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Download our white paper LIMS: How to digitize your laboratory

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Good practices for optimizing efficiency in the management of test requests.

Calibration, testing and sample analysis are part of the daily routine of more than 60,000 laboratories around the world. This fact alone demonstrates the need for rational organization in the management of test data.

 

The management of laboratories is a major challenge for development activities in the industrial sector.

In particular, the management of test requests and the associated results is critical to ensure a quality approach, cost optimization, and the quality of the products.
exploitation of the work already carried out.

It is therefore necessary to capitalise, monitor, trace and secure the technical assets of laboratories in regulated environments.

 

In the age of Industry 4.0, discover in this white paper, how to optimize a laboratory’s activity, from test request to report distribution.

Why should you be interested in the French Research Tax Credit?

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Small opportunities often make big companies” In an almost divinatory way, Demosthenes, the Greek zealot, had philosophized about the importance of discreet but essential resources. Thus, in a way, he had prophesied that innovation through Research and Development (R&D) is a crucial phase in ensuring the health of a company. As such, more than two thousand years later, Gary Hamel would say, “It is the only protection against obsolescence. …] This is the only strategy to be more effective in a gloomy conjecture.” From this very pragmatic paradigm on the importance of good R&D project management, an implacable reality emerges: R&D is an essential strategy for a company to stand out in a competitive market, to ensure its future. In any case, it is an inexorable step forward for a company, guaranteeing its prosperity or failure.
“I believe in innovation and the way innovation is achieved is by funding research…” Bill Gates, a strong advocate of innovation support, has been campaigning for years for synergies between public actors and companies, with the idea to develop incentives, including tax incentives. And the figures speak for themselves, thanks to the introduction of this tax credit, the French research system ranks:

  • 4th in the world for patent issuance
  • 7th in the world for the writing of scientific publications
  • 6th in the world in terms of R&D spending

Once put into context, these statistics reflect that France attaches great importance to the cost of research in innovation, despite the emergence of many competing countries, supporting their own national research efforts. But how does the French Research Tax Credit work in practice?
First of all, the primary objective of the Research Tax Credit is to support R&D activity and encourage investments that will strengthen the future activity of companies. In 36 years, this measure has been the flagship of French research at all stages.
In a nutshell, an R&D operation could be defined in four stages. First, a part of monitoring, in order to identify existing knowledge, then test and validate the work. And finally, to produce the results of the research. It is since this very sequenced process, that the Research Tax Credit establishes five criteria to be met to be eligible:

  • NEW
  • CREATIVITY
  • UNCERTITUDE
  • BE SYSTEMATIC
  • BE TRANSFERABLE AND/OR REPRODUCIBLE

Compliance with these five criteria results in full reimbursement of R&D expenditures. So the keyword to justify R&D activity in case of control is traceability. For example, the implementation of a follow-up of the time spent by the development team on the various research projects; as well as a follow-up of the work carried out throughout the life cycle of the R&D projects, is necessarily to be set up, in order to be able to meet the needs of compliance with the criteria.
In fact, the Reasearch Tax Credit appears to be an excellent tool to structure its R&D approach. Because based on a very strict methodology, the drafting of the technical file supports the capitalisation of knowledge and facilitates the illustration of the R&D activity.
Innovation is not a flash of genius. It’s a difficult job. And this work should be organized as a regular activity of each unit of the company, and this, at each level of management“. This is how Peter Drucker, a management theorist, explained the importance of good organisation in innovation. Of course, aware of the issues raised, such as the daunting and highly time-consuming nature of the drafting of the technical file. And innovation sometimes precedes the scientific understanding needed to design new products and processes, which leads to a lengthening of the structuring process. Especially in the monitoring phase, where it is important to have access to an exhaustive list of existing solutions.
Analogically, the construction of an IT business repository specifically designed for R&D, to help manage and enhance technical data, for example, is still rare today. And because these services see their knowledge evolve by nature, which requires a specific approach. In order to ensure optimal quality in the service, it is, therefore, necessary to combine the capitalization of acquired knowledge, without restricting the creativity of engineers.
This is why Bassetti has developed TEEXMA®, a fully scalable and configurable software package that can fully meet the specific needs of research and development. In addition to assisting in the management of R&D projects (automatic drafting of documentation, monitoring of subcontractors, capitalisation of acquired knowledge, traceability of actions carried out, etc.) TEEXMA® supports the continuous improvement effort and assists in the traceability of R&D actions from A to Z. Our methodology is based on the real-time information of the work performed (i.e. hours spent on R&D) on all types of tasks.
From the early stages of the Research project to the operation of the test phases, all the tools are provided to support the structuring of R&D, and in this case, to be eligible for the Research Tax Credit. For more information: contact us
To conclude, Hegel, the German philosopher, pointed out that “Ideas that change the world walk by doves pace.” And it is, undoubtedly, thanks to this vision that tomorrow’s innovations are built by R&D today, encouraged by the sponsorship of the State developing measures such as the French Research Tax Credit.

