The 10 Most Recommended LIMS Solution Providers 2018

www.insightssuccess.com October 2018 The

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LIMS IMS Solution Providers 2018

Streamlining the Management of Data and Machine Care & Cure The Next Frontier of Innovation in the Pharmaceutical industry

Agri Tech Agriculture Biotechnology Revolutionizing Agriculture Process Globally

Editor’s Note

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LIMS: A revolutionary way of laboratory management

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LIMS IMS Solution Providers 2018

Streamlining the Management of Data and Machine Care & Cure The Next Frontier of Innovation in the Pharmaceutical industry

Agri Tech Agriculture Biotechnology Revolutionizing Agriculture Process Globally

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he research and development as well as the testing processes, in numerous industry verticals, are substantially aided by retaining the importance of a laboratory. Similarly, a significant number of developing technologies are continually enhancing the potential and durability of a lab and a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) is an evident one among these technologies. LIMS software provides a myriad of automated workflows to be adapted by laboratories and also boosts the lab environment where the staff keeps track of products, samples and test results; utilized equally by multinational enterprises as well as small organizations.

Automation is anticipated to ease the burden of tedious and complex, yet vital tasks of laboratories. There are numerous software tools in almost every industry enabling them to cater to these issues. Same is the case with Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS). The global revenue generated from LIMS market is estimated to be around $900 million USD. Today’s modern labs are generating huge amounts of data and processing more samples than ever before.

LIMS came to their aid while they were looking for an effective solution that could manage, support and enhance their operations. Thus, with the goal of saving time and money, LIMS enabled laboratories to manage their data and distribute the results to designated areas. LIMS solution providers across the world are perfecting the functionality and adaptability of these systems ceaselessly to deliver the best experience to their clients.

Although the primary purpose of a LIMS is to track and manage samples, it can do so much more. It can also assist workflow automation which in turn reduces human inaccuracy, can centralize access and storage of quality control data, can support compliance efforts, can track substances. Its additional

capabilities are of performing instrument run monitoring, commencing downstream data analysis, and assimilating with instruments or other in-lab systems to develop lab efficiency.

Taking into consideration, the drive to transform the laboratory management ecosystem, delivery of optimal LIMS solutions, possession of a reformative, democratic and compassionate leadership personnel, and a profound knack for innovation, Insights Success recognizes the following organizations as “The 10 Most Recommended LIMS Solution Providers, 2018.”

Herein, featuring as our cover story is, Genohm, which develops and maintains on-premise software solutions for laboratory management, additionally focusing on guaranteeing compliance, traceability and big lab data management in highly complex and continuously evolving lab environments.

Genohm officially entered the lab informatics market with the successful launch of its main laboratory software automation suite named Simple Lab Information Management System (SLIMS).

It has been designed to integrate an Electronic Laboratory Notebook (ELN), and a Bio-banking module into a flexible, customizable platform that offers any user the ability to configure the system to match their lab processes and procedures.

This issue also features other commendable LIMS solution providers such as, Care Data Infomatics, which is India’s leading healthcare technology organization that offers solutions to enhance patient care and optimize clinical processes in laboratories and hospitals; LabVantage Solutions, which is a US-based company with global clients and a recognized leader offering a completely browser-based integrated laboratory management platform; Lex Software Solutions, which is located in Turkey and aims towards providing specialized software solutions for the pharmaceutical industry; NL42, which provides personalized services to support the digital transformation of the laboratory processes, committing to complete customer satisfaction. The firm also provides personalized services and innovative solutions, committing to complete customer satisfaction; and TrueMed IT, which provides the most flexible medical lab tracking, ordering and resulting software in the market. With its products it helps individual laboratories, laboratory groups, and marketing groups track every single order and helps with facilitating the automation of processes.

Also, make sure to stroll through articles written by our in-house editorial team and CXO standpoints by some of the leading industry experts to have a brief taste of the sector.

Bon Appetit!

Abhishaj Sajeev

Genohm Streamlining the Management of Data and Machine

Articles

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Care & Cure

Agri Tech

The Next Frontier of Innovation in the Pharmaceutical Industry

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Revolutionizing Agriculture Process Globally

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Insider’s Insight

Expert’s Outlook

Smart in vision

Using Big Data and AI to Communicate when seconds count

4 trends that will make Language solutions a big Part of biotech and Globalization

Be Smart – or Vanish Why Utilities need to actively develop smart Micro-Grids

CareData Infomatics Attaining Zeniths in Healthcare Tech

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LabVantage Solutions

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Powering Laboratories with Modern LIMS Software Solutions

Lex Software Solutions

Striving to Design Easy-to-Implement and Convenient Software for the End-User

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Nl 42

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A Leading Paperless Consulting Service Provider

TrueMed IT Leading the Global Lab Management Solutions Market

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Genohm Streamlining the Management of Data and Machine

“We speak through our product.”

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oday’s modern labs are generating huge amounts of data and processing more samples than ever before. Thus, laboratories are looking for an effective solution that can manage this support and enhance their operations. With the goal of saving time and money, Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS), a software platform was introduced, which enables laboratories to manage their data and distribute the results to designated areas. Identifying this increasing deluge of requirements, Genohm stepped into the lab management market in 2011 to streamline the management of data of the modern lab. It develops and maintains on-premise software solutions for laboratory management and will announce release of its cloud solution.

An Innovative Player in the Lab Automation Market Originally founded in Ghent (Belgium) in 2002 as a small, two-person bio-informatics shop, Genohm re-established itself in 2011 as an EPFL Start-Up at the Innovation Park in Lausanne (Switzerland), focusing on guaranteeing compliance, traceability and big lab data management in highly complex and continuously evolving lab environments. The company is proudly serving a rapidly growing set of customers in widely varying research and clinical environments throughout Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and the US. Today, it has offices in Lausanne, Ghent, and Durham NC and counts a workforce of 40+ highly trained software and life sciences engineers.

A Complete End-to-End Evolving Solution Genohm officially entered the lab informatics market with the successful launch of its main laboratory software automation suite named Simple Lab Information Management System (SLIMS). It has been designed to integrate an Electronic Laboratory Notebook (ELN), and a Bio-banking module into a flexible, customizable platform that offers any user the ability to configure the system to match their lab processes and procedures.

Cover Story At its core, SLIMS is developed to handle the complicated needs of modern lab environments. The lab is a heterogeneous environment where different equipment must interact, such as software, machines, and data in various formats. Labs are required to sustain a dynamic pace, adapting frequently to changing requirements, new technologies, and shifting focus. Genohm believes that the best LIMS for a lab will be fine-tuned to the customer’s needs, empowering them by adapting to their workflow, not the other way around.

While Genohm offer’s a single platform, the system can be configured easily to suit any lab environment. This service is provided by keeping its platform extremely versatile, and makes use of the SLIMS Store, part of the SLIMS ecosystem that allows premade functionalities to be added in a fine-grained manner. After the individual premade

“SLIMS is a fully-featured solution tailored for your lab including a complete Electronic Laboratory Notebook (ELN) with Work ows and Order Management modules for all your experiments.”

parts are added, the lab can adapt these workflows to fit their needs. The system works with many API’s (such as a Python API) to extend functionality even further. After installation, the system has an all-in-one interface, allowing users to seamlessly transition from sample management screens to the ELN and back, and can navigate complex workflows in an intuitive and visually attractive fashion.

