June 26, 2019 - Simplifying Results Collection and Approval in Laboratories

Of all the functionality offered by modern LIMS, accurate acquisition and reporting of test results is a central requirement. There are essentially two ways to enter results data into the LIMS – manually or directly from the testing instruments. Entering results manually is clearly quite common, but offers the possibility for transcription errors, especially if the results are first written down in a notebook and then later typed into the LIMS. Direct integration of instrumentation into the LIMS eliminates this possibility and helps meet data integrity and validity requirements. This is particularly important in the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry, where data integrity is critical throughout the cGMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) data life cycle. Data integrity refers to the completeness, consistency, and accuracy of data. Complete, consistent, and accurate data should be attributable, legible, contemporaneously recorded, original or a true copy, and accurate (ALCOA).

June 26, 2019 - Achieving & Maintaining ISO 17025 Accreditation LIMS Suport

June 12, 2019 - Creating an Effective Validation Master Plan

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is tasked with protecting the public health by ensuring the safety, efficacy, and security of the nation’s food supply, human and veterinary drugs, biological products, medical devices, vaccines, and other products. In order to fulfill its mission, the FDA requires that all products under its domain meet guidelines outlined in current Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) regulations. …

June 12, 2019 - Moving Your LIMS to the Cloud: What You Need to Know

Modern laboratories in all industries are under intense pressure to reduce costs and improve operational efficiency, while at the same time enhancing quality and maintaining regulatory compliance. Additionally, the rise of R&D externalization strategies and contract research organizations (CROs) in the pharmaceutical industry has resulted in labs collecting large amounts of data from multiple partners, leading to a significant increase in laboratory workflow complexity.

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June 4, 2019 - Enhanced Stability Testing with Matrix Gemini LIMS

Stability studies are used to assess the shelf life of a product by storing samples under controlled environmental conditions for defined lengths of time prior to testing. Stability studies may be accelerated or real time; which of these is appropriate depends on the product under test or applicable regulatory requirements.. Managing multiple studies can be complex and time consuming, however the Matrix Gemini Stability System simplifies the whole study management process. As one of the most complete and mature study management systems on the market, Matrix Gemini Stability continues to gain traction and market share. Its highly flexible graphical configuration tools make it easy to configure the system to each customer’s exact needs, while providing the flexibility for change as the customer’s requirements evolve yet at the same time maintaining the underlying stability functionality. Not only that, a new stability analytics capability has been introduced which includes a fully integrated charting module to provide early indications of shelf-life performance for each product, or batch of product, under test.

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May 22, 2019 - 5 Things to Document When Justifying a LIMS or ELN

As clients go through the process of getting approval for laboratory informatics purchases, CSols experts often field questions like, “How much does a LIMS cost?” or “Is an ELN worth the investment?” or “What is the ROI for LIMS?”

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May 15, 2019 - Data Integrity: The Importance of a Quality Culture

Verification of data integrity is a critical part of the FDA’s mission to ensure the safety, efficacy and quality of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, and medical devices. As such, the FDA’s expectation is that all data generated to support the quality of manufactured products is both reliable and accurate. Compliance violations involving data integrity have led to numerous regulatory actions by the FDA in recent years, including warning letters, import alerts, and consent decrees. In 2018 alone, the FDA issued 54 warning letters that had references to data integrity and data management deficiencies in pharmaceutical companies, 10 of which were in the United States. An analysis of 2018 warning letters by FDAzilla found that 45% of GMP-related warning letters issued to pharmaceutical companies based in the United States included a data integrity deficiency.

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May 8, 2019 - Meeting the Challenges of a Multi-Generational Workforce

Due to the 75 million strong Baby Boomer generation reaching retirement age, a wide range of industries in the United States are currently experiencing labor shortages. Combine this with the fact that, for a variety of reasons, many Baby Boomers are delaying their retirement and you have a recipe for significant generational diversity in the modern American workplace. It is not uncommon these days for a 20-year-old new hire to work with colleagues 50+ years their senior. Many companies are, in fact, now employing a workforce that spans four different generations.

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May 1, 2019 - Highlights from the 2019 Bio-IT World Conference & Expo

Since its inception in 2002, the annual Bio-IT World Conference & Expo has become a premier event for showcasing the wide-array of IT and informatics applications and enabling technologies that drive biomedical research, drug discovery & development, and clinical and healthcare initiatives.

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May 1, 2019 - LIMS and ELN Planning: Having the Right Non-Laboratory Team Members

This blog post is part of an on-going series about the LIMS and ELN implementation journey, specifically the Do’s and Don’ts of the implementation planning phase.  Today’s post discusses who should be on your project team from outside the lab.  We’ll take a look at who should be on the team and some of the activities they should complete.

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April 24, 2019 - Why Your Laboratory Needs a Strategic Informatics Roadmap

April 24, 2019 - LIMS and ELN Planning – DON’Ts (and what to do instead)

“Getting” a LIMS or ELN is a much more complicated and lengthy journey than many organizations expect.  For many labs, just defining requirements and refining a vendor short list can be a months-long endeavor, but there is much farther to travel after selecting your preferred LIMS or ELN product.  Many clients envision an efficient, automated lab that runs on a shiny new LIMS or ELN, but we often see expensive software systems fail to live up to these expectations.  LIMS or ELN licenses alone can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, and at that price, how could they not perform as promised?! This blog post examines the LIMS and ELN Implementation Planning part of the journey and highlights some common problems to avoid as you traverse the road to your laboratory informatics destination.

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