Laboratory of the future: digital, secure, and sustainable

Laboratories exemplify modern progress and innovation. In them, technologies and products are created which have the potential to change our lives and our society. But how will laboratory work itself change? In this article, we take a look at the laboratory of the future: What might it look like, what topics will be central to it, and what challenges await?

What does “laboratory of the future” actually mean?

The laboratory of the future must fulfil many expectations: It should be flexible, digitally networked, and automated, relieve people of repetitive work, and at the same time, make work safer. In addition, it should be sustainable and capable of being used efficiently for many years. 

Achieving all of this may sound like a far-off goal, but we’re moving towards it astonishingly quickly. By comparison, we’ve long since been working in different ways than we did in the 2000s. Digital technologies including the computer which were once clumsy and not very user-friendly have developed enormously in just 25 years and are capable of high performance today.

When we're talking about the laboratory of the future, it could be reality in just five to ten years. But what, precisely, will distinguish it? Here's an overview of the most important topics which will shape laboratory work.

This is what the laboratory of the future will look like

Driven by digital innovation, the way laboratories are operated will change a great deal. This transformation promises not just greater efficiency and better quality, but also flexibility and easier work. At the same time, there are important questions about safety and sustainability.

Digitalisation and automation

The focal points of new laboratory technologies are digitalisation and automation. It’s sometimes referred to as Laboratory 4.0, a term borrowed from the concept of Industry 4.0. The integration of intelligent and networked systems is the key to this. These systems include, for example:

• LIMS: Laboratory information and management systems which control, manage, and document processes and data; enable exchange between several systems.
• IoT equipment: State-of-the-art laboratory equipment can be incorporated into the LIMS; it forms a cohesive system and exchanges information in real time. Ideally, it can also be controlled from outside the laboratory.
• Virtual and augmented reality: VR and AR systems make laboratory planning easier by visualising workstations, equipment, and flows in advance and thus making later laboratory work comprehensible. In addition, AR glasses can display important live data at the right time during an experiment.
• Robots: The use of mobile robots reduces repetitive and time-consuming tasks which do not require specialised human knowledge.
• Artificial intelligence: AI processes large quantities of data; it can recognise patterns in this data; make predictions; and propose optimisations for laboratory processes or experiments. 

The goal of all these technologies is the smartest laboratory possible, which reduces manual activities to a minimum, increases efficiency, and ensures that laboratory employees can concentrate on essential, value-creating activities. 

In addition, the reproducibility of experiments should be improved with state-of-the-art laboratory equipment – for previously, 70% of published experimental results could not be achieved again. That's set to change.

Standardisation

With increasing digitalisation, new standards must be created: Uniform flows which reduce the time required for processing and eliminate sources of error. Here are a few examples:

• Standardised test containers (e.g., for PCR tests) can be recorded much faster in the system, provided for analysis, and processed using automation. 
• Standardised interfaces make the exchange between different pieces of equipment much easier and prevent isolated solutions whose data have to be exported and re-imported manually.
• Uniform work processes make training early career employees and career changers and temporary workers much easier. Specialised personnel can therefore devote themselves to more complex tasks.

Modular design and flexibility

On the one hand, the laboratory of the future must be standardised; on the other, it must be as flexible as possible. Modular design can help here, something that’s already incorporated into the planning and design. 

The more versatile the workstations in the laboratory building are, the longer they can be used since they can be adapted individually to any work. Flexibility ensures that it will be possible to operate a laboratory even after many years – which makes an important contribution to sustainability in laboratories.

And the paths between individual workstations and machines and zones for recreation and mutual exchange require a sophisticated concept. This is how cooperation, creativity, and innovation can be encouraged to the greatest extent.

Safety

Another critical aspect in the laboratory of the future is the safety of specialised personnel. Many of the new technologies and automation solutions are designed to reduce accidents in the laboratory.

• For example, robots can analyse hazardous substances (such as pathogens) safely or work under extreme conditions such as very low/high temperatures.
• Intelligent control and monitoring systems such as Waldner's Lab Control Center (LCC) continuously record data such as temperature, CO₂ values, and other critical parameters. If a particular threshold value for the user or the samples is exceeded, alarms are triggered automatically.

