Efficiently Maintaining a National Resource of Historical and Contemporary Biological Collections: The NHLBI Biorepository Model

Introduction: Reducing costs by improving storage efficiency has been a focus of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) Biologic Specimen Repository (Biorepository) and Biologic Specimen and Data Repositories Information Coordinating Center (BioLINCC) programs for several years. Methods: Study specimen profiles were compiled using the BioLINCC collection catalog. Cost assessments and calculations on the return on investments to consolidate or reduce a collection, were developed and implemented. Results: Over the course of 8 months, the NHLBI Biorepository evaluated 35 collections that consisted of 1.8 million biospecimens. A total of 23 collections were selected for consolidation, with a total of 1.2 million specimens located in 21,355 storage boxes. The consolidation resulted in a savings of 4055 boxes of various sizes and 10.2 mechanical freezers (approximate to 275 cubic feet) worth of space. Conclusion: As storage costs in a biorepository increase over time, the development and use of information technology tools to assess the potential advantage and feasiblity of vial consolidation can reduce maintenance expenses.