Outsourcing management in laboratories – How not to lose the thread?

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As part of its mission to conduct the test request, the laboratory may have to outsource certain operations to subcontractors. The test plan proposes a decentralized examination of the “classical” laboratory process. This is for different reasons: technical or legal, unavailability of a machine or control of the test result by a different technique. In all cases, the subcontractor’s action supplements the laboratory’s mission in order to assist it in the life cycle of the test request, from its genesis to the publication of the final test report.

In this context, therefore, it is possible to see the importance that subcontractors can have when they are integrated as stakeholders in the laboratory process. This management is crucial because the monitoring of external activity adds a problem to the current context of laboratories, namely how to manage and monitor subcontracted test requests, between internal and external actors?

Need to have access to the “full picture”

Just as the traceability of information over time is an important issue in order to improve the testing process, supplier monitoring requires transparency of the actions carried out within the framework of its mandate. Sosthènes de La Rochefoucauld said that “Trust is earned and cannot be demanded.” and because the results brought about following a test request are critical for the Design Office or the Production Department that requests them, it is not possible to leave room for improvisation to manage subcontracted shipments.

More specifically, the laboratory making the test request needs to be able to have an overview of the entire process, which is why, like document management, (Read : Documentary Management LIMS – The happiness of ordered knowledge) it requires the sharing of information in a centralized repository. Thanks to this, the actors involved can consult all or part of the test plan and thus guarantee the quality and traceability of the test, even among subcontractors.

Intangible capital, the cornerstone of competitiveness

It is a real competitive lever on which it is possible to capitalize in order to optimize your test request management process. Because centralized management of all the stakeholders involved in the test plan makes it possible to generate monitoring performance indicators and to highlight the points of slowdowns, and possibly plan corrective action.

Thus, the implementation of these indicators makes it possible to evaluate subcontractors and thanks to the integration of subcontracted information into the information system, the advantages are numerous such as facilitating audits for certifications, increasing productivity by easily finding test data and helping them to operate optimally in their own contexts.

Drawing on more than 25 years of experience in the management of high value-added technical data, BASSETTI offers its tool for optimizing efficiency in the management of test requests: TEEXMA® LIMS. This modular and configurable solution supports the management of laboratories from the test request to the validation of the test report, in order to ensure the valorisation of laboratory information and to help decision-making, by optimising the resources invested.

To learn more, feel free to register for our LIMS Thursday Webinar, every 4th Thursday of the month: Register for the next session.

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Quality Management integrated into LIMS document management

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Today, quality challenges are at the heart of the concerns of many companies. In fact, it is necessary to define quality objectives in accordance with a given strategy. The goal: to satisfy customers and provide them with products that meet their expectations. Quality concerns the final product, but also the different stages inherent in the manufacturing process. The starting point concerns R&D projects carried out in laboratories within or outside a company. The tests performed in these laboratories produce data that will have a significant impact on decision-making at the corporate level.

This is where the TEEXMA® LIMS software package, developed by BASSETTI for more than 25 years, comes in. It embodies a single, central repository for all experimental laboratory data, enabling this information to be capitalized and valued over time. To frame these activities, the software can also be positioned as a quality reference system. As a matter of fact, TEEXMA® LIMS identifies all the quality documents of a laboratory, in order to ensure compliance with good practices on the part of the people involved in the performance of tests and reports. The software will store, according to a standardized model, the practical normative documents (work instructions, procedures, user manuals…) as well as all the elements necessary for the implementation of a System Management Quality (SMQ). For example, TEEXMA® LIMS can capitalize on all documents dealing with the ISO 17025 standard, which groups together the general requirements concerning the competence of calibrations and testing in laboratories with a goal to provide certification. The software also helps to identify non-conformities and implement appropriate action plans.