A Software Architect Genohm and SLIMS has grown under the leadership of Frederik Decouttere, CEO. Frederik received his Master degree in Bioscience Engineering at the University of Ghent in Belgium. He focused on applying & evolving software architecture and patterns in the field of bioinformatics during the past 15 years. Since 2002, Frederik acted as CTO for Genohm, for which he served and deployed bioinformatics and LIMS solutions for several fortune-500 life sciences companies, healthcare and R&D labs. In 2010, he was appointed as the new CEO of Genohm.

Quality is the Key From the onset, Genohm has worked with both small research labs and highly regulated core facilities. The company however, learned that quality is the key even in a non-regulatory environment, and that has greatly focused their objectives with quality a key part of all development activities. SLIMS has been built to the highest standards as Genohm’s methods are ISO 9001:2015 certified, and has

Cover Story features that ensure the quality standards of labs as well.

This is done by tracing the history of items and actions, enabling access to be adjusted in detail with user and role management, a group model that allows users to work on the same project or to shield data from other groups, and steps that can be built in to witness or sign off by turning on a simple configuration flag.

allow early feedback and integrate training into the actual implementation trajectory. Secondly, its architecture is built in a way that any custom extensions do not impact the core product, and thereby guarantees a consistent release schedule and limits downtime due to the high stability of the core system. It also guarantees backward compatibility.

Lastly, its fast cloud deploy system is being developed and will be released in the near future. This functionality makes

Leading the Competition with its Self-service Attitude Genohm has been successful in populating the challenging niches in the industry which includes complicated workflows in next generation’s sequencing, extensible metadata collection in biobanking, and the need for flexible lab note taking in analytical, academic, research environments. The company stands out from the competition due to its self-service attitude. Genohm has experts that allow it to provide peerless support that is greatly appreciated by its clients.

Genohm allows both the lab manager and lab technicians to focus on their core business activities. According to Genohm, a LIMS should not be a burden to anyone. In SLIMS, the lab manager can configure dashboards to focus on key data at a glance, and the technicians can dive immediately into the protocols, see what is needed and enter only what they need to follow. Due to the extensive automation possibilities like macros and machine interfacing, human error is reduced to a minimum, and when something goes wrong anyway, rules can easily retrieve where and what went wrong and identify other areas of impact. The company’s single interface over all lab operations ensures this.

Taking Time Intervention into Consideration Genohm believes that ‘Time to Value is of the essence’. The lab marketplace is an environment with growing awareness about cost of ownership and the needs for fast turnaround time. Hence, the company focuses on developments that shorten the times from initial requirements gathering to production, which are summarized into three key points.

Firstly, Genohm’s implementation track was designed to be agile. It developed agile project management methods that

“Genohm is the maker of SLIMS, the one stop self-service LIMS, ELN, and Work ow Management system.”

up another part of the SLIMS ecosystem, and combined with the SLIMS store’s detailed prebuilt packages enables a new way of LIMS deployment, closer to a self-service provisioning.

to our needs and a lot of this can be done by the user.

However, if we have a complex request or integration issue, Genohm’s support is great.”- Sofie Goethals, Biobank Manager @ UZA

An Acquisition turning into a Scalable Platform

“SLIMS is a highly modular software that can easily be

Genohm has recently been acquired by Agilent. The company believes that this is a great opportunity for both parties. It has opened new markets for Genohm in a scalable and sustainable way. Through this, the company will be enable to focus on developing new capabilities in SLIMS to meet the evolving needs of its current and new customers in the future. Agilent also gives it instant access to a huge knowledge network in an organization that has been a trusted industry reference for a long time.

Words of Appreciation from Contented Customers “SLIMS is a great solution for our biobanking activities. We use the platform for our complete sample flow, from intake to storage and shipment. The integrated ELN is an indispensable tool — we use it to track all our sample activities such as slicing tissue, extraction of nucleic acids, and shipping of samples. The SLIMS workflow module is an innovative tool that allows us to register our studies in a dynamic environment. SLIMS is completely customizable

configured to be compliant with ISO 17025. Especially the automatic control of test results and the QC card module are strongly appreciated by lab technicians and auditors. The unique system of adaptable data views within the UI, each day satisfies about 500 employees with very different profiles: from the lab manager and the lab technicians to the process operators and the researchers.” - Ilse Pieters – Lab Study Manager

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The

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Management

Brief

AgiLab agilab.com

Joachim Mohamed Ndiaye CEO

AgiLab provides a unique digital platform for scientific data management and collaboration across Research & Development and Quality Control.

Alpha Technologies alpha-technologies.com

Michael Lamothe President

Alpha Technologies is the world leader in design and manufacturing of instruments and software. The firm delivers advance precision rubber and elastomeric materials analysis for production optimization and product compliance solutions.

Care Data Infomatics caredatainfo.com

S.Parthasarathy Co-founder & Director

Care Data Infomatics is India's leading healthcare technology organization that offers solutions to enhance patient care and optimize clinical processes in laboratories and hospitals.

CloudLIMS cloudlims.com

Arun Apte CEO

CloudLIMS is built exclusively on cloud-based technology that help researchers using cutting edge technology to scale up their research with virtually no capital expenditure. The company's mission is to provide an affordable solution that is both configurable and secure.

Genohm, a part of Agilent genohm.com

Frederik Decouttere CEO

Genohm develops and maintains on-premise software solutions for laboratory management also focusing on guaranteeing compliance, traceability and big lab data management in highly complex and continuously evolving lab environments.

LabVantage Solutions labvantage.com

Bob Voelkner VP Sales &Marketing

LabVantage Solutions is a US-based company with global clients and a recognized leader offering a completely browser-based integrated laboratory management platform.

Lex Software Solutions lex.com.tr

Alper Terkinli Founder & CEO

Lex Software Solutions is a company located in Turkey and aimed towards providing specialized software solutions for the pharmaceutical industry.

Company Name

Nl42 Business Roberto Castelnovo Management Consulting Co-owner & Co-founder nl42.com

TECHNIDATA technidata-web.com

François FALCO President & CEO

TrueMedIT truemedit.com

Bryan Shnider CEO

Nl42 provides personalized services to support the digital transformation of the laboratory processes, committing to complete customer satisfaction. The firm also provides personalised services and innovative solutions, committing to complete customer satisfaction.

TECHNIDATA is a major player in the field of software solutions for clinical laboratories and biorepositories. Its solutions serve organizations from the small single-discipline private laboratory to large multi-site and multi-disciplinary stateowned institutions.

TrueMed IT provides the most flexible medical lab tracking, ordering and resulting software in the market. With its products it helps individual laboratories, laboratory groups, and marketing groups track every single order and helps with facilitating the automation of processes.

Insider’s Insight

USING

BIG DATA AND

AI

TO COMMUNICA COMMUNICATE WHEN SECONDS COUNT Tara Kelly Founder & CEO SPLICE Software

About the Author A serial innovator, published author, Founder and CEO of SPLICE Software, Tara Kelly is passionate about technology’s potential to change lives for the better. She has consistently channeled that belief into developing technologies that enhance operations, enable better service delivery, and improve the customer experience. This has resulted in creating three customer experience companies and turning an innovative idea into a patented, proprietary technology (US Patent Number 9348812) that harnesses data streams to create personalized, automated messages. SPLICE solutions were included in Gartner’s “Cool Vendors in Insurance, 2016” report and Forrester’s “IoT and Analytics Startups Can Turn Insurers into the Good Guys” brief.

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rganizations like property and casualty insurance companies, utilities and other businesses that help people recover from natural disasters are gearing up for the 2018 Atlantic hurricane season, which begins on June 1. Everyone is hoping it’s not as active as last year’s hurricane season, which was among the most destructive on record, with six major hurricanes and more than $280 billion in damages.

