Maintenance of Research Arena

You chose the research profession because you were fascinated with the world around you and wanted to discover on a molecular level the ways in which life exists. Additionally, you wanted the freedom to choose your own field of research and study what interests you most.

Do you ever feel you were unprepared for a career as the head of a research lab?

You long to be at the heart of the lab — directing experiments, analyzing data and writing papers — but you find yourself caught up in other tasks — ordering reagents, dealing with a troubled graduate student, attending yet another committee meeting, anything but bench research.

You have found that being the head of the lab is more than just making big discoveries; it is about managing a small business. Lab-management skills, while used every day by scientists, are not directly taught to young scientists. Rather, they are learned secondhand. While much is to be learned from this follow-by-example approach, it has its limits. We have all heard horror stories of principal investigators with poor leadership and organization skills, but how can we keep from becoming a character in one of these stories?

Top 10 lab-management tips

1. You can learn management skills.
2. Have a five-year plan for your lab.
3. Set clear standards and expectations.
4. Optimize your management style for each lab member.
5. Listen to your lab members.
6. Walk around the lab daily.
7. Learn when to say no.
8. Be prepared when small amounts of free time become available.
9. Get to know the people at your institution who can help you.
10. Celebrate successes with your lab.

Lab management can and should be learned in a more directed manner

“Laboratory managers are often promoted from the ranks of the technical staff,” says Rodney Forsman, the immediate past president of the Clinical Laboratory Management Association and an assistant professor emeritus at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, Minn. “If an individual has the capacity to learn the science of laboratory medicine, they can learn the necessary management skills, given the desire and aptitude to do so.”

Management skills are important for science careers of all types. Whether you work at the bench or away, the ability to organize your work and supervise those under you is critical.

Management can be divided into four main categories:

1. Planning allows a lab manager to know where the lab is going.
2. Organizing is also an important job for a lab manager as he or she determines who does which project and technique, manages the timelines and budgets for multiple projects, and keeps current with research in the fields.
3. Leadership is extremely important for a lab manager, as it often sets the environment and pace of the lab. Good leadership can inspire lab members toward productivity and creativity and help members work together.
4. Controlling a lab involves the evaluation of lab members’ and projects’ progress and the ability to correct problems as they arise.

Planning: considering the big picture

With all the responsibilities that lab management entails, it is easy to make sure the T’s get crossed but to lose sight of the bigger goal.

“Self-awareness is vital in time management! It is so easy to believe that you are being productive when you are merely being busy,” says Kathy Barker, author of “At the Helm: A Laboratory Navigator,” a book that instructs new investigators in lab management. “Being able to stand back and truly assess your effectiveness is hard, but it is the only way to make every day count.”

A common suggestion from the experts interviewed was to have a five-year strategy. In a study by McKinsey & Company, all successful, thriving labs utilized three- to five-year plans.

While lab members need technical skills to complete individual experiments, it is the lab manager’s job to ensure that all experiments are aimed toward a common goal. The ability to see the bigger picture allows lab members to evaluate a project’s progress and determine future projects, manuscripts and grants. A five-year plan allows you to gauge the progress of your research and keep it goal-oriented.

Once you know where you want your research to be, you can plan experiments much more efficiently. This becomes especially important when a lab is managing multiple grants of varying lengths. Having a long-term plan also is helpful for tenure-track faculty so they can stay on schedule and achieve the requirements needed for tenure in the appropriate time.

“Perhaps scientists don’t create five-year plans because they don’t think they need to: They are overwhelmed with detail and trust that, as they take care of the day-to-day details, the path will emerge. It usually doesn’t. It just becomes more obscured with endless tasks,” Barker says.

Similarly, a mission statement can guide a lab and keep it on track. “A mission statement helps to remind the PI of what her priorities are,” Barker says. “It is hard to keep your eyes on the prize with all the personnel, funding and administrative decisions that have to be made daily. Reminding yourself that your mission is, say, children’s health or the mentoring of young scientists helps you to recognize what tasks will help you fulfill your plans and so be more productive.”

