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      Biological Sample Management: Pain Points & Solutions

      15/08/2023

      Sample Management
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      Biological samples are invaluable in pharmaceutical research, enabling scientists to gain a better understanding of human health and disease. Correctly handling and storing these precious samples is essential for maintaining sample integrity, ensuring accurate results, and facilitating future research. Doing this efficiently is needed to ensure lab operations run smoothly and productively. 

      However, anyone working with biological samples will know that this isn’t trivial.  

       

       

      Store, manage and retrieve precious biological samples with ease with arktic®

      Here, we explore some of the key biological sample management challenges faced by scientists in the lab, and outline how our dedicated cold management system, arktic, delivers flexible and secure automated storage at -80° that meets the growing demand for larger biological sample libraries.

      Biological material is fragile and must be handled and stored carefully to minimize the risk of degradation. With such samples often difficult to obtain and replace, poorly controlled or incorrect storage can lead to unexpected costs further down the line, as well as risk data integrity.  

      With robust and controlled storage from -80°C to -20°C, arktic offers extensive monitoring and fail-safe back-up systems to ensure that correct conditions are maintained throughout the shelf life of your samples. The ability to cherry pick and retrieve only your chosen samples minimizes the harm caused from any unnecessary freeze/thaw cycles. Tubes are transported through the system using innovative pneumatic technology, giving you an extra layer of confidence that mechanical components are kept separately to the cooling system. 

      Finding and retrieving specific vials when needed can be time-consuming and frustrating. Poor sample organization or lack of standardized storage systems risks delays in experiments and research. 

      arktic's automated cherry-pick function removes the stress of manual searching by granting you access to the samples you need for the time you need them. Racks filled with your desired layout of samples are delivered to you via a convenient vending-machine style output. With this, replacing manual freezers with arktic automated sample management can save hours of qualified researcher and technician time and deliver significant workflow improvements.  

      As your library grows, so does the challenge of keeping an accurate and up-to-date record of your samples and data.  

      arktic utilizes unique 2D barcode labels to give an easy and accurate way of tracking of samples throughout the research process. Barcodes are scanned as vials are stored into arktic and verified upon retrieval for added confidence that you’re always working with the correct sample. Integration with laboratory information management systems (LIMS) and automated sample processing workflows facilitates smoother and more comprehensive data management and analysis.  

      Sample repositories often start small and expand as business operations grow. What was once a well-working system can quickly become insufficient without forward planning. 

      The modular structure of arktic offers ultimate flexibility to increase capacity in line with demand, to ensure a constantly cost-effective solution while advancing research goals. Each arktic unit can be kept at separate different locations and connected via an arktic XC to create an automated biobanking network that scales with your business needs.