Optimized quality document management within a laboratory saves valuable time in searching for information about a standard or procedure, and ensures quality information within the documents themselves, through regular updates, management of modification rights and a defined change validation process.
Access to complete and reliable information is an essential prerequisite for the durability of a test center. Responding to the challenges of information management in laboratories, TEEXMA® LIMS embodies a solution for all your information management problems.

Documentary Management LIMS – The happiness of ordered knowledge

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The visible disorder distracts us from the true source of the disorder.” Marie Kondō, a champion of tidying up, largely influenced by Japanese culture, teaches us to keep only the essential and to get rid of the superfluous… However, in a context of memory conservation, this technique faces a major problem! Especially in companies developing high value-added data. Document management is essential to preserve “corporate memory.” From the registration of the test request to the issuance of the results, there is a real need to make collaborative work in order to enhance the value of the information in a document and allow its simple dissemination. With the goal of optimizing time and cost, how can we save time and ensure traceability in the search for information?

Good document management requires the ability to manage the complex relationships between information, to track changes while respecting the quality of the documentation. In order to understand in more detail the challenges of a document’s life cycle, BASSETTI relies on its 25 years of experience in Technical Expertise Management® to provide a document management solution, including for quality documents, test reports, certificates of analysis, or is used to capitalize on standards.
In this respect, the implementation of a single, centralised document management system allows for the harmonisation of daily practices.

  • First, through the implementation of a standard document model to produce uniform reference documents, regardless of the issuing entity. By automatically creating compliant documents, the tedious steps of capitalization are eliminated and employees can focus on higher value-added tasks.
  • In addition, the risk of data entry errors due to human intervention is considerably reduced, ensuring better data reliability.
  • Finally, harmonisation is the keyword of the organization. Using a standard format, it is easy to find the necessary information to follow procedures, especially in the case of SOPs aimed at preventing the risks of a potentially risky situation.

However, TEEXMA® offers the possibility of creating simple and flexible templates, capable of meeting all user needs, ensuring the traceability of the test cycle: from the reception of the request to the valuation of the test data.
Also, this editing unicity greatly facilitates the stages of capitalisation, dissemination, of course and information enhancement. The time saved in retrieving information is considerable, thanks in particular to powerful search tools. In addition, the document management tool allows automated extraction, configurable through filters, which ensures the rapid reconstitution of technical documentation.
However, it is necessary that the process from creation to the valuation of the document be carried out in complete security. And this is possible, in particular, thanks to the Workflow module offered by TEEXMA®, which makes it possible to monitor the validation processes and distribute information taking into account the level of accreditation of this profile. The distribution of access rights is defined upstream, all this in order to ensure traceability and facilitate document archiving.

So, if three important criteria must be retained when saving experimental data : traceability, safety, and harmony.
To learn more about our solution: http://www.bassetti-group.com/en/teexma%C2%AE-plm/documents-automation

The benefits of a complete interface to Information Systems

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A new challenge in recent years, the interfacing of digital tools to one’s work environment has become much more complex, particularly due to the multiplication of software used within a company. Word, Excel, Cloud, internal database, and other loose sheets… How to ensure good interfacing so as not to lose productivity or integrity?

The simple solution: use a technical collaborative software!

Taking into account the specificities inherent to each digital work environment, interfacing business software with computer software in a company can seem expensive. However, the development of specific connectors allows an increase in efficiency between departments.

In order to ensure optimal integration in the IT galaxy, business software must be equipped with standardized languages and programming interfaces (such as APIs), for example, to facilitate these connections.

In addition, these software packages are increasingly being used to support the company’s various instruments, so it is important that the IT department can interface them easily.

 

And it is by combining this intelligent interfacing approach, thanks to its connections to existing software, that the TEEXMA® solution perfectly meets this dynamic. The first software dedicated to the technical and scientific world makes it easy to meet the requirements of the ISM, particularly with regard to compatible connectors. Thus, TEEXMA® LIMS, our collaborative tool in the laboratory environment, has been able to adapt to these issues and can be connected to all the tools in the IT landscape, but also to other tools, such as testing machines. Ensuring, therefore, the constant synchronization of data from a plurality of elements.

