5 Benefits of Using an Electronic Lab Notebook

Electronic lab notebook benefits depend on a lab’s needs and usage, but are considered a vital software application in many scientific research labs. ELNs have features that are used to document, organize, and share scientific data while also helping to promote collaboration among researchers. Adopting the right ELN software allows researchers to move away from traditional paper-based lab notebooks, which can be cumbersome, error-prone and time-consuming to maintain. In this blog post, we explore five benefits of using electronic lab notebooks for scientists and researchers to help you consider what makes the best ELN for your lab.

 

Contents: ELN Benefits and Advantages | LabKey’s ELN

 

How does an electronic lab notebook benefit scientists?

1. Improved organization and accessibility of scientific data
   Electronic lab notebooks allow researchers to organize their data in a more efficient and accessible way. Notebooks can be easily categorized, tagged and searched, with revisions and approvals tracked along the way. This makes it easy to search for and find information that is critical to scientific research, providing in-depth context to research  decisions. Additionally, many are cloud-based, further promoting data accessibility along with limiting the required IT support and infrastructure needed.
2. Increased collaboration and sharing
   Collaboration and sharing of data are essential in scientific research. Electronic lab notebooks facilitate these activities by allowing multiple researchers to work on the same notebook simultaneously and helping collaborators share and review data and experiment notes. Notebook submissions and approvals can also involve multiple reviewers. This can lead to more insights being generated and improved research efficiency.
3. Better record-keeping and compliance
   Electronic lab notebooks provide better record-keeping capabilities than traditional paper-based lab notebooks, and note-taking applications. ELN software can automatically record the date and time of each entry, making it easy to track the progress of a project and comply with regulatory requirements. Additionally, since ELN software is digital and allows for various levels of data automation, it is less prone to errors and can be easily audited.
4. Time-saving and efficiency
   ELN software can save researchers a significant amount of time compared to traditional paper-based lab notebooks. They can automate repetitive tasks, such as calculations and data entry, allowing researchers to focus on more important tasks. Additionally, since ELN software is digital, it can easily be integrated with other software tools, such as laboratory information management systems (LIMS) and data analysis software.
5. Improved data security and backup
   Data security and backup are essential in research labs, and electronic lab notebooks can provide a more secure and reliable way of storing data compared to traditional paper-based lab notebooks. ELN software can be configured with different access levels, allowing researchers to control who has access to their data. Additionally, since ELN software is digital, it can be easily backed up and protected from loss due to theft or natural disasters.

Comparing Paper and Electronic Laboratory Notebooks

While paper laboratory notebooks are readily available, inexpensive, and familiar to many labs, the benefits of electronic laboratory notebooks provide significant advantages to research labs. Searchability of the notebooks, improved data security and integrity, remote access, improved collaboration, easy-to-use templating, convenient review processes, and lower amounts of manual data entry and transcription are all benefits that belong exclusively to electronic lab notebooks.

 

How can the LabKey ELN help?

Our user-friendly ELN software helps scientists efficiently document their experiments, capture their data and share their ongoing research. The LabKey ELN is seamlessly integrated with sample inventory, assay data and other registered data. We call this a “data-connected” electronic lab notebook and our users find that our software helps improve the data integrity, collaboration and efficiency of their scientific operations. More than just another electronic lab notebook, our user-friendly ELN can play an integral part in unifying your research, data and team. Find LabKey’s ELN in all of our more comprehensive products, like Sample Manager, LIMS, and SDMS, allowing interconnected collaboration for labs.

Click Here to learn more.