Westbrook, Maine (June 22, 2015) – Artel, the leader in liquid handling quality assurance, has announced the winners of the company’s 2015 Pipetting Challenge, which took place in conjunction with the Medical Laboratory Professionals Week (Lab
Week). 40 teams, made up of more than 350 individual participants,
entered the competition, which was created to test pipetting proficiency
and help lab professionals improve their skills while competing for
medals and prizes. A promotional poster for Lab Week 2015 read, “Not
all heroes wear capes, some wear lab coats,” and we recognize that
accurate pipetting is one of the skills that makes them heroes,”
explained Kirby Pilcher, President of Artel. “Our competition is a fun
way for these laboratorians to keep their skills honed. We congratulate
all the contestants who took part in this popular, team-building event.”
Using the Artel PCS® Pipette Calibration System and Artel’s 10 Tips poster
demonstrating proper pipetting technique, each contestant was asked to
deliver 20 μL five times and the variation in the volumes delivered was
measured. Contestants entered their pipetting performance results online
and submitted documented results to Artel for evaluation. Everyone who
competed received a Certificate of Participation and those who scored
within specific tolerance levels earned bronze, silver or gold medals.
Teams of 10 participants each vied for the top prizes. Teams from ARUP
Laboratories in Salt Lake City, UT, took first and third place with
scores of 0.09 % CV and 0.12 % CV, winning gift cards worth $300 and
$100 respectively. Haematologic Technologies in Essex Junction, VT, came
in second with a score of 0.10 % CV, winning a gift card worth $200.
“We invite all employees to participate in the competition, not just
those who pipette regularly,” commented Barbara Bonke, continuing
education coordinator at ARUP Laboratories. “So you are seeing the
results from a mix of employees – technical testing departments, client
services personnel, finance, human resources and specimen processing.
For some of them this might have been their first time experience at
pipetting… We’re very proud of our results.”
Doug Knaphus, laboratory manager in the biotechnology department at
Salt Lake Community College, uses the Artel PCS as a training tool and
commented, “Our students were really happy to participate again this
year. It is our sixth year of entering an all-student team into this competition. We are always pleased with how well they do.”
Medical Laboratory Professionals Week, scheduled annually, highlights
the importance of clinical laboratory competency and celebrates the
professionals involved in this critical science. “Every day, lab heroes
are at work helping to deliver quality results that lead us to healthier
lives,” said Pilcher.
About Artel
Laboratories worldwide depend upon Artel technology and expertise to
standardize and optimize their liquid handling instruments and
processes, and to give them total confidence in their results. Since
1982, Artel has been solving liquid handling quality, productivity and
compliance challenges in pharmaceutical and biotechnology research,
regulatory bodies, academia, clinical diagnostics, forensics, public
health, agbio, food quality and safety and environmental testing.
Artel provides quality assurance systems and a broad and fully
customizable range of support, training and consultation services for
laboratories using automated liquid handling instrumentation and manual
pipettes. For more information visit www.artel-usa.com.