LIMS for Environmental Labs

As a laboratory, your reputation rides on – and your clients’ businesses depend on – your ability to manage multiple sample types and sources and produce accurate reports for regulatory compliance. ATL’s LIMS streamlines processes, shortens turnaround time, and takes the headaches out of reporting for environmental testing labs.

Environmental Monitoring Laboratories

Are under constant pressure to maximize the utilization of their resources (laboratory space, employees and instrumentation), especially in today’s competitive economy where customers are increasingly concerned about obtaining the best value for their testing dollar. The table below demonstrates a few of the key areas in which ATL’s expertise has helped us to empower our clients to better manage their workload by maximizing their resource utilization to increase throughput, productivity, efficiency, data quality and profitability.

One of our customers had this to say:

“ATL’s LIMS, Result Point^® and EDD (Electronic Data Deliverable) builder helped our laboratory to crush our competition and win many new clients. The web portal is clean, fast and looks very professional, allowing clients to access sample status and their pdf reports 24/7, which significantly reduces calls to the laboratory, allowing us to get more done!”

Customer Spotlights

Don’t just take our word for it – our customers share precisely how our data automation solutions have helped them address specific needs particular to the Environmental sector:

Colorado Analytical

IES

Arkansas DEQ

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Sample Environmental Testing Laboratory

Cost Proposal/Quoting

Why struggle with making quotes in Word or Excel, when you can have quotes automatically generated from ATL’s LIMS, with cover pages, signature, letterhead, a complete, itemized cost proposal with per test costs. With one click a quote can be converted to an order with no need to rekey in the entire proposal (all information is pulled into ATL’s LIMS).

Inorganic Metals

ATL LIMS products will help the analyst with record keeping of the preparation process before analysis. From simple digestions to the more complex leaching, followed by digestion preparations, ATL’s LIMS record each step of the process and monitor hold times. Other features that accelerate productivity include; sample preparation tracking, report on a dry weight basis and TCLP and SPLP Leachates.

Calculations/QA/QC

Calculations are set up, verified and validated, so that users no longer have to perform hand calculations. Automated calculations accelerate workflows, increase throughput and efficiency. Quality Assurance and Quality Control features include automated calculations of mean, standard deviation and control limits. Users can generate various types of charts including control charts. For more advanced statistical analysis, we offer integration with NWA and SAS JMP statistical software packages.

Standard calculations include, solids, moisture, gravimetric calculations, Langlier Index, MPN, BOD, and many others. Automated calculations enhance data quality (by eliminating transcription errors) and provide a full history from raw data to final result.

Sample Receiving

Barcoding (1D or 2D)

Sample receiving needs to be quick! Let our Laboratory automation experts show you how to leverage barcoding and special functions to log in hundreds to thousands of samples within minutes. Automatically print labels, Chain of custody reports, login reports and more. Users can also manage and track clients IDs (barcoded numbers that the samples arrived with) for rapid response to customer inquiries. At login the pricing for each client, project or test/method can be automatically configured.

Wet Chemistry

Even today Wet Chemistry often has many tests which aren’t fully automated and are more labor intense than some of the fully automated workstations. ATL’s LIMS products offer features that can be used in these areas to maximize efficiency, which includes; built in calculations, Instrument Interfacing (direct connections with balances for data import) and Reagent Tracking.

Air Sampling

Track and manage air canisters, Tedlar^® Bags, membrane filters, cassette filters, impinge solutions, passive badges, PCB kits, sorbent tubes, wipes, sampling equipment, media and more. Also manage equipment rentals and equipment that is recycled to ensure that the cleaning process is effective. ATL’s LIMS includes systems to track and manage rental equipment, as well as coolers used in environmental sampling and transport. We offer full support for industrial hygiene laboratories, including a special asbestos data management package for PLM, PCM and TEM.

Organic

Trace each of the steps required by preparation methods. Record the exact lot numbers used for reagents. Better manage sample concentrations, clean up, and solvent exchanges. Automatically have Prep Factors calculated and ready to be applied to analysis. Combine this with the automatic import of results from instruments and your analysts will have more time for those tasks by reducing the time of recordkeeping.

Upload data from instruments

Eliminate transcription errors
Increase accuracy and throughput
Accelerate productivity
Leverage barcoding

Today’s instruments work through the night and often through the weekend gathering data. We have a comprehensive library with over 450 different instruments previously interfaced with ATL’s LIMS! ATL solutions include unidirectional and bi-directional instrument interfaces.

