Users

1. Contact Telmo Nunes (C2 room) or Luís Marques (C2 and C8 rooms) and express interest in becoming a regular FCUL-MF user. Specify what equipment and techniques you want to use and whether you have any previous experience with microscopy techniques.
2. Depending on your experience and objectives, you may be required to undergo some initial training with Luís Marques to properly operate the equipment.
3. After being cleared by one of the FCUL-MF technicians as having enough experience to work independently, you will be assigned credentials to enter the Agendo booking system and book equipment.
4. For how to proceed further, see Regular users section below.

1. Book your equipment of interest using the Agendo booking system. Note that booking of the SEM in the C2 room needs to be done through Telmo Nunes. See What do I gain as a user? and What are my responsibilities as a user? sections under Additional information below for further information.
2. Users are expected to contribute to the maintenance of the equipment and the facility. For details see What are the costs? section under Additional information below.
3. Consider adding your laboratory’s microscopy equipment to the FCUL-MF and gain technical assistance and “hours of use” credit for the FCUL-MF equipment of your choice. For details see What are the costs? section below.

1. FCUL lecturers who are interested in bringing their students to the facility and/or have them use the facility should contact Telmo Nunes (C2 room) or Luís Marques (C2 and C8 rooms) and express their interest. Please specify what equipment and techniques you want to use and when.
2. In response to your inquiry, the technicians will propose a plan which includes providing students with a briefing and/or training on the relevant equipment(s) and technique(s).
3. This service is, in most cases, free of charge. 

What do I gain as a user?

• The FCUL-MF provides access to a broad selection of microscopy equipment and image analysis software, put together because of the collaboration of in-house researchers interested in microscopy.
• The FCUL-MF has two dedicated technicians who together provide support in all the types of microscopy and image analysis methodologies covered by the facility.

What are my responsibilities as a user?

• All users must go through an evaluation process to certify them as regular users (see New users section, above).
• All regular users must use the Agendo booking system to book the equipment to be used. If you book an equipment, but do not use your time, please unbook it to make it available for other users (and to avoid having those hours added to your “hours of use” registry, see below).
• As a regular user, you are required to operate the equipment with responsibility and care, and to report any abnormal incident or problem to the technicians. Failure to do so, may result in your removal as a regular user.

What are the costs?

• The Agendo system will record what equipment you use and for how many hours. Consequently, the Agendo system provides a quantification of “hours of use” for each regular user and equipment. FCUL Campus users will be billed according to price tables available upon request.
  Running costs for internal BioISI/Ce3C users are usuallly budgeted every year as a part of each Unit’s “projecto estratégico”, but regular users are still requested to contribute towards the basic maintenance costs of the FCUL-MF. When a need arises (e.g. upgrades, reparations, replacement of parts etc) the “hours of use” for each equipment will be used to calculate the contribution allocated to each group. This is not a regular fee, but internal users are expected to contribute to the necessary expenses in a way that is proportional to their use of the facility.

Users can contribute towards the FCUL-MF by acquiring equipment (e.g. through their research projects) which they place in the facility for general use. In this situation, users gain an “hours of use” credit they can use for other equipment in the facility, the size of this credit being proportional to the size of the contribution. For more information on this topic, please contact the FCUL-MF head.