong for side-by-side comparisons, feature overviews, and spec sheets.
• SelectScience
  • User reviews, product comparisons, and application notes.
• Lab Manager
  • Good practical articles on shared lab design, procurement, and workflow planning.
• Nature / Nature Methods / C&EN product guides
  • Often more application-focused and less sales-driven.

3) Core-facility management and operations resources

For shared purchase planning, you often need more than the instrument specs—you need utilization, staffing, and service planning.

• Lab Manager core facility articles
  • Useful for budgeting, utilization, service contracts, and governance.
• ACCU / academic core facility forums
  • Good for policy, chargeback models, and admin structure.
• CORE Marketplace / facility networks
  • Helps identify what peer institutions are buying and how they justify it.

4) Grant and procurement planning resources

If the purchase is tied to a grant or institutional funding:

• NIH shared instrumentation grant resources
  • Excellent for understanding acquisition requirements, shared use expectations, and budgeting.
• NSF major instrumentation guidance
  • Useful when the purchase must support multi-user access or broader institutional goals.
• University procurement offices
  • Often have required templates, bid requirements, service-contract guidance, and lifecycle-cost tools.

5) Facility design and workflow resources

These are important if the shared purchase affects space, utilities, or workflow.

• Lab design firms’ educational resources
  • Useful for power, HVAC, vibration, clean room, and footprint considerations.
• ASHRAE-related lab design guidance
  • Helpful for environmental and mechanical planning.
• Lab Planning / biocontainment / facility design webinars
  • Often better than static guides because they include practical layouts and lessons learned.

6) Community forums and peer networks

A lot of the best information comes from people who already run the same kind of core.

• ABRF discussion groups
• ResearchGate / LinkedIn core facility groups
• Reddit scientific instrumentation threads
• Conference exhibitor halls and user meetings
  • Great for asking about uptime, maintenance, training, and hidden costs.

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What to look for in a good shared purchase resource

When evaluating resources, prioritize ones that help you answer:

• What is the actual user demand?
• What sample throughput do we need?
• What are the hidden costs: service, consumables, training, software, utilities?
• Does it fit multi-user scheduling and access control?
• Is there local support and a realistic downtime plan?
• What are the space and infrastructure requirements?

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If you want the most practical shortlist

If I had to pick just a few:

1. ABRF — best for shared-facility community wisdom
2. Labcompare — best for product/spec comparisons
3. Lab Manager — best for operational planning
4. NIH shared instrumentation resources — best for grant/procurement framing
5. SelectScience — best for reviews and vendor/application insights

If you tell me what kind of shared lab purchase you’re planning—e.g. sequencing, microscopy, HPLC, freezer, clean bench, autoclave, cell sorter, etc.—I can give you a more targeted list of the best sites and planning tools for that specific equipment type.