Recovery is still ongoing in many areas, notably Puerto Rico. But hurricanes aren’t the only danger to lives and property that insurers must address. Wildfires can occur at any time of the year, especially under drought conditions and when winds are high. Floods occur year-round and can cause catastrophic damage, as can tornados, hail, blizzards and a range of other weather-related events.

Organizations that need to urgently communicate with customers or employees before and after a weather event often encounter difficulties because they don’t have the contact information they need. Either the data they have is out of date, or they’re using a channel (work email addresses, landlines, etc.) that the people they’re trying to contact aren’t monitoring during the emergency.

After a disaster, organizations encounter even more difficulties in communicating. Customers may have left the area or are in a location where the infrastructure suffered significant damage.

Organizations that are trying to move crews into place to address the damage often have trouble mobilizing their people because of communication breakdowns and difficulty visualizing conditions on the ground.

Big Data, Small Data and AI to the Rescue

About the Company SPLICE Software creates stronger connections and improves the customer experience by delivering personalized messages to your customers via their channels of choice, at the most critical points along the customer journey. Our cloud-based Dialog Suite™ uses Big Data & Articial Intelligence to deliver Data-Driven Dialogs® that can be leveraged across phone, SMS messaging, and AI-assisted devices like Amazon Alexa and Google Home. It’s just part of how SPLICE combines art & science to help you connect with your clients in new ways. Our award-winning Suite enables Retailers, Insurance companies, and Financial Services rms to collect and manage customers’ permissions and preferences so you can personalize, communicate, test, and measure like never before.

Fortunately, it’s possible to plan ahead, gather needed data and deploy technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI) and data visualization tools, to enable critical communication when seconds count. For businesses like property and casualty insurance companies, using the right technology assets can

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enable communication with customers before and after disaster strikes.

It all starts with data. Companies that need to communicate with customers (or staff) during an emergency should prepare by gathering small data, such as complete contact information, making sure to distinguish between cell phone and landline numbers. They’ll also need to get permission to make contact and ask which channels people prefer, e.g., text, email, voicemail, social media, etc.

With the small data taken care of through pre-disaster outreach and data cleanup projects, organizations can put big data and AI to work before and after a disaster to communicate with customers and employees. Insurance companies can reach out to customers who are in an area threatened by a disaster, providing helpful information on making a claim.

Sorting customer information by ZIP code to pinpoint customers in the path of danger, insurers can use big data and AI to send automated messages via the channel customers prefer, reminding them to move to a safe location and including tips on what documentation they’ll need to file claims and instructions on how to contact the insurance company once the danger has passed.

This type of outreach is helpful to both customers and the companies that send the communication. It can help insurers avoid losses by warning customers of impending danger, and instructions help customers receive the prompt service they need after a disaster strikes.

Personalized outreach also helps strengthen the bond between brands and the customers they serve.

Once the immediate danger has passed, organizations like utilities, claims adjusters, emergency response teams, etc., need to deploy field crews. A software solution that can harness AI, advanced data visualization capabilities and mass communications tools can deliver the information decision-makers need with speed and accuracy.

stakeholders. For example, after a hurricane has moved through an area, power restoration and civil engineering crews may be on hand, but without an accurate view of conditions on the ground, it’s impossible to deploy assets effectively.

A weather event that knocks out power and damages infrastructure can delay recovery efforts, leaving customers stranded and crews idled just when the need for help is most acute. However, a data visualization app that takes in big data from multiple sources can provide clarity on conditions on the ground, allowing leaders to make informed decisions.

Picture utility team leaders with several power restoration crews in a disaster zone. Data pouring in from social media, weather services and other sources can help them pinpoint which crews to send to address specific sites with infrastructure damage. But data visualization tools that show conditions in real time, such as road and bridge closures, can help them take decisive action immediately.

The Secret Sauce Is Simplicity Emergency management tools that integrate big and small data and leverage the power of crowd knowledge and AI can provide critical information that can be visualized and understood in seconds. The ability to send mass communications is also important. Automated voice messages can deliver catastrophe warnings, postcatastrophe service updates, office closure notifications and much more.

Speed and accuracy are important, but simplicity is the secret sauce. A software platform that integrates all of these elements and allows the people who are managing critical events to visualize complex, evolving factors in real time can be a game-changer. Whether communicating with customers or employees, when seconds count, big data and AI are indispensable allies.

Big data is essential, but information alone isn’t enough — decision-makers need to be able to visualize it to make the right calls and communicate with affected

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CareData Infomatics Attaining Zeniths in Healthcare Tech

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eadquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India CareData Infomatics is a leading healthcare technology organization that offers solutions to enhance patient care and optimize clinical processes in laboratories and hospitals. In an interview with Insights Success, S. Parthasarathy, Director and Co-founder of the organization briefly mentions some of the challenges the organization has faced and strategies it has incorporated to ensure its standing in the market. So, let’s have a look at what the leader has to say about the organization.

Please give a brief overview of CareData Infomatics, its solutions and services?

S. Parthasarathy: CareData Infomatics offers solutions covering the entire diagnostic sphere. Our products offer the unmatched flexibility of cloud computing. Our passionate team has over 75 members spread across the length and breadth of India. Our products are the result of the team’s rich experience of over 2 decades in health care IT. This comprehensive package aids in overcoming the current issues of a diagnostic lab including manually maintained data, no central repository, no check on reagents consumed, lack of skilled personnel amongst a few. This explores innovative and sophisticated analytical capabilities of device interfacing by providing optimized solutions in not only supporting but also enhancing the Lab workflow automation.

S. Parthasarathy

Director & Co-founder

How do you diversify your Laboratory Management Solutions so as to benefit your customers?

S. Parthasarathy: We offer a variety of services to cater to the needs of different consumers. Other than the base LIMS, we make a cloud based Middleware solution that assists the technicians in the day to day working of the lab. We also provide a stripped down version of the LIS, CARE DIVA, which just handles automated report generation. This is designed for extremely small laboratories that do not have the need or the means to purchase fullfledged LIS software. Finally, we offer all these services as one complete, affordable package.

Please describe the experiences, achievements or lessons learnt that have shaped the journey of the company.

S. Parthasarathy: We founded our company in May 2016, and in less than two years we have been able to build a world class product that can take the global market leaders head on. During this time period, we have amassed more than 60 customers in the South East Asian, Middle Eastern, and South Asian markets.

What are the company’s strategies to cope up with the changing trends of the industry?

S. Parthasarathy: We, as a company, have one motto: To create software that our customers would need in the future, and not wait for them to ask us for a new feature. For this very purpose, we have hired

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The

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‘‘

We provide a robust decision support platform that increases the efficiency and profitability of the lab, in turn helping doctors make the decisions needed to save lives faster.

‘‘

experts in the industry to keep up with the latest trends in the industry and deliver world class products.

Please give a detailed explanation regarding the management’s influence towards the industry and the company?

S. Parthasarathy: The management has played a pivotal role in the shaping of the company. By understanding the current and future market trends, we have charted a course for the company to take care of the current, as well as the future needs of our customers, and to also play a leading role in the industry. By following this roadmap, we hope to set an example in the industry by providing quality, affordable lab management solutions that provide for our customers now, and in the future.

Where does Care Data Infomatics see itself in the long run and what are its future goals?

