COVID-19 Bulletin #3 – March 15, 2020: “Limited Operations Mode”

Last Updated: May 13, 2020

CIC COMMUNITY,

We are writing today to let you know that we have decided to move to a more aggressive response to the COVID-19 crisis.  We will transition temporarily to Limited Operations Mode in all CIC locations, effective immediately.  We are also ordering a full disinfection of all centers as soon as that can be scheduled.  We will update each center as to the dates, which will require a 2-3 day full closure. Following the disinfection, we are asking clients to come in only if they have an essential need to do so.  We plan to repeat the full disinfection each weekend. We expect to reenter this mode as sites begin to reopen through June 1, 2020 [updated May 13, 2020].

Why are we doing this?

We learned on Friday, March 13th, that a client at CIC 50 Milk, Boston and a client in CIC Miami, were diagnosed with COVID-19.  You can read more at these links.  Fortunately for others at CIC, in both of these cases, the infected individuals reported they were never symptomatic at CIC and that they were last at CIC some time ago (16 and 12 days ago, respectively).  As of this writing, there are no reports that anyone at CIC contracting COVID-19 in connection with these incidents. We are concerned for these individuals’ health, and wish them well in their recovery. (If you are in one of these buildings, we will send you a separate note with the timing for you to be able to access the building.)

Rest assured that if we receive any further such reports, we will promptly communicate them to you, with as much information as possible.

Unfortunately, we anticipate an increasing number of such reports in the coming days.  

The driving considerations for us as we consider how to manage CIC is to 1) improve your safety and 2) support the global imperative to dramatically slow the spread of the virus and avoid overwhelming local health care networks.  We think this new operating mode will help achieve these goals, while enabling continuity of critical business functions for our clients.

For those who are not at CIC, we urge you to work from home, or other places where you are not likely to contract the virus.  This means probably not at your local, crowded coffee place.

In addition, as mentioned earlier, with an abundance of caution and to further ensure your safety, we are taking the preemptive step in the next few days of deep-cleaning all of our centers.  This will require us to close each center for 2-3 days.  It will generally be possible by prior arrangement to enter the centers during the cleaning period for urgent reasons.  We will let clients in each center know the schedule for their center.

What is Limited Operations Mode?

During Limited Operations Mode, CIC will remain open and accessible to clients who need to come into the office for essential tasks.  If you do not deem your tasks essential, please do not come in.  

We know that your work is important.  For instance, many of our lab clients have ongoing experiments that require regular tending.  Only you can evaluate the specific needs of your work, and whether or not it needs to be done on-site.  While we are in this mode, we are leaving this judgement call to you. 

Given the special threat of virus propagation posed by events, all in-person events have been cancelled through at least the end of May [updated May 13, 2020].

During this period we will have limited CIC staff presence, similar to the staff we deploy on holidays, and we will have significantly reduced services. There will be no new provision of snacks, for example.  The only CIC staff on-site will be individuals who: 

• are comfortable with their personal health risk with respect to COVID-19

• are covered by a health insurance plan

• are able to commute to CIC without using public transportation have volunteered to be among those working on site

We will continue to provide sanitizing gel at building entrances and ask all clients to gel their hands prior to entering our facilities.  In addition, where building owners permit it, we will deploy a “temperature-taking station” at our main entrances. We are asking every client and staff member who comes in to take their own temperature at the point of entry, after having gelled their hands.  If you have a temperature above 99.14F (37.3C), we ask you not to enter.

In addition, we will:

• Continue to reduce touch points.  Until “touchless” door opening is possible, for those CIC buildings with turnstiles or other secure building entrances, we will leave internal elevator lobby doors propped open.

• Prop open some or all doors into multi-stall bathrooms, similar to how airports don’t have closed doors to multi-stall bathrooms.  Feel free to close them temporarily if this makes you uncomfortable.

• Prop open all conference room doors.  Again, feel free to close them if needed, but, generally, with reduced attendance, we believe they can remain open most of the time.

• Subject to supply availability, provide wipes in conference rooms. Where we do this, please wipe down the conference room table and any chair arms and equipment you are utilizing before and after your meeting.

Guests will be permitted in the building during this period, but they will need to call you, and you will need to collect them at the entrance.  You are responsible for ensuring that they follow our safety procedures.

Even during Limited Operations Mode, please expect that our centers may nevertheless be fully closed from time to time as we respond to further reports of impacted individuals. 

One new thing we plan to ask some of our team to do while we are in this mode is to research the government supports that are beginning to be available to businesses to help them deal with the economic impact of COVID-19.  We hope to help you find supports that may apply to your business, where needed.

In closing

Thank you for supporting our ongoing efforts to adapt to this rapidly changing environment, and for your patience as we all work together to assure the safety of our entire CIC community.

We will of course continue to heed direction given by governmental authorities, and will monitor the situation, and adjust our operations accordingly going forward.  We will continue to communicate with you regularly as we do this.

Regards, 

For the latest updates on COVID-19 from CIC, please click here.