The laboratory provides an important role for universities to cultivate the talents of creativity and promote the construction of “first-rate universities and disciplines”. It is necessary to establish a standardized and efficient safety management model for scientific research laboratories which is featured with diverse experimental content, complex personnel access, and overlapping safety risks. Taking the Faculty of Geographical Science of Beijing Normal University as an example, this paper comprehensively sorts out the complexity characteristics of laboratories in geographical branch, such as multiple professional directions, multiple hazards and high frequency of use, and puts forward the corresponding improvement strategies in view of the shortcomings existing in scientific research laboratory safety management, such as the lack of scientific laboratory planning and function layout, backward safety concept, weak safety awareness, professional laboratory manager shortages and weak information management. It is expected to provide references for the safety management of laboratories and create a new situation of safety management in university laboratories so as to adapt to the construction of “first-rate universities and disciplines”.