S. Parthasarathy: We separate ourselves from the competition by offering a cloud based Middleware service.

This service handles the management of assets like reagent consumption and device health, and will also control the Quality Control functions. We are the only company to provide the entire range of Lab Management software in a single, affordable, easy to use package, and that will give us an edge in the market full of players who charge high rates for individual Lab Management software modules.

About the Leader S. Parthasarathy is the Director and Co-founder of CareData Infomatics. He has 20+ years of experience in building and managing high performance sales, marketing, P.R. and channel teams, developing creative business go-tomarket strategies in high growth startup and mid stage venture backed and publicly traded companies.

Parthasarathy earned his PG diploma in Public Relations from Bhavan’s Rajaji Institute of Communications and since then have been working with leading corporates and empowering people in learning great sales strategies.

About the Company CareData Infomatics, a leading healthcare technology organization that offers solutions to enhance patient care and optimize clinical processes in laboratories and hospitals.

The products designed by CareData are well-positioned to process a wide range of samples, from over 20,000 samples per day in bigger laboratories to less than 50 samples per day in smaller laboratories.

Having a passionate team of over 60+ members, CareData’s innovative cloud-based IT products are the result of the team’s rich experience of over 2 decades in IT and specifically in the healthcare IT domain. The products not only address the laboratories current needs and pain areas, but also offer unmatched power and flexibility of cloud computing, and scalability for multi-center and multidevice operations and “real-time” control and monitoring of lab as well as hospital devices from a remote centre.

S. Parthasarathy: We currently operate in South East Asia, South Asia and the Middle East. We plan to begin expansion into Europe and South America in the next year, and we hope to make inroads to the US market by 2021-22.

Considering the rising number of laboratory management solution providers, how does Care Data Infomatics stand out from its competitors? |October 2018|

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Care & Cure

The Next Frontier of

INNOVATION in the

Pharmaceutical Industry

T

he pharmaceutical industry is passing through hopeful and turbulent times at the same time today. On one hand, the industry is facing rising opposition from customers who wish to pay as a single payer. On the other hand, great innovations are helping pharmaceutical industry meet new customers to grow revenues. An example of the later development is the digital mobile technology which helps the industry collect large amount of data to form an unparalleled understanding of healthcare. Additionally, today the pharmaceutical industry is in a position to make a statement to the larger public to seal its place as the ideal provider of healthcare in the long run. The Pharmaceutical industry can ďŹ nd a harmonious balance between the turbulence and opportunities to claim the throne of a great healthcare provider with real innovation today.

Currently, the healthcare industry focuses on R&D which can immediately be turned into products to earn revenues. An example of this economic development is the large number of medical solutions available which treat common illnesses such as cold, fever, headache, etc. and are usually available as over the counter medicine for patients. This economic activity is governed by patients who pay as individuals. This economic model is in line with natural principles that advocate that selfinterest is the motivator of economic activity and competition is the regulator. However, there is a new economic expectation of patients which could better shape the future. If patients paid as a single payer, the government could invest in more R&D tax dollars into the future in the form of grants or subsidies. Without the infusion of such investments, real innovation would be diďŹƒcult as real innovation requires companies to operate in the area of absolute uncertainty, which can be a nightmare from the point of view of shareholders.

Untapped Innovative Opportunities In the pharmaceutical sector, the natural economic forces have not yet found solution to deadly diseases like HIV, multiple forms of cancers, and several others. The primary reason for true lifesaving innovation being expensive is that true innovation operates in the territory of absolute uncertainty and hence one cannot set a timeline in principle in order to achieve desired results. Furthermore, this is also the primary reason why deadly diseases which promise lucrative revenues may never see real investment by individuals who are governed by self-interest. Individual self-interest leaves breathing space for Individual desire for happiness and is likely to be susceptible to individual weaknesses. On the other hand, if companies received funding for innovation through a legitimate public entity like the government, it could invest in innovation for the long term

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growth of a society. Such collaboration would help the pharmaceutical industry to find solutions that separate life and death in a meaningful manner in the society. On the other hand, the individual companies which find a solution to grave illnesses can also monetize these innovations.

Some such trending innovations are mentioned below.

Precise Medicine Today the Pharmaceutical industry faces stiff legal penalties for overdosing a patient with a particular medicine. The good news is soon doctors would gain access to genomes which helps map out the individual medical history. This makes it possible to deliver a perfect and precise dose of medicine to a patient. Genome projects are gathering momentum, largely due to an initiative of the Obama administration, which gave the grant of $215 million to Precision Medicine Initiative. Grants like these and

Precise Medicine projects like these would make it possible to develop personalized medical solutions which are near perfect for all patients.

Data Gathering It is important for doctors and medical researchers to have access to real intelligent data in order to make objective observations and produce insightful innovation. Such data gathering and generation has become much easier thanks to mobile apps. Today, several mobile phones include technologies that can track movement, sense various health indicators and measure the health of patients and provide the data to doctors and researchers to better understand their patients. Such data apps are making it possible to create gene sequencing and live health monitoring, which could have only been dreamt about in the past.

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Articial Intelligence Artificial Intelligence (AI) AI has become the guiding light for many industries. The Pharmaceutical industry is not an exception to this rule.

Supercomputers and machine learning are making it possible for researchers to detect patterns in genes, diseases and respond to them with appropriate solutions at a blazing quick speed. Many such AI projects are currently helping the Pharmaceutical industry on the path of innovation. One prime example of this technology in action is the IBM Watson which has demonstrated learning capabilities and absorbs millions of pages of medical literature to make the industry reach the pinnacle of competitive success.

There are many more innovations which are reshaping the future of the Pharmaceutical industry. Some of these include 3D Printing, Nanotechnology, Virtual meetings between doctors and patients, etc. Innovation is opening up new doors of opportunities for every industry and companies which follow the path of innovation will find a golden arch to build a great future for them. However, it is important for the industry to secure its long term interest by positioning itself as the ideal provider of healthcare services in the short run.

Data Gathering

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LabVantage Solutions: Powering Laboratories with Modern LIMS Software Solutions

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n many industries today, the laboratory retains its importance as a vital part of R&D and testing processes. There are many emerging technologies that are enhancing the capability and durability of the lab, and one of the most significant is a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS). Utilized by enterprises and smaller organizations alike, LIMS software delivers a range of automated workflows to be employed in laboratories; it also enhances the laboratory environment where staff keep track of products, samples, and test results.

Bob Voelkner

Vice President Sales and Marketing

In delivery of efficient LIMS and relevant services, LabVantage Solutions, a US-based company with global clients, is a recognized leader offering a completely browser-based integrated laboratory management platform. The company offers pre-packaged laboratory solutions for Quality Control (QC), Contract Labs, Research & Development, Validated Pharma manufacturing, Diagnostic testing, and for certain industries. LabVantage mainly offers a laboratory software solution which includes LIMS, Electronic Laboratory Notebook (ELN), and Laboratory Execution System (LES).

The LabVantage platform is used at more than 1500 customer sites, across a number of industries, from pharmaceutical and life science, medical device, biobanking, food and beverage, oil and gas, diagnostics and genetics, and more. The company’s solutions help its customers to innovate faster in the R&D cycle, improve manufactured product quality, achieve accurate record-keeping, and comply with regulatory requirements.

An Exemplary Leadership Bob Voelkner is the Vice President for Sales and Marketing at LabVantage. He is a graduate of the University of Scranton with a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science. Prior to joining LabVantage in 2009, Bob was Sales Manager for the LIMS division of Applied Biosystems. Previously, he spent seven years in a number of sales leadership positions at Thermo Fisher Scientific’s Informatics and Services division. Bob started his career at Beckman Coulter Inc. as a Senior Software Developer working on LIMS and Chromatography Data Systems, progressing to Director of Global Sales and Marketing of its Laboratory Automation Operations division.

