Boosting Data Quality with Better ELN's

Berlin-based labfolder and the Berlin Institute of Health (BIH) have announced the signing of a framework agreement which will allow BIH member entities and its employees to use labfolder’s electronic lab notebook at the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin (University Hospital) and the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) in Berlin-Buch. This marks a significant breakthrough in digitalizing scientific work processes at the Charité and the MDC. 

The BIH is the second major customer that Berlin-based start-up labfolder has gained in a short period of time. Since October 2016, the 11,000 researchers at the Max Planck Society have access to labfolder's electronic lab notebook. More than 4,000 Berlin-based researchers at the Charité and the MDC are now coming on board. 

"The license agreement with BIH, a unique scientific institution in Berlin, is another key milestone in our company’s development," said Dr. Simon Bungers, CEO of labfolder. ”The agreement also shows the importance of centralized and digital data management solutions for large research associations. labfolder meets all compliance requirements and provides a unified approach to data security and archiving."

labfolder's lab data management software enables scientists to capture, link, and manage data from a variety of sources, such as computers, tablets, lab devices, and medical measurement and diagnostic devices, while adhering to laboratory guidelines and industry standards. labfolder expedites research and innovation, facilitates data analysis and helps scientists collaborate across departments and continents. labfolder can be installed on both the institutions’ local servers and a central server. Its data platform is extremely flexible and can be adapted by BIH scientists to suit their needs. 

The traditional paper-based lab notebook remains for many scientists the main work tool when it comes to documentation. Data management often involves a range of tools, including paper notebooks, locally stored data and file servers. This creates a risk that guideline-compliant documentation, retrieval and sustainable use of scientific data may often be possible only to a limited extent. Meanwhile, data volume is growing exponentially. That’s what makes the digitalization and optimization of data management in research institutions and clinics using electronic lab notebooks of particular importance. This is also why BIH moves to electronic lab notebooks. "Data quality is critical for the success and reproducibility of research," said Professor Ulrich Dirnagl, Head of the Department of Experimental Neurology at Charité and Founding Director of the Center for Transforming Biomedical Research at the BIH who also initiated the institution’s introduction of the electronic lab notebook. "Adopting labfolder's lab notebook is therefore part of BIH’s quality initiative. It introduces a uniform digital standard that meets the rules of Good Scientific and Laboratory Practice. The new electronic lab notebook also enables documentation to meet the requirements of international regulatory authorities. This improves the quality of research data, which ultimately facilitates the translation of research results."

This is also why BIH moves to electronic lab notebooks. "Data quality is critical for the success and reproducibility of research," said Professor Ulrich Dirnagl, Head of the Department of Experimental Neurology at Charité and Founding Director of the Center for Transforming Biomedical Research at the BIH who also initiated the institution’s introduction of the electronic lab notebook. "Adopting labfolder's lab notebook is therefore part of BIH’s quality initiative. It introduces a uniform digital standard that meets the rules of Good Scientific and Laboratory Practice. The new electronic lab notebook also enables documentation to meet the requirements of international regulatory authorities. This improves the quality of research data, which ultimately facilitates the translation of research results."

This article has been republished from materials provided by labfolder. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.