Lab Equipment Integrity Report Examples

Introduction

Lab is a simple word used to shorten the word laboratory. It is a place in which experiments are
carried out. These experiments include medical, physical and biological experiments (Martin
2004). Research is also done in laboratories. Laboratory equipment is an apparatus used in
conducting experiments. Lab equipments vary from one laboratory to the other. Lab equipment
integrity means using the equipments in the laboratory in the best way in order to produce
accurate data that is used in research and experiments (Melissa 2000).
Objectives
The main objective of making a report on lab equipment integrity is to develop a complete
program that provides all information and tools needed to acquire accurate data. The other aim is
to improve personnel safety and performance. Integrity in laboratory equipment is also aimed at
maximizing reliability. The lab equipments should be reliable in order to prevent any
inconveniences caused by failure of these equipments. Improving their reliability will also
improve the level of accuracy of the data to be used in conducting experiments. Improving the
availability of the lab equipments is another objective that this report needs to achieve.
Improvement in the maintenance of lab equipments is also an important factor that lab equipment
seeks to achieve. All lab equipments need to be maintained well in order to increase their life
span. Poor maintenance will lead to break down of equipments and this is what lab equipment
integrity wants to prevent. Integrity of lab equipments also entails conducting an inspection of
equipments in a lab. This is done in order to get information about the productivity of these
equipments. It also helps us to note the faulty equipments and whether they need to be upgraded
or not. The other objective is to make sure that all corporate and industrial regulations are
achieved.

Background
There are many types of equipment in various laboratories. The total number of equipments is
about eight hundred. There are various concerns that have affected lab equipment integrity.
Firstly, there has been recent equipment failure. This has been due to the use of low quality
equipment in the laboratories. Some of these equipments have not been tested well before being
brought into use. The failure of equipments has made some experiments to be brought to stand
by. This has in turn increased the time needed to conduct a certain research. It has also caused
inconveniences to many researchers.
The other major issue of concern is lack of equipment database system. A database system is
very important in providing adequate information on the equipments in the laboratory. Due to
lack of database system, some equipment gets lost without the knowledge of the lab technician.
A database system also helps to keep a good record of all the equipments in a laboratory in
computerized form.
Some of the laboratories have lacked qualified engineers to work on the lab equipments. They
end up misusing the equipments and using them for the wrong purpose. Unqualified engineers
may also not be in a position to know what is harmful and what is not. They may therefore
perform activities which may cause danger in the laboratory. The performance of vendors has
also been questionable in the recent past. Some vendors sell substandard equipments which are
of low quality. Poor performance by the vendors also leads to provision of inefficient equipments
in the library.
It is important to have spare parts for the equipments in the laboratory. Therefore, availability of
spare parts is another area of major concern in analyzing lab equipment integrity. Some spare
parts have not been available in the local market. This has led to an increase in the cost of
replacing the worn out equipments. Lack of spare parts may also require the importation of such
items and this may be very costly.
The other major issue of concern is the lead time for obtaining spare parts. This time has had a
negative effect on the activities that take place in a laboratory. The lead time for obtaining spare
parts in the local market should be small. This means that replacement should be done in the
quickest time possible. This will help to reduce time wastage caused by large lead time for
obtaining spare parts. People should buy equipments which are readily available in the local
market.
Contract development process is another issue of major concern in the laboratory. Some
equipment is used under various contracts. These contracts may specify the period of time for
using this equipment. The major problem here is that the contracts come to an end before the
equipments have been fully utilized to complete the required experiments. The management of
the laboratory should come up with ways in which the contracts regarding various equipments
can be developed in order to improve the utilization of these equipments as well as to intensify
experiments made in the laboratories.

Team Members
The team members include individuals who have worked in various laboratories. The total
number of the members of the team is ten. All these members have an experience in laboratory
management and the use of laboratory equipments. All these members are very conversant with
the regulations that should be observed in the laboratories.

Equipment List
Out of the eight hundred equipments in the laboratories, only ten of them were selected. The
selection was based on the risks of the various equipments. These equipments include, the PVT
system, distillation unit, water flooding system, CT-scan system, and ultra high mercury
injection system, thickening time consestometer, ultrasonic compressive strength analyzer,
rotating disk apparatus, permeability plugging tester and dynamic filter press. These equipments
were selected since they involve a high level of risk. These are equipments that should be
handled with utmost care.
Study Methodology
The team has just completed a fact finding phase. This was accomplished within two weeks. This
activity took too much time since it involved visiting various laboratories in order to collect
adequate data. All the required data was recorded in note books and some pictures were also
taken. Analysis of the data was made within one week. Apart from this, the potential problems as
well as risks involved were identified.
After analyzing data, internal benchmarking was done. This helped to evaluate the performance
of various lab technicians. The equipments of various laboratories were compared to see which
ones were of high quality. After this, we came up with proposed recommendations that can help
in improving the quality of equipments used in the laboratories. These recommendations also
pointed out on how technicians in the laboratories can improve their performance. Once this was
done, we came up with developed implementation tools that would act as a road map to
implement the proposed recommendations.

