The cobas Inventory Management System (cIMS) from Roche has saved time and increased efficiency in the management of analyser reagents at the Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Since cIMS was installed in the laboratory at the Royal Preston Hospital, the number of man hours spent on inventory duties has been reduced from five to six hours to less than one hour per week.
A satellite laboratory at Chorley and South Ribble Hospital is also being connected to cIMS, which will enable inventory to be tracked at both sites on a single database and will simplify stock transfer between sites.
cIMS is a web-based application that enables data to be shared between different networks and the system to be distributed easily across various sites within an organisation.
With the ability to record reagent usage for all analysers, Roche or otherwise, cIMS manages stock by lot number and expiry date and produces a range of reports, including stock status and usage patterns.
Since it provides a valuable audit trail, cIMS facilitates adherence to laboratory-accreditation requirements.
New reagent shipments are automatically uploaded onto the system in seconds and individual products are then scanned out at the point of use using a remote, hand-held scanner.
An automatic alert warns users when a preset reorder limit is reached and the system will generate a suggested order list.
Each cIMS installation comes with the provision and maintenance of hand-held scanners, full installation training, hotline technical support, system updates and data storage.