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|October 2018|

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Industry accelerators can be rapidly deployed to reduce risk and total cost of ownership.

Bob mentions, “We are challenged at the leadership level to expand the footprint of our software beyond traditional LIMS functionality into areas that are adjacent or complementary to add benefits for our customers.”

Purpose-Built Software The LabVantage platform offers a complete package with tremendous depth, breadth, and richness of capability to support laboratory processes. Using provided design tools, it can be easily configured or modified, and adapt to virtually any laboratory environment, from R&D to Quality Control. Because the company mainly focuses on flexibility, which can be perceived as complex, it takes many of the common configurations that it historically developed for similar clients and built industry-specific packaged solutions. LabVantage considers these solutions as industry accelerators which can be rapidly deployed to reduce risk and total cost of ownership.

Stepping Ahead with Unified Technology As a decades-long LIMS provider, LabVantage has lived through the shift away from the customization of software solutions and has fully embraced configurability. It recognizes customers who want turnkey solutions that reduce investment costs, deployment and training time, complexity, and a heavy reliance on an IT department. For that reason, LabVantage has continually engineered its platform for ease of use, to support common workflows, and to be configurable without requiring software

|October 2018|

development skills. The company also recognizes the importance of being a technology leader and stays up-todate with current technologies, whether it’s web technology, cloud hosting, or portable/mobile access. LabVantage’s goal is to offer the most technologically advanced solutions and make them work hard for its customers.

Adapting to Modern Industry Trends LabVantage is the first LIMS company to address data integrity compliance in the pharmaceutical industry. When the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued new guidance around data in temporary memory, LabVantage quickly engineered modifications that helped its customers comply. Its customer advisory board also meets with LabVantage leadership quarterly to help guide its strategic direction. In addition, the company hosts an annual customer training and education conference that provides great opportunities to have a conversation with its customers to learn about their needs. A strong investment in current and new product development helps LabVantage to maintain its technology and business leadership.

“Staying in touch with our customers and watching the industries we serve are perhaps our leading methods to identify and address trends,” says Bob Voelkner.

Technological Differentiator with Future Aims LabVantage’s technology is a clear differentiator. The company has recently invested in the user’s experience, meaning the LIMS delivers a simple, attractive and intuitive user interface. The depth and breadth of native functionality and the high degree of extensibility without customization, scripting or coding is unparalleled. And LabVantage’s professional services are also second to none. More than half its headcount is devoted to serving its customers.

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Expert’s Outlook

4 TRENDS THAT WILL MAKE LANGUAGE SOLUTIONS A BIG PART OF BIOTECH AND GLOBALIZATION

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he growth of China and Japan as leading markets for the Pharma and Biotech industry has made language an important factor for companies looking to be successful in global markets.

Moreover, emerging markets in non-English speaking countries such as Brazil, Russia and Turkey has only increased the need for “Strategic Language Partnerships”. Navigating through regulatory requirements and Clinical Trial documentation in foreign languages seem like a daunting task just from the sound of it. An increasing number of companies prefer to outsource the language requirements in order to speed up approvals and decrease rejections.

Pharma companies are also evaluating untapped markets.

Among the top emerging markets, BRIC economies stand out the most with the probable addition of Mexico and Turkey. While China is already competitive, the others in the list are viewed as geographies with tremendous opportunity.

However, growing economies have their own challenges.

Underdeveloped infrastructure and unique regulations mean that entry and success in these markets are more complex than they may seem. Seeking drug approvals in different geographies also means that Pharma companies will have to process multiple sets of clinical trials in each country. With the probable exception of India, other regions won’t have English as their language of choice which makes language intervention an absolute necessity.

The Increasing Involvement of China The recent regulatory change in China has paved the way for more globally accepted drugs to be launched in China. However, they will still need to undergo the regulatory process as usual. We expect an increased effort from Pharma companies to launch more drugs in China which is the second largest Pharmaceutical market in the world. Biotech is also booming in China with the help of conscious Government support. There seems to be no shortage of investment either in this regard. Hence, you can expect BioTech companies to have a keen interest in expanding their focus to China in the coming years. Based on this, we foresee the demand for translation between English and Simplified Chinese to rise in the near future. Also, it will be wiser for companies to outsource their documentation requirements since adhering to the stringent protocols in Chinese will not be easy.

With the current trends in the Pharma and Biotech Markets, we suspect the need to only increase. There are four definite areas that point towards the prominent role of language in the coming years.

Emerging Markets have More Promise Since established markets in US and Europe have very little room for smaller players, SMEs are growing more confident that growing markets are a better investment.

Pricing pressures and slower growth means that Big

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The Rising Influence of the Patients As patients become more aware and educated about the drugs they take, Pharma companies are forced to

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consider a patient-first business model to cope with their dynamic expectations and demands. Companies are considering smartphone apps and online portals to stay connected with patients. With more sophisticated technological options being made available with every passing day, a range of health services can be offered to patients at their convenience. These tools also serve as a great way to acquire patient data, maintain them and gain useful insight.

However, replicating this approach in other geographies will need language support. App and Software localization requires deep understanding of cultural nuances in order to be executed successfully. Apart from this, promotional and informational collateral also need to be tailored and edited in order to appeal to consumers in various geographies. This not only includes physical collateral but also digital materials. Hence, as the focus shifts to the patient, there is certainly a rise in demand for language solutions expected from Pharma and Biotech companies.

Shilpa Mittal CEO, Ulatus

About the Author Shilpa Mittal, CEO of Ulatus, Ulatus is one of the world’s foremost language solutions providers. Shilpa is honoured with the prestigious “Best Woman Entrepreneur 2017” award by Golden Bridge in San Francisco. |October 2018|

Managing the Digital Baggage While e-pharmacies are still in their infancy, there is enough reason to believe in their success in the near future. Globalization plans for e-pharmacies, is a long way away from being a topic of discussion. In the meanwhile, Pharma and Biotech companies still need to maintain their digital presence whose importance continues to grow in the grand scheme of things. This includes websites, social media positioning and online reputation management (ORM) among others. In recent times, we’ve received an increased demand for translation of marketing materials from companies like Abbott Healthcare and other Fortune 500 companies.

As pharma and biotech companies look to build their presence across different geographies, they will need to think about how they can take their digital assets along.

Maintaining brand positioning and brand image across multiple regions is always going to be a challenge.

Moreover, failure to understand cultural nuances and demand can be a cause for stunted growth. Companies that have the foresight to see the importance of a language solutions partner at this stage will have greater chances to succeed in new geographies.

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Lex Software Solutions: Striving to Design Easy-to-Implement and Convenient Software for the End-User

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eadquartered in Turkey, Lex Software Solutions is fully committed to provide specialized software solutions for the pharmaceutical industry. In an interview with Insights Success, Alper Terkinli, CEO and Founder of Lex Software Solutions briefly mentions some of the challenges the organization has faced and strategies it has incorporated to ensure its standing in the market. So, let’s have a look at what the leader has to say about the organization.

How do you diversify your Laboratory Management Solutions so as to benefit your customers?

