Moving laboratory equipment: decontamination, cold chain, requalification and the sequence that keeps lab equipment moving from losing samples

The sequence that works

1. Inventory and triage before anything moves. A move is the best opportunity a laboratory ever gets to dispose of equipment it does not use and chemicals it cannot identify. Do that first, because paying to move and reinstall an instrument nobody uses is pure waste, and unknown chemicals are far harder to dispose of at the other end.
2. Decontamination is a document as well as a process. Every instrument needs decontaminating and a signed certificate stating what it was exposed to and how it was treated. Movers and service engineers are entitled to refuse equipment without one, and rightly, so this is on the critical path rather than beside it.
3. Plan the cold chain separately and first. Freezer contents are usually the most valuable and least replaceable thing in the building. Decide whether samples move in dry ice, in a validated shipper or in a powered vehicle, who accompanies them, and what the contingency is. Never let cold storage be part of the general move plan.
4. Disconnect and reconnect in the right order. Gas, water, vacuum, extract and specialist services need qualified disconnection and reconnection, and some instruments need manufacturer involvement to be moved without voiding support. Establish which ones early, because their engineer availability will set your dates.
5. Requalify before you trust anything. Balances, centrifuges, incubators, fume hoods and anything calibrated need checking, and often recalibrating, in the new location. A fume hood in particular is only proven in the room it now sits in, so containment testing is part of the move.

Specialist movers and what to ask them

Laboratory relocation specialists understand decontamination paperwork, sensitive instrument handling and service coordination in a way general movers do not. Ask for references from comparable moves, what insurance covers, and how they handle an instrument damaged in transit.

Agree who is responsible for disconnection and reconnection of services, since the gap between mover and service engineer is where instruments sit unusable for weeks.

Downtime and sequencing the work

Decide which capabilities must be available first at the new site and move in that order, rather than by room. Laboratories that move by room frequently find they have everything except one instrument that everything depends on.

Plan for a period where neither site is fully working, and tell everyone what it is. A realistic downtime estimate is far better received in advance than an optimistic one revised afterwards.

Common questions

What is the first step in moving laboratory equipment?

Inventory and triage. Dispose of unused equipment and unidentifiable chemicals before the move rather than paying to relocate them, and start decontamination early because it sits on the critical path.

Do instruments need a decontamination certificate?

Yes. Movers and service engineers are entitled to refuse equipment without a signed statement of what it was exposed to and how it was treated, and most will.

How should frozen samples be moved?

As a separate plan made first, using dry ice, validated shippers or powered transport with somebody accompanying them and a written contingency. Freezer contents are usually the least replaceable thing in the building.

Does equipment need recalibrating after a move?

Balances, centrifuges, incubators and anything calibrated should be checked and usually recalibrated in the new location, and fume hoods must be containment tested in the room they now occupy.

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