How to write a facilities and resources page for NIH grants

Most researchers treat the facilities and resources page like an afterthought. You finish your specific aims, struggle through the research strategy, polish your biosketch, and then realize you need to describe your institution's capabilities. So you copy last year's boilerplate, update a few equipment models, and call it done.

This is a mistake. Program officers and reviewers use this page to assess whether you can actually execute your proposed research. They want to know if you have the right tools, adequate space, and proper support systems. A weak facilities page raises questions about feasibility that can sink an otherwise strong application.

The good news? Most facilities pages are so generic that a thoughtful, specific description stands out immediately. Here's how to write one that strengthens your application instead of just filling space.

Example facilities and resources page with commentary

Laboratory facilities

The Chen Laboratory occupies 850 square feet of dedicated research space in the Biomedical Research Building, including two tissue culture rooms (each 120 sq ft) with independent HVAC systems and backup power. The main laboratory houses two biosafety cabinets (Thermo Scientific 1300 Series A2, certified annually), a CO2 incubator bank with six units maintaining independent atmospheric controls, and a dedicated microscopy station with an inverted fluorescence microscope (Olympus IX73) equipped with DAPI, FITC, and Texas Red filter sets.

Why this works: Specific square footage and equipment models show you've thought about space requirements. Mentioning backup power and independent HVAC demonstrates you understand what cell culture actually needs. Most people just say "we have tissue culture facilities."

Shared instrumentation core facilities

The institutional Flow Cytometry Core (located one floor below our laboratory) operates four analyzers including a BD LSRFortessa with 18-color capability and two cell sorters (BD FACSAria III). The core provides same-day analysis scheduling and 48-hour turnaround for routine sorting requests. Dr. Chen holds an active user certification and has priority access through her participation in the instrument maintenance consortium.

Why this works: Details about turnaround times and access arrangements matter more than just listing equipment. Reviewers want to know you won't be stuck waiting months for instrument time. The certification and consortium participation show you're an established user, not someone hoping to learn on the grant's dime.

Computational resources

All bioinformatics analyses will utilize the university's high-performance computing cluster, which provides 15,000 CPU cores and 2 petabytes of storage across 450 compute nodes. The Chen lab maintains a dedicated allocation of 500,000 CPU hours annually through Dr. Chen's faculty startup package, with additional hours available through the institutional shared allocation system. Local data storage includes a 48TB RAID system with automated backup to the university's research data storage infrastructure.

Why this works: Computational capacity gets specific with numbers that reviewers can evaluate. The dedicated allocation shows guaranteed access, while mentioning backup systems demonstrates you understand data management. Many applications just say "we have access to computing resources" without explaining capacity or reliability.

Animal facilities

Rodent studies will be conducted in the AAALAC-accredited vivarium, which houses up to 15,000 cages across four barrier facilities. The facility maintains specific pathogen-free conditions and provides specialized housing for immunocompromised strains. Our laboratory holds pre-approved space allocation for 200 mouse cages with capacity to expand to 400 cages through the priority reservation system. The facility veterinary staff includes two full-time veterinarians and provides 24/7 emergency coverage.

Why this works: AAALAC accreditation is important but everyone mentions it. The cage allocation numbers and expansion capacity show you've planned for the actual animal needs of your study. Emergency veterinary coverage matters for weekend experiments that most people forget to mention.

Biosafety and regulatory support

The institution's robust regulatory infrastructure includes an Institutional Review Board that meets bi-weekly with median approval times of 21 days for exempt studies and 45 days for expedited reviews. The Environmental Health and Safety office provides training and oversight for BSL-2 work, chemical safety, and radiation safety. Dr. Chen maintains current certifications in human subjects research (CITI training renewed 2023) and has an approved protocol (#IRB-2023-445) that covers the proposed participant recruitment procedures.

Why this works: Specific turnaround times help reviewers assess feasibility. Having protocols already approved suggests you're ready to start work immediately, not stuck in regulatory approval processes for months after funding begins.

Top tips for writing an effective facilities page

Connect facilities directly to your experimental plan. Don't just list everything your institution has. Map each major facility or piece of equipment to specific aims or methods in your research strategy. If you mention a confocal microscope, specify which experiments require confocal imaging and why standard fluorescence microscopy isn't sufficient.

Include access arrangements and scheduling details. Core facilities sound impressive until you're competing with 200 other investigators for instrument time. Mention your track record with core facilities, any special access arrangements, priority scheduling systems, or collaborative agreements that ensure reliable access. If you've budgeted for dedicated instrument time, say so.

Address potential bottlenecks proactively. Think about what could slow down your research and explain how your facilities mitigate those risks. Do you need specialized cell lines? Mention the institutional cell culture repository. Working with primary human samples? Describe the clinical research unit's capabilities and your existing collaborations with clinicians.

Common mistakes that weaken facilities pages

Generic institutional boilerplate that everyone uses. Many departments circulate standard facilities descriptions that dozens of investigators copy verbatim. Reviewers recognize this text immediately and it suggests you haven't thought seriously about your specific research needs. Write your own description focused on what you actually need.

Missing the connection between facilities and feasibility. Listing impressive equipment doesn't help if reviewers can't see how it enables your proposed research. A $2 million mass spectrometer sounds great, but if your project doesn't require mass spectrometry, mentioning it just wastes space and suggests you don't understand your own methods.

Ignoring collaborative arrangements and external partnerships. Many projects require capabilities that no single institution provides. Don't pretend your university has everything if it doesn't. Instead, describe your collaborations with other institutions, core facilities at partner organizations, or commercial service providers that fill gaps in your local capabilities.

TL;DR

Your facilities and resources page should convince reviewers that you have everything needed to execute your proposed research successfully:

• Be specific about equipment models, capacity limitations, and access arrangements rather than using generic institutional descriptions • Connect each facility directly to experimental procedures in your research plan • Address potential bottlenecks by explaining scheduling systems, backup options, and collaborative arrangements • Include regulatory and safety infrastructure with realistic timelines for approvals • Mention your track record and existing relationships with core facilities to demonstrate reliable access

A well-written facilities page doesn't just check a box. It builds confidence that you've thought through the practical requirements of your research and secured the resources needed for success. CarbonDraft can generate a first draft from your equipment lists and institutional information, helping you move past the blank page to focus on connecting facilities to your specific research needs.