A Laboratory Operational Excellence

Abstract:

Objective: The sheer volume and diversity of experiments and measurements performed in the laboratories of the College of Petroleum Engineering and Geosciences (CPG) at KFUPM required that the management of equipment, data and information be done in a secure and professional way. Whether for specific projects or for academic knowledge and teaching, the rigorous testing and tracking of samples, utilization of equipment and guaranteeing of standards, quality assurance and adherence to specified regulations are of paramount importance.

Method: To cope with these demands, the CPG set out to select and deploy an electronic system which is efficient, robust and customizable to the specific requirements of the College. Eight different systems were meticulously reviewed and evaluated, from which two systems were shortlisted. These two systems were than further tested for a trial period after which a LIMS from ThermoFisher Scientific was selected as it allowed full customization and local support. The implementation of the system was phased over a period of 6 months to ease the shift from the traditional lab practices to a completely electronic system, with extensive trainings provided to all different user types.

Results: This LIMS allows laboratory students and researchers to pre-plan their experiments. It also allows the laboratory supervisors and managers to appropriately manage their research experiments and optimize their asset utilization in a safe environment. With the implementation of this system, the College can fully track the existence of all equipment in each laboratory, their maintenance and calibration status, maintain a comprehensive record of experiments and experimental results by all stakeholders. LIMS has also enabled CPG to compile and deploy standard operating procedures / Lab Execution System (LES) for all major equipment in the labs.

We have also incorporated the Car Pool Management system within LIMS. These cars are associated with the work done in the respective laboratories. The inclusion of Interactive Live Dashboards also enables the users to connect with the system with critical information and data at-a-glance.

Sample Lifecycle is re-designed to allow Laboratories to login in sample and produce the Sample Report. This includes creating all Lab Analysis along with Calculations inside LIMS, defining all the test methods and procedures and designing of appropriate sample labels.

Novel: The CPG customized LIMS has proven to be revolutionary in our laboratory activities. Its use in combination with automation of laboratory processes has improved the efficiency and quality of the work by reducing the potential of human errors, accelerating the throughput of analysis, and enabling sample tracking activities. It is a giant step in the transitioning of the traditional laboratories into modern and paperless labs where all the data is stored and managed in a fully secure environment.