4.4 Infrastructure control

The eligible recipient, either alone or as a member of a group composed of a majority of eligible institutions, will:

• Operate and use the research infrastructure
• Exercise de facto control over the research infrastructure, including assuming responsibility for its access and for the associated scientific programming
• Where appropriate, hold a majority interest in the research infrastructure
• Assume responsibility for insuring all CFI-funded research infrastructure, including powered vehicles.

These responsibilities hold over the useful life of the research infrastructure and for a minimum of five years. The useful life of the research infrastructure is considered to be the period of time over which the infrastructure is expected to provide benefits and be usable for its intended purpose, factoring in normal repairs and maintenance. With pre-approval from the CFI, the eligible recipient may transfer de facto control of the research infrastructure to another eligible institution.

4.4.1 Infrastructure disposal

When an institution decides that equipment purchased with a CFI award has reached the end of its useful life (e.g., is no longer required for the research project, is beyond repair or is completely outdated) the institution is expected to dispose of the equipment according to its internal policies. The CFI encourages institutions to dispose of equipment in an environmentally friendly fashion and consider whether outdated equipment can be recycled, sold or donated to other researchers or institutions in Canada or abroad, or other organizations as appropriate. Such considerations should always be subject to appropriate due diligence, risk assessment, reasonableness and discretion. 

The CFI also expects institutional equipment disposal policies to ensure that proper precautions and procedures are in place to protect personal research data confidentiality, typically by wiping all research, personal and confidential data from a disposed piece of equipment.