City of Clearwater Reduces Transcription Errors and Saves Time with Confience’s Sample Master® LIMS
The Water Pollution Control (WPC) Laboratory, a component of the City of Clearwater Public Utilities Department in Clearwater, Florida, provides the community of 116,000 people with safe drinking water, a proactive wastewater collection system, and a very high standard wastewater treatment, which in turn provides reclaimed water to customers.
The WPC Laboratory provides analysis and support for Water Pollution Control, Water, and Wastewater Collection divisions, including providing data for trend analysis, wastewater and sludge characterization, process efficiency, and permit compliance monitoring.
The lab tests drinking water, wastewater and solid materials for three wastewater plants and the reverse osmosis plant, performing approximately 41,000 tests annually: analyses for conventional pollutants, composite sample analyses for metals and other pollutants, nutrient and metals loading rates in sludge, conventional pollutant removal efficiency of each process, and anaerobic digester activities. Quality control, regulatory compliance analyses, and monthly bacteriological analyses are run for the community drinking water system.
Their Challenge
Tracking and maintaining data and supporting documentation required by regulatory compliance was cumbersome and challenging for the WPC Laboratory. Historically, the handling of samples and bench sheets, plus the manual entry of data and report preparation, was a repetitive process fraught with transcription errors. As the laboratory considered transitioning from paper-based to paperless and investing in a LIMS, the objective was to find a system with flexibility to import analytical data from a variety of instruments, seamless integration with external systems such as SCADA, ease of use for staff, reduced turnaround time, and improved efficiency. It was also important for the laboratory to have trending capabilities, so tracking results and supporting data would identify potential problems and allow the lab to be proactive. Confience’s Sample Master LIMS was chosen because it met all of the WPC Laboratory requirements and more.
Mariade la Cantera | Laboratory Manager
Water Pollution Control Laboratory
Our Solution
Sample Master LIMS integrates with the WPC Laboratory’s numerous instruments: Varian Saturn GC/MS, Perkin-Elmer Optima 2000, Analyst 600 andFIMS 100, Dionex Reagent Free Ion Chromatograph, Man-Sci PC Titrate, Man-SciBOD Assay, Bran-Luebbe TRAACS 800, and Teledyne TOC analyzer. Instrument integration has allowed the WPC Laboratory staff to enhance productivity while increasing data quality.
Since implementing Sample Master LIMS, the WPC Laboratory has achieved its goal of transitioning to a paperless environment, simultaneously reducing transcription errors, enhancing data quality, and increasing efficiency. Leveraging open architecture and comprehensive automation for laboratories of any size, Sample Master features flexible design that affords laboratories unparalleled ability to choose hardware and software specific to their needs, as well as support expansion as operations grow.
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