Paperless lab management system

• Main Author: Bai, Shuo Yang
• Other Authors: Shao Xuguang
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2015
• Subjects: DRNTU::Engineering::Electrical and electronic engineering
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/63515
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

In the project, a paperless laboratory facility management system is proposed and developed to improve the efficiency of laboratory work meanwhile reducing the usage of paper in laboratories. The system automates the process of facility booking for researchers and facility management for laboratory technicians. The topic of paperless laboratory primarily driven by business-based motives has been discussed for many years. Achieving the paperless laboratory can significantly reduce the paper consumption so as to save the precious but endangered forests. Manipulating information electrically also enables the data to be delivered and shared promptly which results in a shorter decision-making cycle. Besides cutting down the paper usage, a paperless solution can diminish the manpower costs because it no longer requires laboratory technicians to manually check through every paper document for some laboratory tasks such as invoice generation and record reconciliation. Nevertheless, achieving a fully digitized laboratory facility management system will not take place overnight, and it is rather a long-term strategy which needs to be reviewed and regularly revised. The paperless laboratory facility management system developed in this project is regarded as the first step taken by the Centre for Optical Fibre Technology to adopt the paperless laboratory strategy. After undergoing five stages of the development life cycle, the system is able to support various laboratory tasks including managing facility information, overwriting existing bookings, generating invoice, posting announcements, sending reminding SMS and confirmation emails, etc.