We’ve all done it. Either in a rush, under pressure, or trying to save money, we’ve gambled with our safety. Opting not to wear the bike helmet for a quick ride around town; skipping the sunscreen since it’s really not that sunny; not flossing, despite the dental hygienist’s threats and pleas. While these examples are fairly trivial and affect only oneself, other safety gambles have much more serious consequences.

What recent industrial disasters can teach lab managers about the cost/benefits of safety.

The first part of our series on blood-borne pathogens covered the basics, ending by touching on Universal Precautions and minimum personal protective equipment or PPE. Part two picks up where we left off and delves into the OSHA BBP standard a little further by examining the elements of an Exposure Control Plan more closely

Results indicate significant backsliding in lab health and safety practices

Microplate readers are widely used in research, drug discovery, bioassay validation, QC, and manufacturing processes for the detection of biological, chemical, or physical processes in samples contained in microtiter plates.

One of the oldest and most common forms of absorption-based analysis, ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectrophotometry continues to evolve. Increased mobility, reliability, ease of use, speed, and overall miniaturization will be the major trends in these instruments.

YOU REMEMBER! A worldwide web of viewers watched 33 miners being pulled to the surface following a 600,000-ton cave-in that happened nearly one-half mile below the ground on a barren plain in southern Chile. Besides showcasing the tenacity of rescuers and the miracle of technology, the miners themselves offered dramatic lessons in resiliency that can teach everyone.

There is no making up for a first impression, especially when the relationship starts online. After so much time and effort is taken to attract the right person, you want to be sure to put your best foot forward at that first face-to-face meeting.

How integrated facility management providers can deliver better operational synergies and strategic partnerships

The latest equipment, instrument, and system introductions to the laboratory market

Gary W. Procop, MD, MS, chair of the Department of Molecular Pathology, section head of molecular microbiology, and director of mycology and parasitology at the Cleveland Clinic, talks to contributing editor Tanuja Koppal, PhD, about the clinic’s $75 million state-of-the-art medical testing laboratory that opened in 2012. The building houses microbiology, molecular pathology, cytogenetics, and immunopathology as well as administrative offices. He talks about the thinking that went into designing the building and its labs and shares some insights on what people need to consider when embarking on such initiatives, however small or large. He emphasizes that both people and laboratories should always be open to change, making way for new advancements in science and technology.

There’s a tendency to think that if someone is appointed safety coordinator, they have to do all the work for the rest of us. False! A coordinator is just that. He or she is not a “parent.” Each person needs to be responsible for safety in general and for a specific part of the program in particular. Here’s a list of a number of different specific assignments:

Energy efficiency often promises a quick return on investment

Mobile techs gaining ground

Particle sizing methods range from simple sieving to microscopy, imaging, and laser-based techniques that measure and characterize down to molecular scale.

Today’s CDS is multifunctional, multitasking, and often vendor-neutral.

New platforms save time and money

LIMSs dominate, but convergence rules

Allowing democratized access to advanced data products

A drive toward more openness and accessibility

A Q&A with two laboratory data systems experts

With increasing numbers of samples, new technologies are more important than ever.

Liquid handling technology always improving.

Problem: While laboratory instruments have become faster and more automated to increase productivity, sample preparation has continued to remain a bottleneck and source of variability for most labs. The complexity and variety of samples that typically pass through labs makes this area one of the most difficult to automate.

Problem: A lab closure is usually a race to the finish, but a short, unrealistic timeline combined with lack of operational forethought can have disastrous results. So how do you maximize the value of your assets while minimizing potential risks?

Problem: Users in EM facilities with several current generation tools including FE SEM and dual beam FIB/SEM will, despite taking precautions to insert only clean specimens, sometimes get contamination introduced into their microscopes. This manifests itself as a dark rectangle on areas which have been exposed to the incident beam. How can this be prevented? Can it be removed from the previously exposed samples?

Traditional approaches for research into tumor formation have revolved around histological classification