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SCP-1389 Safe ~ medium confidence
SCP-1389
Expected annual
$745K
One-time setup
$523K
Annual recurring
$735K
Personnel
5.75
Initial capital costs are moderate (~$0.52M) driven by bespoke conservation, research lab readiness, biosecurity and contingency set-asides; annual recurring costs are dominated by personnel, facility overhead, and ongoing research/monitoring (~$0.735M/yr). Major-cost drivers are staff wages, facility overhead/security, and research/cloud/computing support.
🏗️ One-Time Capital Costs Total: $523K
Termination Contingency $150K
[#27] One-time contingency for potential dissection/termination (ethical review, operating suite rental, hazardous waste disposal, specialist pathologists) if ever authorized.
Initial Research And Lab Setup $120K
[#10, #11, #13, #16] Includes baseline medical imaging (#10), adaptation/development for neuro/physiology interface (#11), computing/ML hardware for research (#13), and histology/pathology lab readiness prep (#16).
Contingency Reserve $100K
[#25] Set-aside contingency for unexpected research directions, bespoke apparatus, external specialists, or prolonged communication programs.
Equipment $59K
[#1, #2, #3, #8, #11] Includes custom Plexiglas protective case (#1), microclimate control hardware (#2), environmental monitoring hardware (#3), climate-controlled transport crate (#8), and baseline neurological/physiological monitoring hardware (#11).
Deconfliction Initial Retrieval $55K
[#20] One-time initial recovery/deconfliction/legal negotiation and payments related to retrieval and community agreements.
Training Initial Program $24K
[#6] Initial specialized training and certification for authorized handlers (museum handling, safe transfer, biological-awareness) for core staff.
Biosecurity Kit $15K
[#15] One-time purchase of quarantine/biosecurity kit (negative-pressure hood, containment tents, disinfectants, PPE escalation stockpile).
Facilities $0
[]
🔄 Annual Recurring Costs Total: $735K/yr
Staff Wages $428K/yr
[#5, #12, #18] Salaries and benefits for conservator (0.75 FTE), research team (PI, technician, data scientist/engineer), security (approx. 1.5 FTE), and partial administrative support; aggregated to reflect ranges given.
Cover Story And Legal $90K/yr
[#14, #20] Ongoing legal, ethics, and oversight costs (#14) plus proactive PR/deconfliction monitoring and local engagement costs (#20) recurring portion.
Facilities Maintenance $70K/yr
[#4, #18] Pro-rated facility overhead, site security infrastructure and utilities (secure containment room/vault allocation, CCTV/intrusion systems maintenance).
Humane Care And Enrichment $60K/yr
[#26] Long-term humane care, scheduled interaction/enrichment programs and specialized handler time if object is treated as sentient.
Research And Monitoring $34K/yr
[#3, #10, #11, #13, #24] Ongoing environmental monitoring cloud/storage (#3), routine follow-up imaging (#10), calibration/consumables for physiological monitoring (#11), cloud/ML maintenance (#13), and secure records/archival storage (#24).
Psychological Support $15K/yr
[#22] Ongoing psychological care, debriefing and ethics support for staff interacting with potentially sentient artifact.
Insurance And Liability $11K/yr
[#19] Annual premiums for artifact value and biological-risk liability coverage.
Supplies And Consumables $10K/yr
[#7, #17, #23] PPE and sterile handling consumables (#7), archival conservation supplies and small-repair consumables (#17), and consumable experimental/imaging supplies (#23).
Logistics And Transport $8K/yr
[#9] Secure transfer/logistics (trained courier, climate control during transit, domestic average annualized cost for occasional supervised movements).
Training Refreshers $3K/yr
[#6] Periodic refresher training for authorized handlers (museum handling, safe transfer, biological-awareness).
Biosecurity Upkeep $3K/yr
[#15] Annual upkeep and replenishment of biosecurity/quarantine stockpile.
Emergency Drills $3K/yr
[#21] Annual emergency response exercises, tabletop drills and rehearsals.
Microclimate Maintenance And Power $200/yr
[#2] Annual maintenance and power for the climate control unit keeping the icon at ~35°C.
Histology Sample Processing $0/yr
[#16] Per-sample histology/pathology processing costs; baseline set to zero because sampling is currently prohibited without director approval (budgeted as contingency in scenarios).
⚡ Cost Scenarios
📊 Baseline (baseline) $735K/yr
89.0% probability / year
Normal, uneventful year with routine monitoring, scheduled research, and no major incidents.
normal monitoring and research no transport no breaches
🚨 Minor Incident $785K/yr
10.0% probability / year +$50K vs baseline
Small containment or microclimate failure or minor accidental damage requiring emergency conservation, extra imaging, limited PR and a supervised transfer for repair.
microclimate deviation minor accidental handling damage unscheduled short-term relocation
🚨 Major Breach $1.2M/yr
1.0% probability / year +$500K vs baseline
Significant damage, public exposure or decision to escalate research (invasive testing/termination), requiring major containment upgrades, legal/deconfliction expenses and possible termination/disposal activity.
public exposure / large pilgrim attention major containment failure authorized invasive testing or termination
👥 Personnel 5.75 total
Role Count Notes
Conservator 0.75 Specialty conservator (0.5–1.0 FTE recommended) responsible for handling and conservation. [#5]
Research Scientist / PI 1 Lead scientist overseeing communication and physiological research. [#12]
Research Technician 1 Technical support for imaging, experiments, and handling. [#12]
Data Scientist / Engineer 1 Signal analysis, ML model development, and computational infrastructure maintenance. [#12, #13]
Security Officer / MTF Agent 1.5 Site guards for dedicated monitoring shifts (1–2 FTE recommended). [#18]
Administrative Staff 0.5 Site administrative/logistics support for records, scheduling, and deconfliction coordination. [#24, #20]
📋 Confidence Notes
Ranges in analyst notes allow reasonably bounded estimates for capital items, but recurring costs depend heavily on staffing levels, research intensity, and transfer frequency; probabilities for incidents are judgment-based and thus only medium confidence.
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