Category: About LabKey

Most freezer management software aims to be a mirror image of a lab’s freezer space. Samples are assigned location in the freezer at the same time as they are entered into the system, and removed from the system when they are no longer in storage. Although this may be helpful in managing freezer capacity and sample locations, this “mirror image” approach does not always accurately reflect lab workflows or provide a full chain of custody of a given sample. 

In many labs, samples are transported, received, and processed before they are stored. Similarly, samples can also be completely removed from storage, but their data and audit logs may need to persist in the system. The freezer management software described above would be ill-suited to handle both of these scenarios. To fully track a sample and provide an end-to-end history, teams should search for a sample-centric freezer management tool- one that separates a sample’s existence from the physical location in which it’s stored.

A sample-centric freezer management software has the following benefits:

1. Samples can exist outside of a storage framework. This means that teams can:

• Save time and improve visibility of work by registering samples before they arrive
• Easily view consumed, expired or shipped samples without crawling an audit log
• Track chain-of-custody of samples that are never meant for storage

2. Samples can be part of lab tasks before or after they are physically stored. This is useful in cases like:

• Pre-registered samples are part of a “Receiving” workflow job
• Sample processing can be tracked in the system before adding the samples to storage
• Outgoing samples can be tracked in a workflow job

3. Experimental data can be associated with samples at any time. This benefits teams by:

• Adding associated data from external sources to be registered with samples, regardless of storage status
• Removing the need for “staging” freezer space to make updates to samples and their experimental data
• Creating a single space for tracking samples and their associated data, whenever it is available

About LabKey Sample Manager

LabKey Sample Manager includes a sample-centric freezer management solution into the application. This means you can create samples, add metadata and lineage information, perform work and even upload assay data — all without being required to have your sample in freezer storage. Freezer management in Sample Manager can help you:

• Manage your freezer with an end-to-end sample tracking system that stores the entire sample history and chain of custody in one place
• Organize your samples using a customizable structure that accurately reflects the physical freezers in your lab
• Track samples in and out of the freezer (freeze/thaw counts) and automatically calculate and track changes in sample volumes
• Easily find samples in the freezer and move samples between freezers
• Tracking and maintaining full audit logs of the freezer and of the samples

For many laboratories, growth and the changes that come along with it can be both exciting and challenging to sample management operations.

Without careful planning and forethought about sample management, even the most organized lab down can go down a spiral of compounding challenges. Misplaced samples, lapses in data integrity, and confusion on workflow steps are just a few of the difficulties that may arise when a laboratory is experiencing growth. A lab undergoing “growth” may be:

• Processing a higher volume of samples overall or a higher volume of a specific type of sample
• Implementing new sample processing procedures, experiments, and data collection methods
• Expanding their existing operations and the laboratory staff needed to support changes

In this webinar, we present five real-world strategies to help your lab get ahead of the challenges you may face. These include:

1. Change is difficult- be flexible!
   A growing lab will experience many forms of change. Be flexible and ready to adapt at every stage.

2. Plan for your metadata and sample tracking needs.
   Keep the sample information needed for accurate tracking at the forefront of your planning. As your lab grows, the data you need to capture may change.

3. Don’t let your freezers get out of control.
   As your sample storage needs change, be sure to prioritize freezer organization from the start.

4. Standardize your lab processes.
   By taking even small steps toward standardizing processes, labs can optimize their efficiency and ensure a smooth evolution.

5. Research sample management systems.
   Choosing the right (or wrong) sample management system can have a lasting impact on your lab.

With preparation, your lab can successfully navigate change while improving the productivity and efficiency of your sample management operations. Watch the webinar below:

LabKey Sample Manager is an easy-to-use sample management software designed to help labs efficiently track samples, define laboratory workflows, and unify samples with assay data.

Sample Tracking – End-to-end sample tracking features including chain-of-custody tracking,  sample types and sources, and lineage views

Freezer Management – Flexible and intuitive management of freezer capacity and sample storage locations.

Sample Data Integration – Integrate assay data with your samples and assign metadata for a complete picture of your ongoing experiments

Sample Management Workflow – Assign samples to user-defined workflows and monitor the workflow completion status at each stage for every sample

Explore Sample Manager – register to take a product tour!

Migrating data from a freezer management system can be hard. So difficult in fact, that many labs continue to use an outdated system long after it is no longer serving their needs. Sometimes, the legacy system has even become a hindrance to sample management operations. However, this shouldn’t deter you from taking on the challenge of upgrading your freezer management software and reaping the rewards of improved organization and management of your lab samples. Below are a few tips for a painless switch to a new freezer management system. 

Plan and prepare for your new freezer management system.

Develop a plan for migrating to your new system that includes a timetable for which freezer data will be migrated, and roles/responsibilities during the process. Make that your team is trained on the new system and that you are communicating clearly throughout the process.

Backup your legacy data. 

Before anything, it’s important to have a backup of data for record-keeping and disaster recovery. During the migration process, this backup will serve as a record of your legacy system data- some of which may not transfer over to the new freezer management system. Create system-wide backups for recovery, but also human-readable backups for data mining if an unlikely event happens. 

Determine what will be migrated.

Take this as an opportunity to clean up legacy data and items in the freezer. This might even be a good time to defrost and clean your freezers if they are not on a regular defrosting schedule. Focus on the essential samples and related data to keep your system and your freezers clutter-free. For each sample type, determine the list of fields exported from the legacy system and how they will map to the new system. Document data types, field validation (required fields or a specific range of values), and any other requirements such as relationships between samples and sources.

