The Digital Lab

More efficient laboratory work through sophisticated networking

Apr 22, 2020 12:00:00 AM / by Paul Planje


In everyday life we are all pretty well "digitalized". We pass the time in lockdown with streaming on-demand, control light and heating via smartphone and store our images in the cloud. The workday in the lab, on the other hand, often looks quite different. Here, important data is recorded manually and stored on paper in file folders. Whether a laboratory device is free or occupied by a colleague*, we don't find out centrally via a database, but exactly on site at the actual laboratory device.

More dynamics, less time lost
In theory, all the necessary equipment is more than adequately available in a laboratory. Also, the devices are hardly ever used all at once. What sounds like efficient working conditions is in practice associated with waiting times. After all, who doesn't know: Exactly the equipment that you urgently need for a test yourself is of course occupied. To counteract these idle times, handwritten assignment plans can of course be attached directly to the device.
 
Or you can rely on dynamic booking of free capacities, user groups with individual access rights and automatic documentation of the workload. By means of digital processes, work in a laboratory can be made more productive and efficient in a short time and at moderate costs.
 
What does it look like in your laboratory? Are you also aware of the constant interruptions to your work due to unnecessary waiting and administration times - or are you already fully involved in the "Internet of Lab things"? We are looking forward to your feedback!
 
 
Paul Planje

Written by Paul Planje

Ich arbeite seit 1992 an Themen wie Effizienz und Produktivitätssteigerung. Zunächst in den Bereichen Labor und Forschung. Hier machte ich meine Erfahrungen mit analytischen Instrumenten und Automatisierung. Mit dem Wechsel in den Vertrieb kamen Unternehmenslösungen wie Scientific Data Management Systems (SDMS), Laborinformationssysteme (LIMS), Laboratory Execution Systems (LES), Elektronische Laborzeitschriften (ELN) und Dokumentenmanagementsysteme (DMS) hinzu. In den letzten Jahren habe ich mich mit der Digitalisierung von Prozessen und deren Messungen beschäftigt. Seit 2019 leite ich die iVention DACH-Region und unterstütze unsere Kunden beim Einstieg in die digitale Laborwelt.