Determining the ROI of Lab Automation

 

If you’re running a laboratory, you’ve likely considered implementing lab automation equipment. Automation is increasingly common, and it is certainly appealing for many; keeping costs down and raising productivity is an enticing offer. If you’ve been considering automating your lab, then you may be wondering what your benefits or return on investment would be for all of that time and money. You need a mechanism to determine the return on investment in automating your lab. First, the question is, why buy lab automation equipment at all?

Why Automate?

Medical and research labs seek automation for cost savings, error reduction, and process improvements as demands for efficiency, patient and employee safety rise. Economic factors, regulatory constraints, and other obligations necessitate the greater efficiency and cost reduction that automation can give. To satisfy rising demands from all perspectives, the administration of medical and research laboratories requires efficiency in both its process and personnel. It seems inevitable that labs will be forced to automate at some point to keep up with these demands; given this fact, it’s important to know how to determine your ROI with this investment in lab automation equipment.

How Can I Check My ROI

Estimating the investment cost over the expected rate of return is a standard technique to analyze only the financial cost of technology investment. The “payback period” or ROI is the term used to describe this computation. When considering budgetary restrictions, the question becomes, “what is the value of the reduction in inefficient use of laboratory resources (such as people productivity) that would be obtained over time through technology and automation?” Determining the payback period is the essential step to deciding if it’s time to automate your lab or if it can be left for a time yet. Some laboratories have seen a nearly 9% reduction in cost per slide for H&E slide production. One case resulted in a 3.6 year payback period. That’s not such a long time to ensure that your lab is running safer and more efficiently from here on out with the automation equipment. Automation equipment is an investment that will pay for itself in a reasonably short period and then continue to bring value to your company. A flexible robotic arm can really improve your operations in a hurry.

Source: https://retisoft.com/determining-the-roi-of-lab-automation/

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