Write a mission statement that will help you and your lab members remember, when things get tough, why you are in science and why your project is important.
 

Also, scientists love to ask questions, but sometimes that can lead researchers down rabbit holes. A mission statement can guide you in experiment planning so that time is not wasted pursuing trivial or tangential research.

Organization: more than a clean desk

Organization takes a number of forms in lab management. Time, people and your physical lab space must be organized and orderly for research to run smoothly. There never will be enough time in the day to complete all the tasks you hope to accomplish, so it is important to know when to say no.

While an open relationship with lab members is encouraged, sometimes you need to close your office door. “With time and experience, you should develop the ability to better know what requests will help you in your research and career and which ones will impede you,” Barker says. “You get better at looking into the future to see that you might get no immediate benefit to agreeing to be on a certain committee but that in six months you might gain a chance at more graduate students or a better relationship with an administrator.”

Lab meetings are a great way to help keep a group of people organized and focused on their goals. Meetings with the whole group allow lab members and the PI to remain informed of events within the lab. They also can be a good forum for brainstorming and troubleshooting.

The McKinsey & Company study of successful labs also found that top labs have regular lab meetings, both formal and informal. One-on-one meetings also are important for both the lab member and the PI, as experiments and issues can be discussed in greater detail.

However, lab meetings can become an inefficient use of time if they are not organized. Having a meeting agenda can keep conversations on track and avoid the need for multiple meetings about a single issue. Records of lab meetings also can be used to measure research progress.

Leading by design

Many of the scientists and managers interviewed noted that not all successful leaders are the same. The first step toward reaching your leadership potential is to recognize your leadership style. Multiple resources exist online that allow you to recognize and analyze the way you lead. Then you can focus on the strengths and weaknesses of that leadership style and work to improve it.

Additionally, you can compare the type of leader you actually are to the kind you would like to be. “It is advantageous to identify a successful mentor who can not only be a model for your behavior but a sounding board for issues you may not have dealt with previously,” Forsman says. ”The mentor should have experience beyond the laboratory, especially in dealing with organizational protocol and key individuals outside the laboratory.”

Jon Lorsch, formerly a professor of biophysics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and now director of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, suggests that you optimize your management style for each lab member. “You cannot motivate or help everyone in the same way,” he says. “For example, some people respond well to a lot of attention. Other people like to have more time to think about data or their next experiment between discussions with their PI. You need to be able to modulate your style to optimize it for each person in your lab.”

Richard DeFrank, an associate professor of management at the University of Houston C.T. Bauer College of Business, emphasizes the importance of lab members knowing you are involved and available. One way to achieve this is to walk around. Every day, make an effort to walk around the lab and visit with each lab member. These conversations do not have to be in depth; rather, this method allows you to stay up to date on daily activities and shows that you are open and interested in your lab members’ work.

On a related note, many people emphasized that lab managers should walk the talk. In other words, do what you say. This action builds trust and respect from colleagues and fellow scientists. If you desire students to be in the lab from 8 to 5, they are far more likely to do so if you are also there from 8 to 5. Lorsch gives an example: “I give a practice talk for my group for every new lecture I make and ask them for (and take) their feedback. That way, when I make them give practice talks and get feedback, they know I am not asking them to do something that I don’t do.”

Most of the experts emphasized the importance of listening. A good leader not only directs lab members and tells them what to do, but he or she also listens to his or her employees.

“Make sure you are not the person doing most of the talking at lab meeting,” Lorsch says. “If you are, there is a problem.” Instead, he suggests that you empower senior members of the staff to teach and mentor junior members.

Taking time to listen is also important because a lot can be gained from your lab members. One way to do this is to organize brainstorming sessions. “This gets creativity flowing, empowers people to think about new research directions for themselves and the rest of the group, and often generates good ideas,” Lorsch says. Not only does this make lab members feel appreciated, but it also provides them with a learning experience. Most importantly, it gives you a different perspective on your research than you would have if you worked in isolation.

