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SCP-2258 Safe ~ medium confidence
SCP-2258
Expected annual
$111K
One-time setup
$69K
Annual recurring
$109K
Personnel
3
One-time capital of approximately $68,650 for containment, monitoring hardware, and an optional automated top-up system; recurring annual costs are approximately $109,100 driven primarily by staff wages, research/monitoring, helium supply, and contingency reserves.
🏗️ One-Time Capital Costs Total: $69K
Equipment $40K
[#3, #4, #8, #9, #21] Helium cylinder/regulator & fittings (~$2,000), automated top-up system (~$30,000), monitoring hardware (cameras/mics ~$4,000), on-prem NAS/hardware for AV archival (~$4,000). Also relates to capital portion noted in summary (#21).
Facilities $14K
[#1, #14, #15] Containment cell construction ($12,000 mid-range), vent mesh/vent mods ($400), badge/lock install ($1,250).
Initial Research And Lab Setup $5K
[#11] SOP/training and initial SOP development/drafting/testing (~$5,000 one-time).
Incident Response Initial $5K
[#12] Initial incident response/investigation setup reserve (one-time/per-incident setup baseline ~$5,000).
Helium Price Volatility Reserve Initial $5K
[#20] Initial one-time reserve for long-term helium price volatility (~$5,000).
🔄 Annual Recurring Costs Total: $109K/yr
Staff Wages $65K/yr
[#5, #6] Includes manual-fill technician labor estimate ($55–65k/yr) plus automated-inspection/verification labor (~$4–6k/yr) aggregated for staffing coverage across operational modes.
Research And Monitoring $16K/yr
[#8, #9, #13] Part-time researcher / behavioral monitoring (0.1–0.2 FTE, ~$12,000/yr) plus audio/video cloud/archive storage and redundancy (~$1,800/yr combined).
Incident Contingency Reserve $5K/yr
[#12] Recurring set-aside reserve for incident investigations, cleanup, and debriefs (~$5,000/yr as a budgeted reserve).
Facilities Maintenance $4K/yr
[#14, #15] Incremental power/HVAC adjustments and small HVAC maintenance (~$600/yr) and facility security/monitoring marginal cost (~$3,000/yr).
Logistics And Transport $4K/yr
[#2] Helium supply (~$3,000/yr median) plus tank rental/delivery and transport (~$500/yr).
Cover Story And Legal $4K/yr
[#16, #17] Cover procurement/obfuscation costs (~$1,500/yr) and legal/compliance reviews (~$2,000/yr).
Staff Welfare And Rotation $4K/yr
[#19] Counseling, rotation overhead and noise attenuation (~$3,500/yr).
Replacement And Spares $3K/yr
[#18] Annual spare parts and planned refresh for regulators, valves, sensors (~$3,000/yr).
Helium Price Reserve $3K/yr
[#20] Ongoing reserve/replenishment to handle market volatility in helium (~$3,000/yr).
Supplies And Consumables $2K/yr
[#7, #10] Padded gloves, gowns, markers, cleaning supplies and replacement inflatables (~$1,200 + ~$500/yr).
Training And Sop Refreshers $2K/yr
[#11] Annual refresher training, drills and documentation updates (~$500–$2,000/yr).
⚡ Cost Scenarios
📊 Baseline (baseline) $109K/yr
83.0% probability / year
Normal uneventful year with standard operations, routine maintenance, and reserves funded.
normal_operations scheduled_maintenance
🚨 Minor Incident $119K/yr
10.0% probability / year +$10K vs baseline
Single-instance failure (balloon bursts/deflation) requiring investigation, cleanup and limited overtime.
balloon_burst deflation localized_contamination
🚨 Helium Price Spike $118K/yr
5.0% probability / year +$8K vs baseline
Market disruption or supply issue causing helium costs to double for the year and use of volatility reserves.
market_spike supply_disruption
🚨 Major Breach $149K/yr
2.0% probability / year +$40K vs baseline
Containment failure or multiple-instance loss requiring major investigation, containment repairs, and PR/legal response.
multiple_balloon_loss containment_damage media_exposure
👥 Personnel 3 total
Role Count Notes
Technician / Lab Technician 2 [#5, #6] Two technicians covering manual fills, inspections and routine handling (staff_wages budget).
Research Scientist 1 [#13] Part-time researcher for behavioral monitoring and periodic tests (0.1–0.2 FTE covered in research_and_monitoring).
📋 Confidence Notes
Line-item ranges and helium market volatility introduce uncertainty; containment and labor estimates are well described but incident probabilities and market shocks are uncertain, so medium confidence is appropriate.
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