As head of the User Services Group, I am responsible for many of the functions that enable our users to get access to ALS facilities as quickly and efficiently as possible. I have an open door policy and encourage users to come and talk to me with their ideas for improving their interactions with the ALS, or to let me know of their recent scientific breakthroughs. Please drop by my office (6-2214, beside the User Services Office), or contact me by phone (486-7727) or by email.
Specifically, I am responsible for the ALS User Services Office which handles the general user proposal system, the administration of new and returning users (registration, safety training, end-of-run reports), the coordination of the annual Users’ Meeting, and the collection of publications. I am also responsible for the Experiment Coordination Group whose members work with all users to ensure that they can come in, set up their experiment, and work safely. I work with the Communications Group to publish ALSNews, Spectrum (our annual facility report), and facility documents such as the ALS Strategic Plan. Our team also creates handouts for visitors, posters in the ALS Lobby and for meetings, and manages the ALS Web site as well as the communications for the annual Users’ Meeting (Save the date! October 13–15, 2010)
We have some exciting projects going on, particularly in the Communications Group. The most visible one to users will be a redesign of the ALS Web site, which we plan to roll out later this year. If you have strong views on what you would like to see, I encourage you to contact us at ALS Communications. A science café has also been started at the ALS, meeting every 6–8 weeks, and we encourage users to attend to hear about the latest work taking place around the ring. The current theme is energy research, and all users are welcome to attend and share their work with us.
We also have a lot of plans on the safety front. We have known for some time that our current Experiment Safety Sheet (ESS) system needs rethinking and that we need to give web-based access to all parties. After a recent joint meeting with the other US light sources, we plan to model our new system on the APS ESAF system. We are also starting to work with other light sources to streamline training requirements.
The User Services Office has made several updates to its processes. Our aim is to make life easier for users on arrival at the ALS. We continue to increase Web access so that more of the registration and safety documentation process can be completed by users before their arrival at the ALS, ensuring that they can get on with their research promptly.
Contact us:
Sue Bailey, 510-486-7727, SBailey2@lbl.gov
Communications alscommunications@lbl.gov
Proposals administration, alsproposals@lbl.gov
Guest registration and training, alsusers@lbl.gov
Experiment coordination – safety documentation, als_expt@lbl.gov