Lab automation toolbox

Templates, selection criteria, and evaluation checklists to design and run focused automation pilots that save time, reduce manual error, and produce clear go/no-go evidence.

Why this toolbox matters

Many laboratories consider automation to increase throughput or reduce variability, but pilots often fail because they are under‑scoped, lack clear success metrics, or aren’t integrated with existing workflows and data systems. This toolbox helps you turn automation interest into disciplined pilots that answer the right questions—Can this task be automated reliably? How much time or error does it remove? What will we need to integrate and support it?

What you will understand and accomplish

Using these materials you will:

• Define a clear pilot scope and success criteria (time savings, error reduction, reproducibility, maintainability).
• Compare vendors and technologies using structured selection checklists.
• Plan and run a controlled pilot with data capture for objective evaluation.
• Decide whether to scale, iterate, or retire the automation based on evidence.

Who benefits

Practical for laboratory managers, research team leads, instrument engineers, operations managers, and R&D groups in academic, clinical, biotech, and industrial settings. Examples: a university lab testing an automated liquid handler to reduce pipetting variability; a clinical lab piloting a barcode-driven sample sorter to speed intake; an R&D group validating an automated assay step to free technicians for analysis.

What’s included

This toolbox collects the core resources you need to scope and evaluate a pilot: the Lab automation pilot planning checklist, a Lab automation toolbox guide, an Automation vendor & technology evaluation checklist, and a Lab automation pilot plan & evaluation checklist. Each item is written to be actionable and adaptable to your local environment.

How to use it in practice

Start by running the pilot planning checklist with stakeholders—scientists, technicians, IT/data, procurement, and quality. Use the vendor evaluation checklist when shortlisting solutions. During the pilot, capture outcomes against the plan (time per run, failure modes, data handoffs, maintenance effort) so your post‑pilot decision is evidence‑based. If you operate on the Hunger Engine platform, consider converting static checklists into interactive forms to save responses and track pilot metrics over time.