Needs to be re-done and brought up to date

Online Worksheet at SGS Lakefield Research
By Jason McMullin, LIMS Administrator
SGS Lakefield Research Limited
e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
June 2003

Abstract:

This document is intended to provide a detailed overview of the implementation process of the OnWSH ELN module at SGS Lakefield Research and the issues and benefits encountered throughout that process. Information will be presented that shows OnWSH ELN has had a definite positive influence on the capabilities of our facility.

Company Profile: SGS Lakefield Research Ltd.

Lakefield Research was originally established in 1941 as Nepheline Products Ltd  to support the processing of nepheline syenite from local deposits. As demands increased and processes needed to be further refined, an old cement factory in Lakefield, Ontario became the R&D hub for the company. In 1945, “Lakefield Research” was born and soon expanded in scope to become one of the leading Metallurgical and Mineral Processing facilities in the world. The head office of the company is located in the beautiful village of Lakefield, Ontario situated on the banks of the Otonabee River; approximately 1½ hours northeast of Toronto. Over the years, Lakefield Research has gone through a number of major changes, from its beginning as a subsidiary of Falconbridge Limited through a management buyout in 1995 to its recent acquisition (April 2002) by SGS; a worldwide leader in testing and verification services with 32 000 employees and 800+ locations around the globe. Throughout this time the company has continued to expand its services to include complete Analytical and Environmental laboratory capabilities, Mineralogy & Environmental Services. This expansion in services also saw a geographical expansion into Chile, Brazil, South Africa and Australia.
The analytical lab portion of the business has grown to over 100 people in the Canadian operation alone, offering a wide range of analytical services and has earned a reputation of being able to handle large jobs and still provide high quality results.

OnWSH ELN  at SGS Lakefield Research Ltd.

In the early 90’s the lab had expanded in scope and size such that the need for a LIMS system was becoming paramount. The company had tried an implementation of another product, but after a couple of years found it to be lacking in several key areas. After an exhaustive search and a much more rigorous selection process the decision was made to go with the OnLabs product suite in March of 1993. By June of the same year OnWSH ELN was fully operational with most of the major instruments online. As with any software migration of  there were some minor issues encountered along the way but overall the implementation went quicker and much smoother than anticipated. In 1993 the lab had 42 employees, 25 PCs and was processing ~60,000 samples and ~300,000 analyses per year. By the end of 1995 these numbers had grown to 73 employees, 48 PCs and ~120,000 samples with ~960,000 analyses for the year. OnWSH ELN continued to evolve through a number of releases along with the expanding workload of the lab. However, even with it’s proven scalability the continued rapid growth of the lab and the desire for even more information would eventually exceed the capabilities of the DOS based LIMS. In 1997, development began
on a full 32-bit windows version based on the modular design of the DOS system that
would run against a SQL database backend. Online LIMS is composed of a variety of
modules, each with its own specific functionality. The WSH (Worksheet) module
however, is the key component that truly links the lab with the rest of the LIMS, this
module is the electronic equivalent of a technician’s notebook that allows for easy
integration with almost any instrument capable of electronic data transfer.
As this product is truly a technician/bench level orientated system this module was also
the initial focus of the upgrade. The initial version of OnWSH (‘On’ prefix added to
windows release) worked with an Access database through its development cycle. This
version was first introduced in late 1998 and was an immediate success, the user-friendly
Excel-like interface made this already powerful tool even easier to use. This Windows
based version was used in conjunction with the DOS based LIMS. The seamless
connection between both platforms allowed for continual development to be done while
having a minimal impact on the rest of the laboratory. The first area to really benefit
from this updated version of the WSH was the newly implemented ICPMS lab, this area
would prove to be an excellent development and testing ground. The system was
designed to be able to handle large instrument data files with multiple parameters quickly
and efficiently. The system was also being designed right from the start with the goal of
being a stand alone instrument interface platform with the capability to interface to other
LIMS products or in some implementations act as its own mini-LIMS system. The
tightly integrated QC module (OnLQC) allows technicians to accurately monitor the
quality of their work in real time. Over the next year, development on the OnWSH
module continued along with the rest of the LIMS. In mid 2000 the system was switched
from the development platform of MS Access over to MS SQL Server, a full-featured
Relational Database Management System. The LIMS continued to be run in hybrid mode
(Windows OnWSH with DOS LIMS) with the majority of lab areas using the new
OnWSH with the old DOS reports until mid 2001 when the full migration to the
Windows based version of Online LIMS was conducted.
The full transition to the new platform went relatively smooth considering the magnitude
of the task and was for the most part completed within the first week with only minor
www.onlabs.com Page 3
configuration changes required after that. The system has undergone further upgrades
and improvements over the past two years primarily due to requests for additional
features. Aside from these scheduled updates and maintenance periods the LIMS has
been up and running non-stop since that time, which is a testament to the efficiency and
stability of the coding and database design of this product.
Currently the analytical lab at SGS Lakefield Research has grown to 100 people and ~
100 PC’s performing an average of 1.8 million determinations on over 230000 samples
each year. The instrumentation of the lab has also expanded to include 7 AAS, 3 ICP, 2
ICPMS, 5 HPLC, 6 GC/GCMSs, over a dozen balances and a host of other analytical
instrumentation.