Lastly, know when to relax and have fun. Taking time to celebrate as a lab is great for morale and can act as an incentive to reach lab goals. Science is full of disappointments, and perseverance is essential for survival. Taking time to relax and enjoy your accomplishments will give lab members and you the energy to continue. “Have a sense of humor,” Lorsch says. “This is probably the most important advice I can give.”

Controlling: making sure your employees succeed

Managing a lab means that there are times when things go wrong and you are expected to fix it.

“Managers often lament that ‘all problems come in on two feet,’ which highlights the importance of honing your people skills,” says Forsman.

One of the best ways to prevent issues with employees is to be clear about standards and expectations from the start. Every lab member comes from a different background. Most of the issues rise from a lack of communication about expectations. Without clear expectations, you cannot expect lab members to do something just how you like it. It is equally important for lab standards to be maintained, or they will not be followed.

DeFrank and Lorsch both suggest motivating lab members through rewards rather than fear. “When people are doing well, make sure you tell them so,” Lorsch says. “When things are going slowly, make sure you give encouragement along with advice.” People are more likely to be productive and create high-quality work when they are happy and working toward a goal rather than fearing punishment. As Barker puts it, “share interests, not issues.” These rewards do not need to be significant or monetary; what matters is that they are sincere.

Lastly, try to give lab members a sense of control over their work. Many grad students want to have labs of their own one day, and experiment planning is a skill they need to learn now. Additionally, a sense of pride and ownership can go a long way to motivate employees while freeing you to spend time on other issues.

If you don’t have your own lab yet, begin learning about lab management now. While you may not run a whole lab, your boss will give you smaller tasks to manage. The ability to manage a little will bring opportunities to lead larger future projects.

Many of the techniques for managing a lab also can be used on a personal level for career development. “Because the graduate school-postdoc-assistant-professor-etc. pathway is so apparently scripted, it may appear that the path ahead is solid and paved and doesn’t need so much personal input,” Barker notes. “The system and the busyness can lull one into complacency, but the job has grown so much bigger than the training prepares the PI for.”

The key to returning to the work you love, science, is to manage your lab well through planning, organization, leading and controlling. It may take some work, but the payoff will be rewarding to you and your lab members. Remember: If you can learn science, you can learn lab management.

Our Objective

Our objective is to perform the following basic laboratory techniques:

• Working of Bunsen burner
• Cutting a glass tube or glass rod
• Bending a glas tube
• Drawing a glass jet
• Use of wash bottle
• Boring a cork

The Theory

In a chemical laboratory, we carry out some simple operations like bending or cutting a glass tube, boring a cork and studying the complex process of analysing substances qualitatively and quantitatively.

We are going to learn some basic laboratory techniques that are easy as long as we concentrate on accuracy, cleanliness, and strict adherence to details when performing any techniques. 

Before we go ahead, we'll have to know that most laboratory techniques require knowledge of how to use the equipment.  Let us study them in detail.

Bunsen Burner

A Bunsen burner is a common heating device used in a laboratory.  We'll first figure out the different parts of the burner and then see how it works.The Bunsen burner was named after Robert Bunsen, the German chemist who introduced it in 1855. The Bunsen burner was the forerunner of the gas-stove burner and the gas furnace.

The Bunsen burner consists of the following parts:

• A Base that is made of cast iron that keeps the burner in a stable upright position.
• A Gas-inlet tube that fits horizontally into the side of the base and can be connected to the gas tap through a rubber tube.
• The Nipple made of a brass rod with a fine pin-hole running through it. At its lower end, the nipple is screwed into the base. At the upper end, it carries the burner base.
• The Burner tube that is a metallic tube with two opposite air holes near its lower end. It is screwed to the nipple and carries the air regulator.
• The Air adjusting disc that is a metallic ring that loosely fits at the lower end of the burner tube. It is pierced with two holes that exactly correspond to the two air holes of the burner tube. It can be rotated to regulate supply of air into the burner tube by partially or wholly closing the air holes.

How a  Bunsen Burner works:

The rubber tubing is connected to the gas tap and the burner is lit. As the gas escapes through the nipple, there is a fall of pressure resulting in air being sucked in through the air holes. The mixture of air and combustible gas burns at the top with a flame.  Depending on the quantity of air mixed, the flame can be luminous or non-luminous.

