a. What is a core facility?
Core facilities can be defined as centralized shared resources that provide access to instruments, technologies, methods, services, as well as expert consultation and other services to scientific and clinical investigators. The typical core facility is a distinct unit within an institution and has dedicated personnel, equipment, and space for operations. In general, core facilities recover their cost of providing service in the form of user fees that are charged to an investigator’s funds, often FWF, ÖNB or other federal grants.

b. Are cores limited in the types of costs they may recover?
Yes. In general, a core facility’s cost may be limited by the terms of award and in general may only recover the allocable, allowable and reasonable direct cost of providing a service to an investigator. This is the case when the core’s infrastructure costs, commonly referred to as Facilities and Administration (F&A) or indirect costs are covered by the application of the institution’s indirect cost rate. Since these indirect costs are recovered by the application of the F&A rate to the indirect cost base of an investigator’s grant, a core may not collect these charges a second time.