Laboratory Information Management design specifications

The forerunners to the systems now called Laboratory Information Management Systems first appeared in the late 1960s as in-house software solutions. The intention was to help streamline the data flow from frequently performed laboratory tests and to transcribe the results to a centralized data repository. In the 1970s custom-built systems became available. These early custom systems were one-off solutions designed by independent systems development companies to run in specific laboratories. The complexity of these systems had increased to allow them to facilitate the transfer of large quantities of data in an electronic format from specific laboratory instruments. 

The accurate and precise analysis of pesticides is a critical requirement for the registration and use of pesticides throughout the world. Parent molecules, key metabolites and chemical breakdown products must be identitied and studied in well designed laboratory and Held research trials. Environmentally sound management practices rely on significant amounts of information about the levels and movements of pests, pathogens and specific chemical treatments within the environment The methods available for such analysis have become extremely sophisticated and sensitive in response to the need to detect lower and lower levels of contaminants in crops, water, soil, and farm animals. 

The electronic transfer of data and other information between instruments and laboratories is facilitated by coimecting them together in a network. The analytical work and overall management of one or more laboratories can be controlled and monitored through the use of specifically designed software packages. 

---