Types of flames produced by the Bunsen burner:

The Bunsen burner produces three different types of flames.

The "coolest" flame is a yellow or orange coloured one.  It is approximately 300oC and is not used to heat anything, only to show that the Bunsen burner is on.  It is called the safety flame.  

The medium flame, also called the blue flame or the invisible flame is difficult to see in a well-lit room.  It is the most commonly used flame. It is approximately 500oC.

The hottest flame, called the roaring blue flame, is characterized by a light blue triangle in the middle and it is the only flame of the three that makes a noise.  The Oxidising flame or non-luminous zone, which is hottest, is the portion that should be used for the purpose of heating.  The Luminous zone is the brightest part of the flame. It is reducing in character and is used for reducing processes, such as in charcoal cavity test; match stick test and borax bead test of some radicals.  It is approximately 700oC. 

Wash-bottle

A wash-bottle is a container in which distilled water is taken.  With the help of a wash-bottle a fine stream of water can be obtained for washing precipitate and for other purposes.

Now-a-days, most laboratories use polythene wash bottles.  It consists of  flexible plastic material, is fitted with a plastic tube having a jet at its outer end.  On squeezing the bottle, a fine stream of water comes out of the jet. 

Glass rod

It is a piece of laboratory equipment used to mix chemicals and liqids for laboratory purposes. It is also called stirring rod. It is also used as an aid for transfering the liquid into the funnel. they are usually made of solid glass, about the thickness and slightly longer than a drinking straw, with rounded end.Glass rods are made of borosilicate.

Glass tube

The glass tubes are hollow pieces of borosilicate glasses used primarily as a laboratory glassware.It is commercially available in various lengths and thicknesses and is frequently attached to rubber stoppers. Although modifying a glass tube is an essential laboratory technique, a glass cutter is used to break a long glass tube into small pieces. Freshly cut glass tubes are flame polished before use to remove the rough edge. Glass tubes can be bent by heating evenly over a Bunsen burner.

Cork

The cork has a variety of important uses in laboratories. It is mainly used as a stopper for bottles. Boring a cork is required for setting an apparatus for the preparation of gas for carrying out ditillations etc. Above all, it is required for setting up a wash bottle. Cork is bored using a Cork borer, which is a metal tool for cutting a hole in a cork, or a rubber stopper to insert glass tubing. Choose a borer slightly smaller in diameter than that of the tube to be fitted in the cork. This will ensure tight fitting of the glass tube.

Learning Outcomes

• Students understant some commonly used laboratory apparatus.
• Students understant the types of flames produced by the Bunsen burner.
• Students acquird skill to do the following laboratory techniques in the real lab.
• Cutting a glass tube or a glass rod.
• Bending a glass tube.
• Extending a glass jet to obtain two jets.
• Boring a cork.

Working of Bunsen Burner

Materials Required

Real Lab Procedure

• Connect the gas-inlet of the bunsen burner to the gas tap through a rubber tube.
• Turn on the Bunsen burner and light it using a spark lighter.
• Ensure the air holes at the bottom of the burner are completely opened.
• The gas will mix with more air and the flame will burn much hotter producing a blue flame called the non-luminous flame.
• Close the air hole by rotating the air adjusting disc.
• Now the gas will only mix with ambient air and this reduced mixing produces an incomplete reaction producing a cooler, but brighter, luminous yellow flame.

Precautions

• Remove all the flammable and combustible material from the lab bench or work area when the Bunsen burner is to be used.
• Tie-back long hair, dangling jewelry, or loose clothing.
• Replace all hoses found to have defect before using.
• Use a spark lighter with extended nozzle to ignite the burner.
• Adjust the flame by turning the air adjusting disc to regulate air flow and to produce an appropriate flame for the experiment.
• Do not leave open flames unattended and never leave the laboratory while the burner is on.
• Shut off gas when its use is complete and ensure that the main gas valve is off before leaving the lab.

