- Look for potential bottlenecks in workflow by understanding throughput limitations of the assay(s) (e.g. incubation times or reagent volumes) and the instrumentation (e.g. dead volumes and prime volumes), and then design workflow around these first.
- Perform simulated throughput models before ‘going live’ with an assay workflow.
- Treat validation of the scheduling as importantly as validating assay performance on an instrument, and take time to test different scenarios.
- Start with the potentially highest throughput for a testing facility and map how to get there within the given labor and budgetary resources available. This will help identify areas that are already strong, even if they are manually performed, and areas that are weak and may benefit from automation. Consider automation that can reflect currently successful workflows.
- Optimize assay performance on the instrumentation before designing a final workflow. The process of confirming ideal assay performance often results in a specialized combination of tolerances that ultimately impact final workflow. For example, if an assay performs best when a 2 minute soak is integrated into the wash step, it is best to know that before designing the final scheduling scenario.
- Plan on some assay waste to validate the model and rework it if necessary.
- Build up to a final throughput if possible, adding additional throughput capacity after a single workflow has repeatedly worked effectively.
- Have a backup workflow that can be run with minimum instrumentation if major components go down for any reason.
- Invest in automation that is adaptable, easy to use, easy to edit, and easy to upgrade either through a single source manufacturer, or a proven group of collaborative components. There are sophisticated scheduling software products available, but they may be challenging to program, or have limited compatibility with a broad range of instrument manufacturers. Support options for these products may make it difficult to change or add throughput scenarios to the original model.
- Workflow changes ‘on the fly’ can consume time and material costs that can be alleviated by planning the right combination of compatible instrumentation before purchasing – even if they are not from the same source. Try to plan for what can go wrong by targeting what the strengths and weaknesses of each component in the workflow are and make investment decisions based on the best balance between each piece of automation.
By, BioTek Instruments
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