Lab Manager | Run Your Lab Like a Business

Cover Story |  Volume 4 - Issue 1  |  January 2009

Survival

Overcoming today's laboratory challenges

Sections

Leadership and Staffing

Surviving Challenging Times

Most people dislike uncertainty. Therefore, the first priority of a manager should be to reduce uncertainty in the workplace by replacing fear, anger, and rumors with facts, sensitivity to employee concerns, and clarity of group goals and objectives.

Invention, Innovation and Lab Management

“Invention and innovation are quite different things,” declares John Dr. Lienhard. To promote invention, a lab manager has to devise methods of instilling a sense of freedom in the research staff.

Acting Out

A unique management workshop allows lab managers to resolve issues in a simulated and safe environment.

Laboratory Technology

Design Hurdles, Design Solutions

Innovation in electronic pipettors may overcome shortcomings of the past.

Productivity in a Vacuum

Electronic vacuum control pays for itself in cost savings and lab productivity gains.

January 2009 Technology News

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

Lab Design and Furnishings

Relocation, Relocation, Relocation

Careful planning and smart partnering protect assets and minimize downtime and disruption

Business Management

Strategic Procurement

Long considered a back-office function, procurement has emerged as an important asset in effective lab management.

What's So Special About Specialty Gases?

Trying to replace a specialty gas with an industrial gas in order to save a few dollars at the onset will cost the buyer more money downstream.

Research-Specific Labs

Producing Fuels from Plants

The U.S. Department of Energy's Bioenergy Research Center does everything from chemical and biochemical analyses to bioengineering to process scale-up to microbial strain development.

Lab Health and Safety

When Disaster Strikes, Don't Be Caught Unprepared

Effective emergency management requires preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery to protect personnel, samples, records and operations.

How it Works

How Microwave-Assisted Extraction Works

Extracting compounds from various samples using traditional methods involves some give and take. You can choose to use Soxhlet, which is relatively inexpensive for equipment but uses a tremendous amount of solvent and takes hours to run. 

How Point-of-Use Ultra Pure Water Works

Slow production of laboratory-grade ultra pure water necessitates storage in large carboys. Many lab technicians will fill carboys up to 30 liters to locally store and dispense ultra pure water. High purity water stored in such large volumes will quickly degrade in quality. Learn about one solution to this problem.

Multicolor Flow Cytometry

Flow cytometry is a powerful technology that allows researchers and clinicians to perform complex cellular analysis quickly and efficiently by analyzing several parameters simultaneously. Learn about one key problem in this area of technology and one way to resolve it.

Lab Health and Safety Tips

What to Do When Your Lab Fails an Important Safety Inspection

These eight steps will help you solve the issue and ensure it doesn't happen again.