Microbiology

Many microbiology tests are subjective and require detailed interpretations, or alphanumeric results (positive, negative, TNTC, etc.), all are fully supported in ATL’s LIMS. Instrument integration is also popular for laboratories that are leveraging automated microbiology workstations which support barcodes. Additional tests include Salmonella, Legionella, Giardia, Cryptosporidium, mold analysis, and many more.

Result Point Web Portal

Automated reporting and invoicing saves time and reduces costs. ATL’s Result Point^®, the secure web portal, provides clients access to sample status and results 24/7. All data is encrypted for additional security. Users can download Excel files, images, pdfs of invoices, final reports, as well as electronic data deliverables. Samples that have exceeded limits are highlighted and there is also a news editor for communicating news items with your customers.

Accounting

We offer out of the box integration with several popular accounting packages including QuickBooks and Peachtree. Other packages for which customer specific custom interfaces have been created include JD Edwards, Great Plains, Sage, SAP ERP and others. Never re-key accounting information again, save time, eliminate transcription errors and accelerate productivity.

Specific to the Environmental industry, here are a few of the many requirements and the way in which ATL’s data management solutions satisfy them.

Operational or Process Requirements	ATL’s Data Management Solutions
Sample collection and receipt.	ATL's Sample Master LIMS Sample Tracking module provides the functionality for sample collection and receipt. It allows users to scan the chain of custody form and link that to the sample.
Need to pre-schedule projects and prepare numbered sample collection containers for field collection team.	Pre-login samples with Sample Master LIMS Sample Scheduling module with bar-coded labels for the sample bottles and worklists.
Require a method to record plant or field data that can be transferred to the laboratory.	Rugged Palm data loggers or Windows Mobile capable devices allow data collected in the field to be uploaded to the LIMS.
Laboratory sample flow and quality checks.	Sample Master LIMS allows users to configure the sample flow for their operations, build-in warning levels, automatic e-mail alerts for samples that have exceeded control limits, with immediate sample tracking from beginning to final reporting.
Ability to manage client specific specifications. Configurable screens to utilize laboratory terminology to expedite implementation.	ATL's LIMS products allow users to manage multiple product specifications, including seasonal adjustments and customer’s specific specifications. Also provide database administrator configurable screen captions, numbering formats and sample condition questions.
Rapid result entry once samples have been processed.	Sample Master LIMS Data Entry module allows data to be entered manually or automatically (electronically) from instrumentation.
Process automation, sample scheduling and enterprise integration.	Flexible time-based scheduling for tests performed on a routine basis, for all sample, project and test types. Sample Master LIMS allows users to generate bar-codes and worklists in advance to prepare for sample receipt. Integration with enterprise systems (ERP, SAP, etc) for real time process management.
Instrument integration.	ATL has a library of over 450 instruments that have previously been integrated with ATL’s LIMS products for efficient data transfer and enhanced data quality.
Reporting data to internal and external clients.	Sophisticated, secure reporting is integrated into the LIMS and reports can be e-mailed, faxed or printed. A pdf of the report is also automatically generated and can be e-mailed or posted to a website.
Invoicing (for commercial laboratories).	Integrated invoicing can run automatically with the Sample Master LIMS Task Manager, with client, project, price list and discount pricing. Built-in export to QuickBooks and Peachtree, export to numerous other accounting packages requires configuration of export format.
Electronic reporting.	Generating electronic output files is a snap with Sample Master. Users can generate electronic data in multiple formats for exchange to other applications
Quality Assurance and Quality Control (QA/QC).	The Sample Master LIMS QA/QC module automatically performs a variety of calculations, generates control charts, trend analysis and provides users to configure QC to meet laboratory needs.
Security, permissions, LIMS access and regulatory compliance.	There are multiple levels of permissions and LIMS access in the system, a full audit trail, and integrated security features (CFR 21 Part 11 compliant). GALP, NELAC, and ASTM compliant with instant access to SOPs for test methods.
Manage chemical inventory.	The Sample Master LIMS Chemical Inventory module manages and reconciles the current inventory and also stores expiration dates, lot numbers and other relevant information.
Track employee training records and instrument maintenance.	Ensure that analysts are up-to date on their training and prohibit entry of data by expired analysts into the LIMS if training is not current. The LIMS can also be configured to automatically reject data from instruments that are out of calibration.
Monitor customer complaints.	The Customer Relationship Management module provides a tool to log, classify and track complaints and is integrated with the LIMS. A number of reports also provide information on resolution times, types of complaints and any open issues.