Sample preparation can be a labor-intensive and expensive process. What are the factors that should be considered when evaluating the possible transition from manual to semi-automated or fully automated systems? How do they impact your return on investment?

Fire extinguishers need to be appropriate to the type of fire.

For many labs, automation provides the biggest return on sample preparation because it’s the key time-consuming bottleneck for many processes.

First responders have downloaded more than 10,000 copies of a guide to commercially available, hand-portable biodetection technologies created to help them determine what they might be up against in the field. Since many first responders do not always have immediate access to a computer, a mobile version of the guide is now available for cell phones and tablets.

Artel, the leader in liquid handling quality assurance, announced today that the Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS) and Artel are working together to produce a conference short course for the 2015 annual meeting in Washington, D.C. “Liquid Handling Essentials – A Hands-on Workshop Bridging Fundamental Concepts to Practice,” will be presented on Saturday, February 7 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Clinical laboratories have among the most stringent requirements for purity of input materials (reagents, solvents, assay kits, gases, etc.). Yet the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 (CLIA), officially promulgated in 1992, leave to clinical and diagnostic laboratory managers the task of assuring the quality and performance of chemicals and gases used to calibrate instruments and conduct general lab operations.

One of the primary safety devices in laboratories where chemicals are used is the laboratory fume hood. It allows a researcher to work with—but not be exposed to— materials that create toxic fumes or particles when it is properly installed and maintained.

The concept of lab automation sounds almost magical, as if a sophisticated machine here or there makes a lab run by itself. Indeed, automation can improve the efficiency of a lab and more, but figuring out the best “here” or “there” creates the challenge.

Malvern Instruments has released new guidance on using automated image analysis to detect and quantify agglomerates. The ability of uncontrolled agglomeration to substantially impact the performance and value of powder products makes efficient agglomerate detection vital across a number of industries.

Choosing the right lab washer depends entirely on what needs to be cleaned and why. Both the labware and the washer features come into play, and these change with advances in technology.

Multichannel pipettes are invaluable when working with multiwell plates. However, prolonged and repetitive pipetting sessions bear the risk of strain and fatigue, often resulting in repetitive strain injuries (RSI) and less reproducible results.

SLAS2015 is fast-approaching, taking place February 7-11 in Washington, DC.