Alper Terkinli

CEO and Founder

Alper Terkinli: Our laboratory management solutions blend many years of pharmaceutical laboratory and compliance experience with software development. We precisely know what our customers need to the very subtle detail. Our customers enjoy highly flexible and customizable laboratory process management thanks to its analytical methods module, instead of using spreadsheet-based notebook-type work definitions and can also plan inventories, instruments, work times using this module and can make expected/actual work comparisons. Manage! also provides GMP compliant spreadsheet and document solutions for specific user needs. These solutions also allow the users to manage their existing Excel files in a GMP-compliant manner. Using Manage! LIMS, pharmaceutical companies can eliminate all (not some) the inefficient paperwork in the laboratory. We are assertive in this regard.

Please describe the experiences, achievements or lessons learnt that have shaped the journey of the company.

Alper Terkinli: After working many years in global scale pharmaceutical companies, our team has determined the need for a highly specific laboratory management solution which is compliant, efficient and user-friendly at the same time. I personally have lead the development of a LIMS software while still working in the laboratory. We have also worked on making Excel files compliant, eliminating paperwork, and integrating chromatography data systems with other software, which all lead to great success. Together with the rising trend of data integrity in recent years, laboratory management software have gained even higher interest. After being trained with the most skilled professionals and all that diverse experience, the foundation of a professional company became inevitable to bring a fresh breath to the sector.

What are the company’s strategies to cope up with the changing trends of the industry?

Alper Terkinli: The changing trends in the sector is being reflected in the guidelines / regulations and in Lex Software Solutions, we closely follow and understand these documents and gear our development work towards those changing trends. As being an energetic and dynamic company, we act fast to adopt changing user requirements.

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|October 2018|

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Our aim is to replace the ancient and obsolete paper-based and hybrid recording processes with modern LIMS, ELN and LES systems in a compliant manner and let the pharmaceutical sector to work swifter, less error-prone, more efficient and produce more quality work and products.

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Where does Lex Software Solutions see itself in the long run?

Alper Terkinli: We, here in Lex Software Solutions aim to provide a distinctive product and in the near future, we see ourselves as a global brand demanded by large scale players in the sector. Our product will play a great role in making laboratory processes more efficient and shaping the way how people work in pharmaceutical laboratories making it smarter, more standardized and measurable.

Considering the rising number of laboratory management solution providers, how does Lex Software Solutions stand out from its competitors?

Alper Terkinli: There has been a recent rise in the number of laboratory management solution providers but Manage!

LIMS has very distinctive properties that makes it stand out from its competitors in the market.

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Manage! can eliminate all (yes, all) paperwork and Excel files in GMP based laboratories Manage! also contains an out-of-the box GMP compliant spreadsheet solution integrated Manage! provides fully integrated workflows for all the processes in the laboratory Manage! provides deep and objective statistical and visual KPI’s and planned/actual comparisons (e.g. analyst performance, product stability performance) Manage! provides decision support information (e.g. how much X standard is required in the following month or when should I make a purchase order depending on the usage rate and time to supply) Instead of being re-programmed, Manage! can be highly customized by the end-user without writing a single line of code

These are some of the many distinctive features of Manage! that differentiate it from the other products in the market.

About the Leader As the Founder and CEO of Lex Software, I not only claim to create a profitable and efficient LIMS product, but also aim to shape the sector starting from Turkey and global scale companies. By combining a high amount of sector experience and software development experience, I can speak the same language with sector professionals and at the same have an idea on how to easily adopt their needs in the software development processes.

About the Company Lex Software Solutions is a company located in Turkey and aimed towards providing specialized software solutions for the pharmaceutical industry. Its flagship product is Manage!

LIMS, focused on both compliant and efficient pharmaceutical laboratory management. When developing laboratory management software, Lex Software Solutions is fully aware that developed software should strictly adhere to GMP and computerized systems requirements but should be efficient and user-friendly at the same time.

Manage! provides an analytical method module for precisely defining the way how analyses will be performed, what will be used, how much man hour is needed etc. Ÿ Manage! creates analytical recording templates according to the defined methods, no more spreadsheets or “fill in the blanks” document are needed Ÿ Manage! eliminates the need for document management software for analytical methods Ÿ

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Agri Tech

Agriculture Biotechnology:

Revolutionizing Agriculture Process Globally

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iotechnology is a the exploration and development of various biological processes to achieve mainly industrial and various other purposes cultivation of the plants, and improvements through breeding programs.

The processes also employs artificial selection and hybridization which emphases its functionality. At present, the modern usage also includes genetic engineering as well as cell and tissue culture technologies.

In earlier days biotechnology process was initiated by farmers who developed improved species of plants and animals by cross-fertilizing or cross-breeding. In recent years, biotechnology has expanded its core functionality widely which now focuses on sophistication, scope, and applicability.

A well-known and author and writer is vague and can be unsubstantial, for example, Clayton Christensen share his views as, "There are other dimensions of biotechnology. If you think of biotechnology like the Internet, it's not a category - it's an infrastructure that can be deployed to sustain or disrupt. In healthcare, the most complex problems at the high end have to be dealt with in a problem-solving mode by the best, most experienced physicians you can find.”

Biotechnology is immensely contributing towards agriculture which enhances its functionality to the next level. Agriculture aspects have extremely changed with biotechnology functions and increase readability of the process.

What is Agriculture Biotechnology?

Agricultural Biotechnology is also known as Agritech. It is an area of agricultural science involving the use of scientific tools and techniques. There are several techniques used in agriculture biotechnology such as Genetic Engineering,

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Molecular Markers, Molecular Diagnostics, Vaccines, and tissue culture. And it also modifies the living organisms like Plants, Animals, and Microorganisms.

In recent times, Crop biotechnology has been developed its functionality in agriculture and is also one of the main aspects of agriculture biotechnology. Its desired qualities are exported from a particular species of Crop to an entirely different species.

How is Agriculture Biotechnology Used?

Genetic Engineering: The term is derived from scientific research provides information about how to move genes from one organism to another. This is known as genetic engineering (GE) or genetic modification (GM). Genetic engineering includes the transfer of useful characteristics by inserting DNA of Plants, animal or microorganism from another organism to another.

Molecular Diagnostics: Molecular diagnostics significantly detect genes or gene products that are very precise and specific. Molecular diagnostics is the method used in agriculture to more accurately diagnose crop/livestock diseases.

Tissue Culture: Tissue culture is the process of regeneration of plants from the disease-free plant. This technique allows reproduction of disease-free planting material for crops.

Unified Methods Used for Corp Modification Traditional Breeding: Traditional breeding method has been used for centuries to improve crop quality and quantity. The crossbreeding describes the combination of two compatible species to create a new variety with the desired traits. The crossbreeding can be only utilized within the same or closely related species.

Polyploidy: Polyploidy is the method describes which can be induced to modify the number of chromosomes in a crop in order to influence its fertility or size. Through naturally or with the use of chemicals, the number of chromosomes can change. The process results in the fertility changes in modification within the crop.

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Protoplast Fusion: Protoplast fusion is also known as Somatic fusion. It is a type of genetic modification in plants by which two distinct species of plants.

In this method, it includes joining of cells or cell components to transfer traits between species.

Transgenics: Transgenics is the method which involves the insertion of one piece of DNA into another organism's DNA. It works in order to introduce a new gene into the original organism. This addition of genes into an organism's genetic material creates a new variety with desired qualities.

Impact of Agriculture Biotechnology on Economy and Social Life The technology used in agricultural productivity improved its usability and functionality with some major factors such as combine harvesters, chemical fertilizers, and the green revolution. Like every technology, agricultural biotechnology will also have its major impact on economic and social.

