Campus laboratories often rely on outdated assumptions about “safe ventilation” that are anchored in the theory that more is better. Air changes per hour rely on the belief that contaminant behavior is homogeneous and predictable. In reality, IH practitioners routinely confront widely varying space designs, dynamic occupancy and utilization, aging fume hoods, and complicated variable air volume (VAV) systems that behave very differently from theoretical design intent. This presentation reframes laboratory ventilation through an IH lens that is risk-based, performance-verified, and operationally managed

In this presentation, we will explore three critical gaps: (1) the mismatch between design intent and actual system performance; (2) the widespread inability of campus VAV fume hoods to modulate flow as intended; and (3) the limitations of traditional exposure modeling that does not account for validation of ventilation effectiveness. Using real examples from Smart Labs programs, airflow diagnostics, and advanced fume hood tests, we will show how IH can drive campus-wide improvements that reduce exposure risk, improve resilience, and unlock significant energy savings. The objective would be to help position industrial hygienists and environmental health and safety as an essential and high value contributor to achieving safer, smarter, and more efficient labs and critical workspaces.