Cutting a Glass Tube or Rod

Materials Required

Real Lab Procedure

• Place the glass tube on a bench or flat surface and without applying too much pressure, hold it firmly.
• Using the triangular file make a single deep scratch on the glass tube by placing the file perpendicular to the tube and pushing it down and across the tube.  Do not saw!  By placing the triangular file perpendicular to the tube, you ensure that the scratch made is a straight one.
• You've got a scratch on the glass tube and that is all it needs to break it.   Now, place both your thumbs directly behind the scratch and applying gentle pressure and using a quick motion bend the tube towards you.  It just breaks.  
• You may find that the broken edges of the tube is not smooth and can cause bruises.  This can be made smooth by rotating the broken edges over a flame for 2 - 3 minutes and then allowing it to cool.

Precautions

• Make a single deep scratch at the desired length with one stroke of file.
• To avoid injury, hold the glass tube with the help of a thick piece of cloth.
• Do not heat the end for long time. It may seal the end or make it narrow.

Bending a Glass Tube

Materials Required:

Real Lab Procedure

• Hold both ends of the glass tube by hand and introduce it lengthwise into the luminous flame of the burner. 
• Don't keep it in a fixed position over the flame; instead roll the glass tubing with the fingers to evenly heat it.
• You'll feel the area of the glass being heated becoming soft and delicate.  When this happens apply gentle pressure so that it bends by itself. When the desired angle is formed, remove the tubing from the flame.
• Place the bent limb on the glazed tile and press it gently to make it coplanar. Then allow the tubing to cool. 

Precautions

• Select the tube of sufficient length to keep your hands safe from heat. Do not try to bend very small glass tubes of length less than 20 cm.
• While heating, the glass tube should be rotated in order to ensure uniform heating.
• Never bend the glass tubing by force. Doing so can break the tubing.

Drawing Out a Glass Jet from a Delivery Tube

Materials Required

Real Lab Procedure

• Holding the delivery tube with both hands, place it lengthwise in the flame.
• Keep rotating the tube in the flame as this ensures uniform heating.  Continue to heat it until it softens.
• Now remove the tubing from the flame and gently pull both ends of the tube. What happens is that  the middle portion becomes narrow as a capillary.  Do this till the thickness is about 2 mm.
• Now cool and cut the narrow portion that has been obtained using  them the triangular file.  We have now two jets.
• The broken edges of the jets that are not smooth can be rounded by rotating over the flame for 2 - 3 minutes and then allowing them to cool. 

Precautions

• While drawing a jet, pull apart the two ends of the red-hot tube slowly so that it becomes thin uniformly.
• Do not heat the ends too long, as it may seal the ends or make them too narrow.

The Wash Bottle

Material Required

Real Lab Procedure

• Take the  500 ml flat-bottom flask and fill it with water.
• Fit  the flask with an appropriate cork that has two bores.
• Pass the two bent tubes, one bent at an angle of 120o and the second at 60o through the bores. The angles are slanted in such a way that the bent portions of the tubes lie in a straight line.
• The upper portion of the 120o angled tube in held in the mouth whereas a jet is fitted to the tube angled at 60o.
• On blowing air through the mouth, water comes out from the other tube through the jet.

Precautions

• The edges of the tubes must be rounded off.
• The longer arm of the tube bent at 60o should be only very slightly above the bottom of the flask so that it can be used even when it contains only a small amount of water.
• All connections must be air tight.

Boring a cork

Materials Required

Real Lab Procedure

Softening the cork

A cork gets harder over time and trying to bore a cork that has hardened results in formation of cracks.  We need to wet the cork in water to soften it.  Once the cork becomes flexible, press it in a cork presser that is a mechanical device.  Alternatively, we can wrap the wet cork in a piece of paper and place it under our shoes and press it.  We now have a softened cork.  