In agriculture, crops using biotechnologies have improved its quality and also been used safely with benefits. The technology influences the whole process by the reduction of pesticide use. At present agricultural biotechnology, one of the factors that influence the health and welfare of the farmers and other citizens in the developing world.

Influence of Agriculture Biotechnology in the Future The aim of agricultural biotechnology is to present the functionality of the applications used in agriculture biotechnology. The applications are eagerly awaited to increase

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the productivity of crops, primarily by reducing the costs of production by decreasing the needs for inputs of pesticides. The process is mostly used in crops grown in temperate zones. The application of agricultural biotechnology can improve the quality of life by developing new strains of plants that give higher crops.

The crops can be grown in a wider range of environments which give better rotations to conserve natural resources. It also provides more nutritious harvested products that keep much longer in storage and transport, and continue low-cost food supplies to consumers.

According to Crop Science, the company with credible authority on the progress and future implications of Agricultural biotechnology states that, “Farming is evolving in the 21st century with the development and use of biotechnology crops. Scientists and agronomists work in the lab and greenhouse to come up with genes that improve crop yield and make corn, soybean, cotton and canola plants more resistant to insects and more tolerant to herbicides, drought, and stress.�

The biotechnology and its process is the evidence of the contributions towards rural development around the world. It serves as the source of inspiration for emerging nations to complement existing practices with agricultural biotechnology.

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NL42: B

A Leading Paperless Consulting Service Provider

ased in Spain & Italy NL42 is a leading consulting services provider which also runs an annual congress Paperless Lab Academy, considered as one of the best lab informatics learning platform in Europe. In an interview with Insights Success, the Co-owner and Co-founder of NL42, Roberto Castelnovo, shares his experiences on leading the company. He also elucidates the company’s goals, working methods, and its distinctive process of serving customers.

Below are the highlights of the interview conducted between Roberto and Insights Success: Give a brief overview of the company, its solutions and services.

NL42 provides personalized services to support the digital transformation of the laboratory processes, committing to complete customer satisfaction. We provide dedicated support to managers and executives in the design and implementation of their strategies to reach their business goals, with the highest level of attention and quality.

We aim for becoming a trusted advisor for our customers by delivering superior Quality of Services, branded by our personalized attention and professionalism. NL42 is a young and dynamic international consulting company created by professionals with decades of experience. We offer support throughout the Transformation Process to Paperless, with a pragmatic approach and an affordable investment.

Roberto Castelnovo

We cover multiple sectors where laboratory priorities are Efficiency, Productivity, Quality and Data Integrity.

Co-owner & Co-founder

Being ‘Paperless’ is about setting up a process review to ensure flawless acquisition of the data along its lifecycle. The objectives are to enable adequate data management for an efficient storage of the information, a prompt analysis & reporting and a safe sharing.

How do you diversify your Laboratory Management Solutions so as to benefit your customers?

Our solutions are proposed to support a complete paperless project endeavor at departmental or corporate level across businesses, for one or for multiple sites.

We offer customized services from the very beginning of the business processes review in order to evaluate the needs for business reengineering, standard procedures realignment and to help framing the User Requirements Specifications to start the best fit to purpose data management tool selection. We accompany our customers all along the different phases of the selection process and recommend actively best suitable contract agreement for flawless execution of the implementation of the selected solution, its qualification, validation, and go live.

Describe the experiences, achievements or lessons learnt that have shaped the journey of the company.

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The

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Making the complex simple.

When we decided to leave the comfort of a monthly payroll sitting in a managerial international role, we wanted to own completely our customer’s projects and bring all our senior experience and technical knowledge into it.

The mix of managerial experience, languages skills, and technical knowledge has become our best asset to position ourselves get known and trusted as domain experts.

As such the big achievement for us is to be known as independent and recommendable professionals. Our entrepreneurial path has brought us the rewarding opportunity to become the owner and organizers of the annual European congress Paperless Lab Academy.

However, we prefer the quality of our deliverables and the trust built with our customers to speak up for us.

What are the company’s strategies to cope up with the changing trends of the industry?

“NL42 is a serious and professional company that is guiding us and helping us in our goal of being an efficient and paperless company.” – Dr. Ofir Arad, Co-founder and CEO, Anaconda Biomed.

“While working with NL42, we have received the best consulting services helping us in improving the laboratory processes. NL42 has worked very closely with our project team, in a very professional manner and has provided great knowledge of the market, the available solutions and main providers.” – Albert Almajano, Informatic systems Director at Indukern Group.

About the Leader Roberto Castelnovo holds a degree in Computer Science and has worked almost thirty years in the area of Laboratory Information Management. He has built a large experience in managing complex sales and services organizations to provide solutions at international level, dealing with complex environments, partnering with product managers, marketing team, R&D and quality at global level.

Roberto has been responsible for the implementation of the project management methodology in the services team when he was the European Director. The team was formed by more than 50 consultants and outsourcing partners.

With such background, experience and knowledge, Roberto has built a strong international network in the lab informatics industry. This enables NL42 to have a clear understanding of the actual and future market landscape. In many senses, Roberto is a key reference in which young entrepreneurs and senior managers trust for discussing their long-term strategies.

One of the key assets for our company to remain aligned with the changing trends of the industry is precisely the fact that we do organize the Paperless Lab Academy annual congress that aim for being one of the best learning platforms in Europe about lab informatics, digital transformation projects in the industry 4.0 and scientific data management. While preparing and running the Paperless Lab Academy annual congress, we are exposed to a broad view of the lab informatics landscape and the latest topics of concerns by the industries. We see how much the software companies develop, grow, merge, and invest in their product development and which business model strategies they deploy to serve their customers.

Give us a few testimonials of your clients that accurately highlight NL42 Business Management Consulting position in the market. |October 2018|

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Smart in Vision

Be Smart – or Vanish Why Utilities need to actively develop smart Micro-Grids

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he energy market is changing rapidly. This is true not only for the USA and Europe but on a global level. Possibly the most important change is the one towards more decentralized systems. This is challenging the utility industry.

Utilities historically have developed by integrating small microgrids which grew around mills and other small-scale generators (today we would say prosumers). This is why utilities developed along the entire value chain: They integrated these micro distribution grids in a more stable larger (Transport) grid and replaced decentralized generation by more cost-efficient central power plants. This highly efficient centralized system was allowing industrial development as we know it. At its time it was possibly the only way to serve large, strongly energy depending production like steel, paper or the upcoming chemical industry. The centralized energy system did not result from an oligopolistic market, but the industry structure derived from an efficient technical design.

There are several reasons why this formerly beneficiary system is challenged today. Not all apply in all markets but some of them do, so decentralization of energy markets is a global trend. Specifically, in most

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industrial markets the new energy regime is driven by politics favoring small scale, decentral renewable generation. Subsidies on renewables devalue existing large thermic power plants. Even large-scale hydropower plants do not easily pass strict environmental and social feasibility analysis. But independent of any political setting there is another more fundamental reason for the growing competitiveness of a decentralized energy design. While the first phase of industrial development is known for its industrial clusters (often grown close to energy sources like coal or water) which shaped many geographic areas for more than a century, later phases are much more dynamic and do less depend on geographic proximity. Within a dynamic industry setting where businesses are set up and closed or moved somewhere else on a regular basis a static centralized infrastructure loses competitiveness.

In many emerging markets this dynamism as well expands towards those areas which are today not connected to the central grid but offer inexpensive land or new agricultural products which can be sold abroad at high prices. Finally, the political will and the industrial demand for decentralized systems today encounter renewable generation even at small size at competitive costs

compared to large size thermic power plant. For the most prominent renewable technology photovoltaic in the North (with less radiation) this competitiveness is given only as grid parity, meaning central generation plus transport is as expensive as photovoltaic on site. In the Southern hemisphere photovoltaic is already a competitive source empowering decentralized energy infrastructure.

