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SCP-1398 Safe ✓ high confidence
SCP-1398
Expected annual
$700K
One-time setup
$288K
Annual recurring
$689K
Personnel
7
Initial setup requires a mid-size capital outlay (~$287,500) for chamber, archival/equipment, and secure storage; recurring annual costs are dominated by staff wages and medical/incident readiness (~$689,200/yr). Major cost drivers are research/security salaries, incident-response reserves, and ongoing legal/backup/medical expenses.
🏗️ One-Time Capital Costs Total: $288K
Facilities $160K
[#1, #3] Secure audio storage unit modification ($10,000) and soundproofed test chamber build/retrofit ($150,000).
Equipment $88K
[#4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #11, #24] High-fidelity playback/duplication ($27,000), on-site encrypted storage appliance ($20,000), Type-R headsets (6 units, $18,000), personal microphones ($500), access-control hardware ($2,000), controlled-substance locker ($3,000), medical monitoring equipment ($15,000), redaction/ACL one-time setup ($2,000).
Initial Research And Lab Setup $35K
[#2, #23] Archival materials and initial restoration ($5,000) and EEG acquisition/setup ($30,000).
Secure Transport Initial $5K
[#16] Armored/secure transfer from recovery to Site-19 initial move ($5,000 one-time).
🔄 Annual Recurring Costs Total: $689K/yr
Staff Wages $525K/yr
[#12, #13, #15, #25] Research team salaries including PI+benefits and technicians (~$351,000/yr), transcription/audio analyst FTE (~$60,000/yr), 2 security guards pro rata with benefits (~$104,000/yr), and program administrative overhead (~$10,000/yr).
Incident Response Fund $50K/yr
[#20] Rapid-response reserve for medical evacuations, repairs, or unexpected severe effects ($50,000 replenishable reserve).
Psychological Aftercare $30K/yr
[#19] Post-test counseling/trauma care and related services ($30,000/yr).
Cover Story And Legal $25K/yr
[#21] Baseline legal/cover story/PR suppression and outside counsel retainer ($25,000/yr).
Emt Coverage $16K/yr
[#10] On-call EMT-P coverage assumed (200 hrs/yr at midpoint ~$16,000/yr). Full-time EMT-P option would be significantly higher (scenario).
Training And Sop $10K/yr
[#14] Annual training, drills, SOP documentation upkeep ($10,000/yr).
Facilities Maintenance $8K/yr
[#2, #3, #17, #8] Archival climate-control & inspections ($500/yr), chamber maintenance ($2,000/yr), chamber operational energy/HVAC ($5,000/yr), and access-control audit/maintenance ($500/yr).
Supplies And Consumables $7K/yr
[#6, #7, #9, #11, #18] Headset spares/repairs ($2,000/yr), microphone consumables ($200/yr), ongoing medical supplies/sedatives ($2,000/yr), medical PPE/consumables ($1,000/yr), general consumables/cleaning ($2,000/yr).
Research And Monitoring $5K/yr
[#13] Speech-to-text/license and forensic audio software/licenses ($5,000/yr). (Transcription labor salary accounted under staff_wages.)
Data Backups And Offsite Vaulting $5K/yr
[#5] Off-site encrypted backups, storage growth and integrity checks ($5,000/yr).
Ethics Compliance $5K/yr
[#22] Internal oversight, IRB/admin costs, and documentation retention ($5,000/yr).
Logistics And Transport $2K/yr
[#16] Recurring secure courier/transfer budget for offsite testing or duplication ($2,000/yr).
Redaction And Enforcement $1K/yr
[#24] Annual audits/enforcement of prohibition on SCP-1398-1-1 and logging ($1,000/yr).
⚡ Cost Scenarios
📊 Baseline (baseline) $689K/yr
88.0% probability / year
Normal operational year with no major incidents; routine testing and maintenance as budgeted.
routine_testing scheduled_maintenance
🚨 Minor Incident $764K/yr
10.0% probability / year +$75K vs baseline
Localized incident such as medical evacuation, equipment failure, or small containment breach requiring emergency response and repairs.
medical_evacuations equipment_failure small_containment_breach
🚨 Legal Action $839K/yr
2.0% probability / year +$150K vs baseline
Significant third-party legal action or public exposure requiring extended legal defense, larger PR suppression, and possible settlements.
copyright_claims media_leak third-party_litigation
👥 Personnel 7 total
Role Count Notes
Research Scientist (PI) 1 [#12] Senior lead researcher responsible for protocol approvals and oversight.
Research Technician / Audio Analyst 2 [#12] Two technicians/analysts to run tests and perform initial analyses.
Transcriptionist / Audio Analyst (FTE) 1 [#13] Dedicated transcription/forensic audio staff (FTE salary accounted in staff_wages).
Security Officer / MTF Agent 2 [#15] Two Level-2 guards regularly assigned pro rata to the program.
Administrative Staff 1 [#25] Program secretary/manager for recordkeeping and budget management.
📋 Confidence Notes
Analyst notes provide line-item estimates for capital and recurring costs enabling a high-confidence aggregation; uncertainty remains only for low-probability legal/outlier events covered in scenarios.
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