The acquisition of equipment is a strategic business and operational decision that balances technology, durability, reliability, active running time, purchase price, maintenance, service, and running costs with the value the acquisition could potentially deliver for a laboratory enterprise.

Testing, testing, testing.

An often overlooked practice critical to passing on key aspects of scientific knowledge

The need for storage and management is more pressing than data generation.

Superhighway for lab communication amoung disparate laboratory software systems.

In recent years, research labs have been a notable beneficiary as a variety of highly functional and specialized apps have gained the acceptance and even gratitude of a broad spectrum of laboratory managers, research scientists and bench technologists.

Despite funding challenges, tow biofuel R&D labs continue to optimize methods and service the market.

How the right service agreement can extend equipment life, protect assets, simplify operations and deliver savings. 

Developers of analytical instrumentation for food laboratories are constantly being kept on their toes—foremost by the competing technical advancements and expanding market demands inherent in their business, and also by the need to help customers comply with changing and more stringent regulatory requirements worldwide.

Embattled like much of the United States economy, and having endured several years of anemic demand from consumers caught in the throes of a prolonged recession and high levels of unemployment, the $58.3 billion a year cosmetics and personal care industry in the US is eager for a rebound.

The Institute for Food Safety and Health (FSH), formerly the National Center for Food Safety and Technology, which is engaged in a broad range of food-related research, provides an excellent profile of the vital tools and instrumentation required for food testing.

The food sector in the United States (US) is experiencing its biggest changes in decades. This year, Congress passed the Food Safety Modernization Act, updating regulations first implemented in 1938. The act greatly expands the powers of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), whose new clout now includes food recall authority. Also in 2011, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which are revised every five years, were updated to push for healthier diets overall, and especially for children.

Many lab managers still remember them from their student days—a handful of hastily stapled printouts sternly titled “Laboratory etiquette—Acceptable standards of conduct.” Those were rules to live by, and the smallest violation landed a budding laboratory scientist in front of the ticked-off chief instructor.

U.S. forensic laboratories are reeling from the enfeeblement of city, state and federal budgets. And with substantive regulatory changes slated for 2011, the labs may soon experience alterations in how they are accredited and managed, how their staffers are trained and certified, and how they are funded and paid for their services.

Laboratory benchmarking entails comparing the quality of one lab to measures taken from a range of other laboratories, or from the standard bearers. Its the details involved in the benchmarking process, however, that can be maddening.