© Copyright Acquisition International 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

Article Image - How to Manage Inventory in Your Laboratory (and Why it’s So Important)
Posted 1st June 2022

How to Manage Inventory in Your Laboratory (and Why it’s So Important)

In a laboratory setting, inventory management is a crucial, albeit boring process. You need to be aware of stock on-hand, inventory available for purchase, and all of the equipment, consumables, supplies, reagents, and other critical assets that are housed in your laboratory. In this article, we’ll share with you some helpful tips and recommendations on […]

Mouse Scroll AnimationScroll to keep reading

Let us help promote your business to a wider following.

How to Manage Inventory in Your Laboratory (and Why it’s So Important)

In a laboratory setting, inventory management is a crucial, albeit boring process. You need to be aware of stock on-hand, inventory available for purchase, and all of the equipment, consumables, supplies, reagents, and other critical assets that are housed in your laboratory.

In this article, we’ll share with you some helpful tips and recommendations on inventory management in your lab, so that you can make the most efficient use of your available space, and reduce errors when it comes to monitoring equipment, inventory, and handling of bio samples.

A Quick Checklist for Lab Inventory Management:

You can reference this checklist while optimizing your inventory management system, but we’ll also explore each bullet point more in-depth further below.

Ensure an accurate stock list. Acknowledge your min-max stock levels. Categorize your inventory items. Strategically organize physical space. Have management procedures in place.

Ensuring an accurate stock list:

Inventorying a laboratory is no easy task, but it’s an essential process to keep your laboratory functioning optimally. So you should start with an accurate stock list that lays out your requirements, and you can build out from there. When it comes to developing your inventory list, take a look at the different parts of your laboratory, and write down a list of:

Items in low-turnover or excessive quantity. Items that are in high-demand. This will help when you do stock audits, which you should also perform regularly to check for accurate inventory and accurate in-stock allocation of inventory.

Use inventory tracking software to help you with managing lab inventory effectively – it will reduce most human errors, and give you far better insight into what stock is actually in-hand.

3) Categorizing your inventory items.

Once you have a correct min-max inventory count, it’s time to categorize your inventory items. This will help a lot if you’re using inventory management software, so that you can easily add tags to items such as consumables, hazardous substances, and reagents.

It’s a great way of getting an overview of all items in sub-categories, for a more minute level of analysis, and you can use this to highlight your inventory bottlenecks, as well as increase efficiency in the handling of laboratory assets.

4) Strategically organizing physical space.

Having an efficient inventory management system isn’t very helpful if your lab is cluttered, messy, and disorganized. So you should aim to strategically organize your physical space, as well as your labware in-hand, with the aim of maximizing efficiency.

You should have dedicated shelving or storage that contains the items you will need to be able to test, and this area should be clearly labelled so that it is clear where all of your lab equipment is located. Also be sure to disaster-proof your inventory storage areas.

You should also have dedicated labware units (equipment containers) in the lab for holding your equipment and other lab supplies. These should be labelled as well, with the lab’s name so that it is clear which items belong to which lab, and what items are being stored.

5) Have inventory management procedures in place.

Your staff should be familiar with the various procedures that are necessary for inventory management, and these should be clearly communicated to them. This way, you can ensure that there are no gaps in any knowledge or procedure, and that the staff are all working in the same direction.

This will help you in the future, as you can compare the effectiveness of different protocols or procedures, and you can easily identify bottlenecks and points of friction in your inventory management processes.

Categories: News


You Might Also Like
Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
IVA Global School: Taking Virtual Learning to the Next Level
Innovation
15/04/2025IVA Global School: Taking Virtual Learning to the Next Level

The meeting point between timeless education principles and next-generation learning, IVA Global School in South Africa is the first virtual 3D school in the world.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Proofpoint to acquire VC-backed Emerging Threats for about $40 Million
Finance
08/04/2015Proofpoint to acquire VC-backed Emerging Threats for about $40 Million

Proofpoint, Inc., a leading next-generation security and compliance company, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Emerging Threats, a leading provider of advanced threat intelligence, for approximately $40 million in cash and stock.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Fatigue Management Policies: How To Craft Effective Guidelines For Fleet Safety
Corporate Social Responsibility
14/12/2023Fatigue Management Policies: How To Craft Effective Guidelines For Fleet Safety

In the demanding world of fleet management, ensuring the safety and well-being of drivers is paramount. Fatigue, an often-underestimated hazard, poses significant risks to the drivers, public safety, and the company's reputation.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Reduce Employee Turnover With These 5 Strategies
Strategy
01/03/2023Reduce Employee Turnover With These 5 Strategies

Managing a business is more than overseeing your operations and keeping your company's finances afloat. One of the equally important tasks you must prioritize is caring for your organization's vital asset- your employees.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
How to Conduct Market Research For The Banking Industry
News
03/06/2024How to Conduct Market Research For The Banking Industry

Introduction In today’s rapidly evolving financial landscape, conducting market research is crucial for banks and credit unions to maintain a competitive edge and meet the ever-changing needs of their customers. Market research provides invaluable insigh

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Family Business Owners are the Most Innovative, Study Finds
Finance
02/05/2018Family Business Owners are the Most Innovative, Study Finds

Family business owners are more innovative than owners of non-family businesses but are restricted by limited financial resources, says Dr Roberto Flören, Professor of Family Business at Nyenrode Business Universiteit.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
What are the Most Effective Ways to Advertise Your Business Online?
Innovation
09/12/2022What are the Most Effective Ways to Advertise Your Business Online?

For business owners, the ways in which you can promote your company have changed dramatically over the last decade. The majority of marketing now takes place online, particularly since the start of the pandemic.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
AIROLINK, Pioneers within the International Construction Industry
Innovation
28/06/2019AIROLINK, Pioneers within the International Construction Industry

AIROLINK, created in 2001 to cater to the specialized needs of a booming construction industry in Ireland, is now one of the leading providers of top-quality construction and engineering services in the UAE.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Sullivan & Cromwell Advise CVS Health’s Purchase of Omnicare
Legal
08/07/2015Sullivan & Cromwell Advise CVS Health’s Purchase of Omnicare

Sullivan & Cromwell Advise CVS Health's Purchase of Omnicare



Our Trusted Brands

Acquisition International is a flagship brand of AI Global Media. AI Global Media is a B2B enterprise and are committed to creating engaging content allowing businesses to market their services to a larger global audience. We have a number of unique brands, each of which serves a specific industry or region. Each brand covers the latest news in its sector and publishes a digital magazine and newsletter which is read by a global audience.

Arrow