Utilize your resources – ask for help. 

Many vendors offering freezer management system offer migration services, so ask for help! If the system you’re moving to doesn’t offer this, consider hiring a consultant or contractor to help if your team members are too busy or you need advice. When choosing a system, make sure to consider the support you will need to implement your new system.

LabKey Sample Manager provides:

• Easy, straightforward data import format to register your samples and their locations in a single step
• Unlimited user-defined fields allow teams to capture any data necessary
• Migration services and customer support when needed

Click Here to learn more and take a tour!

LabKey has launched a comprehensive solution for managing laboratory freezer storage and sample locations within its user-friendly sample management software- LabKey Sample Manager.

By including robust freezer management capabilities in a full-featured sample tracking and workflow management system, LabKey Sample Manager aims to serve as a collaborative hub for sample processing work in the laboratory. The application helps standardize and guide lab processes while capturing the entire history and chain of custody for each sample. The addition of freezer management integrates the tracking of sample locations, freezer storage, sample volume, and freeze/thaw counts into an already rich feature set for managing sample processing work.

“Having worked in the lab for more than ten years, I can attest to the need for integrated sample and freezer management software that is flexible and easy to use. I’m excited that with LabKey Sample Manager, we have created just that” says Hannah Brakke, Product Manager at LabKey. “We have developed a truly intuitive application that allows laboratories to register and track their samples and collaborate- all in one place. Adding a straightforward freezer management system with a modern user interface takes the sample tracking capabilities to the next level.”

Sample Manager gives laboratories the power to use the freezer management features in a way that matches their lab and workflow requirements by taking a “sample-centric” approach. This allows samples and their data to live in the system before a sample has been stored in the freezer and even after they have been removed from storage in the lab. Using this approach to freezer management, Sample Manager helps to streamline lab workflows and takes into account the real-world sample management operations of busy labs. Additionally, the flexibility of Sample Manager allows users to configure the application to exactly match the physical freezer storage options in their lab.

LabKey Sample Manager Overview

LabKey Sample Manager is a flexible and intuitive application designed to boost lab efficiency and productivity. Easily track samples, manage freezer storage, create workflows, and unify samples with experiment data. Use the links below to learn more about LabKey Sample Manager:

Sample Tracking – End-to-end sample tracking features including chain-of-custody tracking,  sample types and sources, and lineage views

Lab Workflow Management – Use workflows to standardize lab processes and manage ongoing work in the lab

Freezer Management – Manage sample storage and freezer capacity using an intuitive interface

Lab Data Integration – Integrate assay data with your samples and assign metadata for a complete picture of your ongoing experiments 

If you’ve worked in a lab, you’ve likely used some form of freezer management to manage your sample storage. For some labs, this may simply be a paper lab notebook where freezers, boxes, and sample locations are annotated. Others may periodically update an Excel file with samples stored in the freezer and place a print out of the spreadsheet on the freezer itself. However, for truly efficient and organized labs, nothing beats having freezer management software to manage your freezer capacity and sample inventory. Below are 3 key reasons why you need software to manage your lab freezer storage. 

1. Your samples are precious and should be treated that way.

Samples can be one of the most precious things in the lab, sometimes they are even irreplaceable. The time spent collecting, processing, and collecting data from samples means they are valuable not only to your research but also to the cost efficiency of your lab. Misplacing and looking for lost samples can be a huge waste of time for laboratory staff and even more so if the samples are never found. Using freezer management software ensures that your freezers are kept organized and reduces the chances that you will misplace valuable samples.

2. Excel and paper-based freezer management can’t keep up with busy labs.

Although Excel and paper-based systems may be able to keep up with the needs of a very small lab, they are very difficult to keep updated with accurate information and definitely don’t meet the needs of larger or growing labs. Busy staff in the lab will need to manually/visually judge freezer capacity, update multiple sheets and samples when making simple changes, and have to manually keep track of sample volumes and freeze/thaw counts. This method of freezer management is highly prone to errors from day-to-day use not to mention during scheduled clean-outs and organization of the freezer.

3. Complete and accurate auditing is nearly impossible without freezer management software.

Auditing and organizing your samples is a much easier task with freezer management software.  You’ll have a full record of all check-in/check-out events for samples, by which staff, and a full history of the location and movement of samples in the freezer. This level of completeness and accuracy is much more difficult to achieve using paper or excel. Freezer management software captures all of the information you need for a comprehensive audit of your freezer storage and samples. 

Freezer Management with LabKey Sample Manager

With Sample Manager, we have introduced a sample-centric freezer management solution into the application. This means you can create samples, add metadata and lineage information, perform work and even upload assay data — all without having to use the freezer management tool. Of course, if you plan to store your samples, freezer management is there to help by:

• Managing your freezer with an end-to-end sample tracking system that stores the entire sample history and chain of custody in one place
• Providing a customizable, flexible structure to accurately reflects the physical freezers in your lab
• Tracking samples in and out of the freezer (freeze/thaw counts) and automatically calculating and tracking sample volumes 
• Helping you to easily find samples in the freezer and move samples between freezers
• Tracking and maintaining full audit logs of the freezer and of the samples

The best way to encourage users to adopt a new system is by providing them with benefits that actually help them- save them time, make tasks simpler, etc. Additionally, when a system becomes the primary source of truth for team members, it becomes easier to adopt because that’s where the information lies. Click here to learn more about our freezer management solution.