Ergonomics and comfort

Another big goal for the laboratory of the future is the automation of repetitive tasks which must be performed not just but frequently also outside of normal working hours. Mobile machines and robots handle the night and weekend shifts, ensuring that employees have pleasant, regular working hours. 

In addition, robots can transport samples between various laboratory areas without making an employee take off protective gear and then put it back on. Walking between the individual areas is also eliminated. This saves valuable time which can be used for experiments.

The laboratory of tomorrow also offers ergonomic improvements: Mobile laboratory fixtures, individually adjustable workstations, height-adjustable laboratory tables, easy-to-clean surfaces, and more protect workers’ health.

Sustainability

When the discussion concerns future topics, the focus is also on sustainability in the laboratory. The laboratory of the future will be a green lab, which uses resource-conserving technologies and minimises the ecological footprint. 

Critical aspects in sustainably oriented laboratories are, among others:

• Comprehensive resource and waste management: e.g., optimisation of water consumption, equipment sharing, reusable consumables, proper disposal, and a sophisticated recycling system
• The improvement of energy efficiency: e.g., energy-saving laboratory equipment, optimised heating, cooling, and air conditioning systems, and the use of reusable energy sources
• The use of environmentally friendly materials: e.g., fewer toxic substances and biodegradable alternatives to chemicals
• Sustainable laboratory planning: e.g., modular construction for long-term use of the laboratory, robust laboratory equipment, flexibly designed workstations, etc.
• Preventative maintenance of laboratory equipment: e.g., with continuous monitoring to prevent downtimes and maintain the long service life of equipment
• Social sustainability: e.g., measures for fair, pleasant working conditions, further training possibilities, and improvement of the work-life balance

Thanks to many measures in these areas, modern laboratories contribute to encouraging ecological as well as economic and social sustainability.

Challenges in the laboratory of the future

From efficiency to sustainability, the laboratory of the future promises many improvements. So that this can become reality, however, there are some big challenges which must be faced.

Cost pressure and market adaptation

Despite the benefits of automation, cost pressure remains a great challenge. Laboratories have to keep reinventing themselves in order to keep pace with increasing requirements with regard to quality, speed, and efficiency. Sophisticated planning and process optimisation are crucial here. 

Lack of skilled workers

As already mentioned, the sector is also struggling with a lack of qualified workers. Laboratory operators must find innovative approaches to acquire and retain skilled workers. Making work easier with robots and standardised process will play a large role here. 

But this alone will not be enough: Interesting further training opportunities and flexible working hours are also necessary to make the laboratory specialist profession more attractive. Even home offices and remote work can be implemented to a certain extent in many cases. This way, the sector can attract and retain talented young people.

Networking

A central problem is still the compatibility between various laboratory systems. Standardised interfaces are currently still rare and in their infancy. There is often also a lack of sufficient infrastructure for fast, stable data transmission.

Only once all parts of the laboratory are linked to one another, communicate in real time, and can be operated via a single, intuitive user interface will we have arrived at the laboratory of the future. 

Digital know-how

Tomorrow’s laboratory also requires the expansion of skills. Digital expertise is decisive for exploiting the full potential of the new technologies. Such expertise includes, for example:

• An understanding of data analysis and management
• The handling of digital tools such as LIMS and AI systems
• An awareness of data security
• The readiness to analyse workflows on an ongoing basis and change them

In addition to workshops and seminars, the exchange between young and experienced personnel is helpful: New ways of working which will make the laboratory of the future efficient and comfortable for everyone are derived from many years of collective experience, new knowledge, and joint creativity.

Furthermore, schools and universities are required to stay up to date at all times: With practical instruction as well as modular trainings and courses of study, young laboratory workers will be prepared perfectly for their later profession.

The laboratory of the future – an interdisciplinary project

In conclusion, here’s an important thought: The laboratory of the future will work thanks not only to state-of-the-art technologies and the right planning. Just as important is improved cooperation across various disciplines.

In the future, researchers and scientists, e.g., in biology, medicine, chemistry, and the technical sectors, as well as IT specialists, developers, and data analysts, will work together on projects and learn from one another. This combination of technological innovation and a collective approach to work is critical for facing the challenges of modern science and research.