Research, exploit and enhance test data

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The management of all interdependent processes, which is the responsibility of a laboratory, is a complex task that requires the implementation of appropriate processes and tools in terms of laboratory data management. This is in order to be able to easily exploit and enhance test data, by setting up indicators to measure results, but also to plan the resources needed to carry out each test. Moreover, the laboratory data management system set up by the company must be able to monitor all processes, from the test request to the obtaining of results.

In fact, these test data exist in huge amounts in laboratories, not to mention the good practice processes to be followed. So, these mountains of data are very often scattered in a myriad of different documents. This raises a problem of standardizing the format of the document, in order to ensure its accessibility to all those who need access.

Also, this retention of knowledge creates a strong devaluation of employees’ missions. According to an IDC survey, knowledge workers spend 44% of their time searching for the relevant information they need but do not find it. When scaled up to the cost of capitalizing resources, this lost time is estimated, on average, at $5,700 per person, per year.
It is therefore clear that the experts’ high value-added missions are only hampered by requests or information searches. Therefore, the sharing of knowledge in an organized network makes it possible to avoid the phenomenon of “corporate amnesia”, this inevitable consequence following the departure of an expert. Also, the profitability of a test data is strictly proportional to the number of tests performed to observe this result. The lack of knowledge sharing often forces companies to run the same test several times, without knowing that the data is already known by other departments.

In addition to this lack of knowledge sharing, it is important for a laboratory to be able to perpetuate the good practices to be implemented. One of the most common solutions is based on operational indicators such as the planning rate, response resources. Finally, it is also a plus that makes it possible to integrate the KPIs of subcontractors, which are used to optimize procurement and inventory management, for example. These good practices can be evaluated by following a validation workflow: simple, fast, formal and above all effective.

Willkommen in Bayern

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The BASSETTI group has opened its office in Munich, Germany.

As announced at the beginning of last year, the diversity of our customers is a source of wealth and encourages us to push back the boundaries. In this effort, we are continuing our international development by opening a new office in Munich!

By getting closer to its customers, BASSETTI offers a proximity work, in contact with local and global issues. The opening of this agency allows us to increase the reactivity of our project teams on site.

And not to mention the fact that the company’s development is progressing so well, with the opening of future branches in Europe and North America, in order to remain in touch with the development of new issues for our customers, particularly in the field of laboratory data management.

ISO 17025 standards: A required conformity!

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ISO 17025, entitled: «General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories», was updated in 2017. This revision, of the 2005 version, takes into account the evolution of technologies. This update incorporates technical developments, vocabulary and IT progress. The importance of compliance for laboratories is to have an international label to attest to the reliability of their results.

Developed by laboratory experts from around the world, the standard is updated to better meet the needs of the laboratories that use it. The primary purpose of harmonizing these practices is, of course, to facilitate international trade. Indeed, the installation of a single approved standard between laboratories in different countries of the world allows the recognition of test results without having to reproduce the test from one country to another. Thus, whatever the type of laboratories (universities, research centres, etc.) or the type of structures (regulatory bodies, inspection bodies, certification bodies, etc.), each of the players can benefit from a similar reference system.
So, what are the main changes to the new ISO 17025:2017 standard?

First of all, an extension of the scope of application, which now includes all laboratory activities.

Then, the process approach of the standard tends towards the conformity and homogenization of all ISO rules (9001, 17000, 15189…) so that it is the processing process itself that is evaluated rather than the description of the tasks that compose it. And similarly, risk-based reasoning brings the different ISO standards closer together in terms of commonalities.
In addition, the evolution in the processing of information and its electronic distribution, ISO 17025 enshrines the use of computer systems and guarantees the results of production, as well as the publication of reports.

https://www.iso.org/files/live/sites/isoorg/files/store/en/PUB100424.pdf

The differentiator of a research module in a test data management software package

The advantage of setting up an automatic system for generating results documents

  • Format the response to the requester
  • Integrate test data and all useful files (photo, graph…) into the report
  • Automatically forward the answer to the right people (mailing lists and confidentiality)
  • Alert requesters of the response
  • Archive past responses to search through the laboratory history
  • Document extraction module to automatically generate reports in the desired format (Word, PDF, Excel…)
  • Capitalization and document management within an integrated electronic document management system
  • Flexible workflow and alert and notification module (emails, dashboard) to distribute the response

The need for a complete interface of test data management software