SELECTED FOCUS AREAS

The team focused on various areas of interest relating to activities undertaken in laboratories.
The following were the areas of focus:
1. Safety
The management of the laboratory contributes a lot in providing safety in the laboratory. Most
laboratories have written safety measures that are posted on the walls of the laboratories for the
lab users to read them. This has created a lot of awareness among the many lab users. The team
made visual inspection to see whether the safety measures in the laboratories were effective.
The team also had interviews with lab users. Some of the lab users were asked the measures
which have been put in place in their laboratories to provide safety. Surprisingly, some of the
users could not mention even one. For the few who had some knowledge regarding safety
measures, they did not know why these measures are so important. Apart from interviewing the
lab users, the team was also able to conduct interviews with the lab technicians. They argued that
they did their best to educate the lab users on the safety measures in the lab.
Previous inspection reports show that some laboratories had been burnt due to leakage of gas
taps. These leakages were unnoticed since there had been shortages in gas. When gas was
available in the pipes, it leaked and caused fire. More so, a number of lab users have been
affected by acid that has spilled in their bodies. Acid is very reactive and once it gets into contact
with sensitive parts of the body, it may cause harm to the body. The team also reviewed the
maintenance records of various laboratories. The members of the team also tried to evaluate the
training and experience of lab technicians as well as the effectiveness of protective devices.
We also found out that there was no enough training on operating equipments. Some of the users
did not know how to operate the lab equipments well. In the laboratories, there was no hazard
and operability study done. Despite this, most technicians are JTS certified. The monthly check
of the radiometer for radiation check was not performed on all the users of the laboratory.
2. Maintenance
There are various maintenance plans made in various laboratories. Failure risk analysis has not
been taken seriously in most laboratories. This is because people think that the equipments in
question have less probability of failure. Despite this belief, a couple of laboratories have taken
the step to analyze the risk associated with the failure of these equipments. Currently,
maintenance service contracts are awarded to companies which have the best reputation in
maintaining equipments. The manufacturer usually recommends on the best ways of storing the
equipments in the laboratory. The manufacturer also prescribes on the best combination of
weather to store the equipments. This is because some equipment is affected a lot by changes in
weather.
The other finding from the above analysis is that local vendor support is not satisfactory. This is
to mean that the local vendors should be supported in order to provide satisfactory performance
in the laboratory. The contract development process is lengthy. This is the reason why some
people prefer non-contract equipments to contract equipments. This also shows why the process
of contract development has been very challenging to the lab participants. Standard maintenance
support is limited. More so, there are no notifications for due PM.
3. Spare Parts
The team reviewed the management of spare parts in the various laboratories. Proper planning on
spare parts should be done. This should be done by the management of the laboratory. The
purchasing process involves removing some default parts and carrying them to the local market
in order to get the desired spare part. The faulty parts are identified and then replaced by the
spare parts. The spare parts should be stored in a store, where they are easily assessable.
The services of the vendors should be supported by the participants in the laboratory. The
management should allocate a fraction of its budget to the purchase of spare parts. The lab
technician should ensure that the spare parts are available in the laboratory. If not, these spare
parts should be available in the local market. They should ensure that the critical spare parts are
available in the laboratory since without these parts, the equipments will not function at all in
case of breakdown of their parts.
The team made some findings about spare parts in laboratories. There is no centralized inventory
for spare parts. Spare parts are stored in the labs. This has been the major reason for congestion
in the laboratory. The spare parts are purchased through local agents. There is also no record or
track of minimum stock. This has led to difficulties in identifying any loss of equipments in the
laboratory. Apart from this, some spare parts are shared among different units. Therefore, the
spare parts are not enough for all the equipments.
4. Quality Assurance/ Quality Control
Quality control records should be kept in safe custody in order to evaluate the performance of the
equipments in the laboratory. Quality assurance should be provided in the laboratory through
thorough supervision of new equipment and proper maintenance of existing equipment. The lab
technicians should be trained on quality assurance procedures in order to promote quality control
in the laboratories. The quality control team should consist of members who are conversant with
lab education.
The team members found out that there are no clear guidelines or procedures for quality
assurance. These guidelines are important in ensuring that there is quality control in the
laboratory. There are no calibration guidelines for all the equipments. Calibration is done
unsystematically.
Conclusion

The proposed recommendations should be used in order to improve performance in the

laboratories. If these recommendations are implemented, there would be proper use of
equipments in the laboratory and this would also improve the accuracy of the samples used in
experiments. These recommendations are therefore important in improving lab equipment
integrity.
References:

Melissa K, 2000. Lab and its Equipments. Carolina. Bigtime Publishers.

Andrew B, 1999. Lab Fundamentals. Utah. Worthwill Publishers.
Martin J, 2004. Laboratory Integrity. New York. Blade Publishers