Key Benefits of OnWSH in the Laboratory

The most obvious advantage that we have seen from having a module like OnWSH in the
lab that is capable of direct instrument interface, is the reduction in the amount of
manually entered data transcribed from printouts and hand written pieces of paper. Not
only does it save time (which means money) it drastically reduces the number of
transcription errors and the possibility of losing those paper records. Calculation errors
are also reduced by using the OnWSH with validated calculations in templates that are
used to create new worksheets. This functionality benefits both the lab and the client; the
lab in that they can produce better results more efficiently and consistently and the client
gets better results quicker. Aside from importing the desired data, OnWSH also captures
all of the raw data directly from the source and stores that information in a separate log
for auditing and recovery purposes. All of the information pertaining to that batch of
samples is conveniently located in one spot. The benefits of direct readings or file import
cannot be overstated, considering the following scenario(s):
A technician weighs a batch of 1000 samples on a balance and he/she is recording the
results on a piece of paper to be entered into a computer at a later time. Assuming it
takes approx. 3 seconds to record each weight and another 3 seconds to type it in, it
would take 100 minutes or 1.66 hours just to record the results. (Time between samples
and stabilization is not considered here…as it would be the same for all methods) If the
technician makes $12.00/hr it costs $19.92 for those results to be recorded providing
there were no errors.
The same technician has another batch of 1000 samples to do, but they have since
installed Online OnWSH with the balance connected directly online. Assuming it takes 1
second per sample to press the print button and capture the weight, it would take 1000
seconds or 16.7 minutes to record the results (with minimal chance of transcription
errors). The cost to get these results would be $3.33…a savings of $16.59 (83%)…not to
mention the extra time that is available to the technician for other tasks.
www.onlabs.com Page 4
If the results were from an instrument that sends them to a data file the story gets even
better, it would take that same technician approximately 2 minutes to import 1000 results.
The actual import time is roughly 5 seconds but it takes a minute or two to navigate into
the worksheet and select the data file. It now costs a mere 40¢ to record those results,
which translates into a 98% savings from the handwritten/typed in method.
The previous scenarios are merely analogies to illustrate the potential cost savings of
using a system such as the OnWSH. Granted there are other factors not considered here,
but the end result would still show a marked improvement in production. This is evident
from the following real world numbers. As mentioned previously the lab has gone from
analyzing ~60,000 samples for ~300,000 analyses in 1993 (1429 samples/employee/yr or
7143 analyses/employee/yr) to ~ 230,000 samples for 1.8 million determinations in 2002
(2300 samples/employee/year or 18000 analyses/employee/yr), that’s over a 60%
production gain in # of samples processed per employee and a whopping 150% increase
in the number of determinations per employee. This increase is largely due to efficiency
improvements from instrument automation and integration with the LIMS and OnWSH.
So far we have only looked at the production and efficiency benefit; the other main
improvement is realized in the area of data quality and quality assurance. The tight
integration of the OnLQC module (which is bundled with OnWSH) with the OnWSH
module allows technicians to monitor QC samples in real time and be warned if the
quality is starting to drift, thus reducing potential headaches from upset clients and
additional costs from re-assays.
At Lakefield Research we currently track and monitor approx. 900 different QC samples
and are able to view/plot historical data back several years and pinpoint where the data
came from. This powerful module allows you to plot various graph types Replicate Ro,
Replicate %, Range Control, Range Ratio, Cumulative Sum as well as distribution
curves. Our lab was one of the first labs in Canada to get accredited by CAEAL
(Canadian Association for Environmental Analytical Laboratories) and SCC (Standards
Council of Canada) in 1994, and that occurred while using the DOS LIMS product with
its version of WSH and LQC. We are currently accredited by CAEAL/SCC to the
ISO/IEC 17025 standard. This sophisticated QA/QC module was a key factor in us
achieving and maintaining that accreditation.
OnWSH utilizes another module called OnLINK to make direct connections to
instruments. These modules have continued to develop as well and now allows direct KB
capture into any application (such as Excel). It also has a user configurable table parser
that allows the end user create custom instrument drivers if they do not already exist.
This added functionality serves only to enhance this already powerful tool.
Many labs already have good LIMS systems that they have spent a lot of time and money
on to customize for their specific needs, however a good number of these products really
fall short when it comes to instrument integration. Online LIMS recognized this
shortcoming early on and developed the OnWSH to fill that void. OnWSH can be
interfaced to almost any LIMS so you can get all of the benefits of the OnWSH and
www.onlabs.com Page 5
OnLQC module without having to endure the disruptions and costs to replace your entire
LIMS.

Conclusions

Lakefield Research is one of the leading analytical laboratories for mining and
analytical/environmental work in Canada and probably the world. This level of
performance and recognition is primarily attributed to the talent and expertise of the
people that work here, but having the right tools at their disposal makes these people even
more effective. This software product with its full featured user friendly interface and
powerful data capturing functions has literally saved the company thousands of dollars
and given us the production capacity to go after large projects that otherwise we could
not have pursued. Online LIMS with the OnWSH/OnLQC modules have proven to be
the ‘right’ tools for our operation.