Hi all,
I am looking for recommendations (or ones to avoid) for a commercial LIMS system / framework.
We are a small but quickly growing project within a larger company and are beginning to outgrow our current solution. We may or may not have much in the way of dedicated software engineers at the moment but we do have energized automation engineers and process dev scientists so something low-code might be appealing.
Thanks so much
Who’s your current commercial LIMS provider?
This will allow us to make better recommendations.
None is the short answer. Long answer is Excel, csvs, python / vb scripts, and one superhuman scientist tying it all together.
What kind of things are you hoping to track/manage?
Sample metadata, inventory/freezer, ELN functionality, genomic sequences, etc.?
You should check out Scispot and Ganymede
They are both different (LIMS/ELN vs Infrastructure/Data) but may offer low code solutions for your existing file formats (Excel, CSV, python/vbscripts) that may directly translate into their ecosystems.
Furthermore you can also build out the middle layer first (data management layer) and then find the proper LIMS integration later. If you’re feeding your data into a middle layer anyway, the full LIMS stack could be overkill.
@make_it_work This seems like an old post but I’d like to add my commentary to this thread. There is no one-size-fits all solution and there are two main unofficial categories of LIMS: Sample Based, or Experiment Based
Sample Based:
CisPro (Dasalt Systemes)
eLabJournal
FreezerWorks
QBench
Experiment Based:
Benchling
Science Cloud (Dasalt Systemes)
LabArchives
DotMatics
If you are looking for lab automation for thousands of samples and direct data reporting I would have to go with eLabJournal or Benchling. If you need enterprise LIMS DotMatics might be the best solution for the experiment-based.
I would stay very very far away from ELNs/LIMS which do not allow sample /experiment linking, do not have API/SDKs available, are not fully integrated with barcoding and printing solutions, or any which run using a desktop app or an in-house database.
I’ve only seen very few perfect deployments of LIMS in laboratory is and have more often seen them being used to fill a requirement vs actually providing useful solutions. Time and time again I see Excel, GraphPad Prisim, and PowerPoint being utilized as people’s main source of data capture, visualization, and communication. This leads to siloing of data and overloads network drives with unusable data.
Find a way to utilize a cloud solution which will grow with your company and which will work with you on customizing/adding needed features. Failing to find the right LIMS leads to pen/paper utilization, insecure data storage, flash drive transfers, and gives zero accountability for data.
Make sure your choice considers the growing need of direct device data capture. PDFs, Excel, PowerPoint, and GraphPad should be reserved for presentations and buisness uses not critical data capture and research.
I have had numerous years working with eLabJournal and find them to be a great barcode/sample identification forward solution. This integrates well with other platforms, allows for easy development of custom applications and has the flexibility to grow with your company. Like any LIMS this is what you make of it, you have to put in the work at the start to get great database structure. Once you have yourself setup correctly the first time, your team wouldn’t even think of doing science without it.
TL;DR find software that people want to use and that extends the functionality/resources of the now. If people find value in keeping the system up to date and it’s easier than pen/paper/excel they will use it and it can be a great way to keep information sorted throughout your lab!