Boring the cork

• Place the cork on a table or a flat surface with its narrow end facing up.  
• To ensure we get a straight hole, mark the position of the borer on both the sides of the cork. 
• If the cork taken is a rubber one, we can apply some glycerine on the borer.  The reason we do this is glycerine acts as lubricant on the hard rubber cork.  
• Now hold the cork tightly with the left hand and applying force, start the boring process using a twisting motion.  Make sure the borer remains vertical throughout.  
• When half of the cork has been bored, take the borer out and reverse the cork. Start boring from the reversed side till a hole is obtained. 
• We can now remove the borer.

Fitting a glass tube in the bore

• We'll now fit the glass tube into the hole bored in the cork.
• Dip the end of the cork through which the tube is going to be inserted in water.  Do the same with the end of the tube to be used.  This ensures easy insertion of the tube into the cork.
• Hold the cork in one hand and the tube in the other hand. 
• Hold the tube close to the wet end and insert the tube into the bored hole of the cork using a rotatory motion. 

Precautions

• Select bores of diameter slightly smaller in size than that of the tube to be inserted in the hole.
• Make a mark on both sides of the cork.
• To obtain a smooth hole, drill half the hole from one side and other half from other side of the cork.
• Since the rubber is hard, the end of the tube to be inserted is usually dipped in caustic soda solution or glycerine before fitting it in the hole.

In an earlier career, while I was a PhD student at an Australian University, I worked at a research laboratory that conducted vehicle safety-tests. We also conducted various other research experiments in the same facility, from biomechanics research to vehicle dynamics research. The equipment used was expensive and capable of high measurement accuracy. In over 25 years of experimentation and testing, many varied experimental apparatus had been purchased, used, and stored for reuse. Records of this equipment relied on a combination of human memory, and paper and spreadsheet based systems.

Research Laboratory Maintenance

A research laboratory is a unique environment. At any time there are likely to be experiments that are being planned, experiments that are underway and experiments that have finished – perhaps a very long time ago. The experimental equipment that is used is usually highly valuable, and accurately calibrated. Usually, once it has been used, it is kept for a time in the future when it might be useful once again.

For the equipment to be useful for experiments that are underway or planned for the future it has to be reliably functioning and suitably calibrated. Without adequate record keeping, this information is rapidly forgotten and the equipment can be effectively useless for experimental work. This is why research laboratory maintenance is so important. A CMMS can provide the lab with a simple, easy to use tool for tracking and completing such maintenance.

What does a CMMS provide?

A computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) is a database of assets and maintenance tasks. Assets of a facility are stored in the database, along with relevant information about them. With just a little adaption, a CMMS is highly suitable for recording keeping and maintenance planning in an experimental laboratory.

As an asset in the laboratory, each experimental apparatus has:

• Purchasing and supplier information,
• Equipment data sheets,
• Calibration records,
• Storage locations, and
• Future maintenance and calibration needs.

This information can be stored in the CMMS for every experimental apparatus. With this information stored in a central and retrievable location, the power of a CMMS can be fully realized.

1. First, the CMMS is a record for any authorized person to find equipment and information about it.
2. Second, the CMMS can be used to plan future calibration needs so that equipment is always ready for use.
3. Third, regular maintenance for equipment, including safety equipment, can be scheduled for the future. This includes any Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) reviews, and occupational health and safety audits.
4. Furthermore, full histories of experiments of conducted with each apparatus could be recorded and reviewed.

A QR code can be attached to each piece of equipment so that any maintenance, calibration, SOP updates, or usage data can be quickly added by any authorised personnel. Users of the equipment can easily check the status of the equipment by scanning the QR code and checking its current status and recent work history. Never again will experimental results data to be redone because of uncalibrated or faulty equipment.

If you don’t have a CMMS, what are you missing out on?

Without a CMMS, critical equipment may go missing, or remain un-calibrated, or be unsatisfactorily maintained. Any of these can dramatically affect the quality of results obtained from the laboratory.

Fiix has a CMMS available for a small monthly access fee. Compared with the cost of one researcher spending one or more days waiting for a piece of equipment to be found, or calibrated, its cost is very small. Compared with a wasted set of test data because a machine was not properly functioning when it was being used, is cost is negligible. You can give a demonstration CMMS a try, for free, today, or you can see our pricing page for a full view of the monthly costs.