While decentralized generation has caught up with centralized generation plants, distribution systems with a large portion of decentralized renewable generation capacity are often inefficient. There are basically four reasons for this inefficiency: (1) Missing price mechanism supporting grid operations, (2) high costs to operate such a system stable, (3) large amount of excess energy (exported or not being used at all) and (4) sub-utilized interface between microgrid and its feeder system. These are basically the same reasons that in the last century supported the centralization of the grid system. What is needed is an intelligent or smart decentralized distribution system.

An intelligent distribution system with mainly decentralized generation requires more than smart meters and it is different from today popular so |October 2018|

About the Author Dr. Karl Kolmsee the CEO of Smart Hydro Power, studied agricultural and philosophy at the universities of Hamburg and Goettingen, Germany. After his PhD he has spent most of his professional career in the energy business – first as consultant at A.T. Kearney later as manager at E.ON, Europe’s largest private utility, and member of the board at Schmack biogas, one of the pioneers of the biogas market in Europe. In 2009 Karl Kolmsee has been nominated professor for energy management at Applied University of Kufstein, Austria. His main areas of academic work are international energy markets and renewable energy. In 2010 he founded Smart Hydro Power to focus on design and commercialization of kinetic pico hydro power systems with main focus on rural electrification for emerging markets like India, Latin America and Eastern Africa. Today Smart Hydro Power offers complete solutions for off grid solutions and micro grids.

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called smart home or home storage solutions. These offer photovoltaic, battery and basic load management for the individual household. Some providers of home storage solutions integrate customers in a community model to allow exchange of autogenerated electricity. But these communities are barely more than contract partners within a fixed price net metering model. Individual home solutions – even within sales-and-purchase communities – do not solve any inefficiency issues decentralization faces. These systems are either completely self-sufficient – in this case they are expensive – or they rely on central grid services like a parasite of its host. Sustainable decentralization requires an intelligent control and steering mechanism between the households which build a microgrid.

While there are possibly different steering mechanisms, establishing a local market with the price as variable that guides demand and supply according to the aggregated demand function and the aggregated cost functions seems promising. Technically this does require a dynamic forecasting and load management (at least for major loads which are used in a price-sensitive manner).

At first glance a market model would solve the four major issues shown above. It would set a price for photovoltaic and battery storage which would control demand and thereby reduce necessary installed reserve storage and generation capacity. This mechanism would

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as well be consistent with the functioning of the feeder grid and could therefore supply itself services to this grid which would be valued with the same “currency”.

Technically this steering mechanism might be completely decentralized based on individual processors in each household like the blockchain technology (once necessary processing capacity comes down to acceptable limits) or it might work between a central unit and individual processors. In either way it steers the local market place towards an efficient optimum given generation, demand and battery storage capacity at a defined point in time.

Micro grids do open (within a given legal framework) a possibility for traditional utilities to re-define their role using some of their traditional strengths. But new entrants can equally well enter this space and perform wherever the incumbent does not adapt. This gives room to numerous co-operations between new entrants or between new companies and the incumbent offering their services or developing new business models along the value chain. Incumbent utilities may be smart – or vanish.

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TrueMed IT: Leading the Global Lab Management Solutions Market

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utomation technology is intended to ease the pressure of monotonous and complicated, yet important tasks of laboratories. There are numerous software tools in almost every industry to enable them do the same. Same is the case with Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS). The global revenue from LIMS market is estimated to reach around $900 million USD. Providers across the world are perfecting these systems every day to deliver the best experience to their clients. TrueMed IT is evidently one of them.

Bryan Shnider CEO

Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Dallas, TX, TrueMed IT provides the most flexible medical lab tracking, ordering and resulting software in the market. With its products the company helps individual laboratories, laboratory groups, and marketing groups track every single order and helps with facilitating the automation of processes. The TrueMed IT team provides customizations for clients to allow the ability to meet the workflow and processing needs of each individual lab and marketing group.

Delivering Comprehensive Solutions TrueMed IT Software as a Service allows a much lower initial price for an LIS while allowing the laboratory to grow into the product over time. The pricing structure allows for small and medium labs to not ‘break the bank’ and allows for larger labs the comfort of building out all software needs to help run the business.

Each lab is unique in its needs, and each lab, small, medium or large, has a voice in the TrueMed IT community. Along with providing features and functions needed by laboratories, the company also provides constant security and support for all clients. TrueMed IT builds reports, report tools, analytic dashboards, reference lab routing rules and features, and the list goes on. In addition to the normal LIS functions, it provides a full gambit of functionality for laboratory operations and success, a ‘One-Stop-Shop’ for laboratories.

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The

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TrueMed IT provides the most flexible LIS solution to meet the needs of any lab, at a price that they can afford, with a team they can trust.

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A Walkthrough by the Leader Bryan Shnider is the CEO of TrueMed. He along with the founders looked at the industry and saw that the biggest issue was a lack of innovation in both the software for the laboratories, and the interfacing with 3rd party software. So, they set out to build the robust core features for LIS, while still driving innovation and experimentation on new features and functionality. This led the TrueMed IT product to become one of the most flexible products on the market today.

Bryan states, “Our focus on the end user experience also helped drive the industry to simplify the data entry process and lab requisition entry.” One of TrueMed’s clients switched from competitor product to their system, and they said the end users went from a 5-minute entry process to less than 2 minutes for a patient requisition.

Embracing Competition TrueMed IT believes in healthy competition and understands that competitors are always around the corner, so its focus is to provide the best product at the best price, while giving the best support and experience for its clients. The continuous commitment to create the features needed by clients helps TrueMed IT stay on top of the changing laboratory industry.

The development course, following a strict and processdriven development, helps define, build, test and deliver the software and automation needed for its clients. More

|October 2018|

importantly, TrueMed IT has been offering more and more flexibility within the system to allow clients for more of their personal configurations to meet routing, billing, and data intake needs. TrueMed IT was founded on solving problems for laboratories and it asserts that no problem is too large for the company.

Tailored Lab-centric Services TrueMed IT realizes that every lab has its own unique process and flow. The ‘one-size-fits-all’ software does not work for every client. So, it implemented weekly to bi-weekly discussions with the clients to ensure their needs are being met, along with the changes or features needed to meet future business goals. It is also particularly excited about its integration team and product scalability.

TrueMed IT believes that integrations can only go as fast as the slowest link, and it completed a lab to lab integration within 7 days, fully tested and ready for ‘GoLive’. The lessons learned from this experience were that, if the company can control the integration, and keep the other parties on the hook, it can achieve a more simplified, process driven, and highly scalable integration.

The Network for Comprehensive Growth The network TrueMed IT has created allows itself to position as the primary interconnected platform for independent laboratories. It spans over 50 laboratories and over 8,000 physician offices. TrueMed’s product is in alignment with the future goals by giving the tools and functionality necessary for company’s laboratory clients to grow and compete. Each lab added to the network allows the growth of everyone. TrueMed’s infrastructure gives its clients the capability to reach their own goals, without ‘breaking the bank’ Testimonies of Satisfaction “The TrueMed IT team responds to our needs incredibly fast, they definitely care about their clients.” Laboratory Operations Manager in Texas “TrueMed IT gives us the agility and functionality to meet all of our needs” - Laboratory CEO in Washington

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