Sample tracking software answers one question, where is this sample right now, and answers it from a record rather than a walk to the freezer. Sample tracking is the practice of keeping that record current: every move logged with a position, a time and a person. Lab sample tracking in a small lab starts as a spreadsheet with a freezer column; lab sample tracking software and a lab sample tracking system are the same spreadsheet with the position as a structured field, the state beside it and the custody chain behind it. This page is about what that record must keep, and the free sample storage sheet on this site works the storage the tracked positions sit in from the lab's own numbers with no account.
Position as a structured field
Freezer, rack, box, position: four fields, not a text note, so the free positions can be counted and the next sample can be placed. The sample storage sheet on this site works the count: 8,328 free vial positions of 23,328 on the worked example, and nine months until they are gone at 900 a month.
State and custody with the position
A sample tracking system that knows the position but not the state sends the reviewer to the freezer for a sample still on the bench. Position, state, time and person on every move is the record; a barcode on the vial and a scanner at the freezer door is how a small lab keeps it current without typing.
Lab sample tracking software for a small lab
One screen that lists every sample with its position and state, a scan that moves it, and an export when a client asks for the custody chain. Limslane Pro keeps that record at one flat price; the sheets on this site work the storage figures either way.
Questions people ask about sample tracking software
What is sample tracking software?
A record of every sample's position, state, time and person on every move, so where it is now is a lookup. The free storage sheet works the positions it sits in.
What does a lab sample tracking system need?
Freezer, rack, box and position as fields, the state and the custody chain beside them, and a scan at the freezer door to keep it current.
How many free positions do I have?
Capacity less stored: 8,328 of 23,328 on the worked example, from six figures on the free sample storage sheet.