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  • 1.  Transitioning Frozen Vial Storage to Matrix Racks

    Posted 02-02-2024 14:26

    Hi all.

     

    Wondering if anyone has gone through the process of transitioning their frozen storage (-80˚C) to 96-place matrix racks from other tube types (e.g., individual 1.5mL snapcap or screwcap tubes). If so, any advice regarding things to consider in advance, lessons learned along the way, or general advice would be appreciated.

     

    Thanks in advance,

     

    Cortney Pylant, MSc / QBRS (ASCP)

    Research Specialist/Laboratory Manager

    Biospecimen Processing Facility

    Gillings Global School of Public Health

    University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill

    919-966-7738

     



  • 2.  RE: Transitioning Frozen Vial Storage to Matrix Racks

    Posted 02-05-2024 16:07

    Hi Cortney,

    We recently transitioned a bunch of reagents to matrix tubes so that we could build a better inventory system. We probably have a different use-case than most, since these are reagent tubes that are frequently accessed rather than a pure long-term storage system. Here are the things that I didn't expect:

    • Grabbing a single tube is harder than expected, plan to use a tool like forceps
    • Opening tubes is more labor-intensive than flip-caps, consider an opening tool
    • There are racks you can use to hold caps in case you don't want to discard the cap every time you open them. The opening tool can generally drop the caps onto the cap-holder rack
    • If you plan to use the barcodes for anything other than reading on a plate reader, consider tubes with a duplicate 1d barcode

    Overall, it has been worth it though. Our inventory tracking and automation integration improved dramatically.

    Best,
    Adam



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    Adam Navis
    Taconic Biosciences
    Rensselaer NY
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