Customer and submission context
The system should retain who requested the work, the sample purpose, submission conditions, requested tests, turnaround expectations and the commercial basis of the engagement.
Sample identity and custody
Every sample needs an unambiguous identifier, reception record, condition assessment, location history and relationship to batches, subsamples or retained material.
Work allocation and competence
Testing should be assigned to appropriate laboratories, methods, instruments and authorised personnel. Supervisors need visibility into workload, due dates and blocked work.
Methods, results and quality controls
A LIMS should preserve units, detection limits, method versions, calculations, remarks, attachments and quality-control evidence—not only a final numeric value.
Review, approval and separation of duties
Technical review, quality approval and report authorisation require explicit roles. Controlled overrides should be exceptional, justified and auditable.
Finance and release control
Invoices, payments, exemptions and release rules are operationally connected to laboratory delivery. The system should prevent accidental release while allowing authorised exceptions.
Report authenticity and customer access
Issued reports need controlled revisions, verification mechanisms and a secure path for customers to view progress, invoices and approved documents.
Audit, notification and resilience
Actions should be attributable, important events communicated, and critical records protected through backup, access control and recoverable infrastructure.