Columbia University Alumni Launch An Online Reagent Inventory Management System For Life Scientists.

Online, October 26, 2009 (Newswire.com) - Following piloting trials Quartzy (www.quartzy.com), a company founded by two Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons alumni, has been launched. Quartzy is a free online inventory management tool for life scientists. Quartzy offers a new way to streamline the acquisition and cataloging of reagents and other lab supplies that scientists need to conduct experiments. "I've been responsible for managing lab inventories for almost 15 years and Quartzy is the best solution I have seen," said Sylvia Johnson, a Laboratory Manager at Washington University School of Medicine, who was one of Quartzy's early members.

While primarily developed to facilitate inventory management Quartzy also makes it easy to send orders to laboratory managers, who can either accept or deny these requests. The orders' progress can be followed on-line by the scientists. Since each request contains all the information about a reagent, purchasing is then made easily and accurately. "The amount of time Quartzy saves us is invaluable and has enabled our work to progress at a much- appreciated faster pace," said Mariela Flambury, a Laboratory Manager at the Motor Neuron Center, Columbia University.

Quartzy is also useful when scientists change laboratories. On their departure, they can use Quartzy's 'Migrate' feature to transfer reagents or protocols to others picking up their projects. "It improves continuity," said Dr. Meena George, one of the scientists who developed Quartzy.

Quartzy also provides a novel platform to leave and view ratings and comments on reagents left by other scientists. Quartzy's rating system increases the reliability of purchases. Dr. Regelmann said, "The reagents that work well can be recorded on Quartzy, and future purchases at different labs can be informed by this knowledge."

Quartzy was developed by Dr. Regelmann and Dr. Meena George who met while conducting research at Columbia. By January 2009 they launched the initial release of the site software: so far hundreds of scientists have signed up and cataloged tens of thousands of reagents. "We've got people from all over." Dr. Regelmann said.

Quartzy is open and free to use by all academic scientists, though the site is more tailored to those conducting basic life science research. Also, Dr. Regelmann notes that while in the future, Quartzy may develop additional premium functionality for which they may charge a fee, all features currently available will always be free to users. A video on the site explains how to use the site. Once registered, scientists upload their inventories. Since most scientists already use Excel, Quartzy makes this process of uploading from Excel straightforward using a unique Excel import mechanism. The scientist then invites other laboratory workers to become part of his or her network.
Apart from sharing reagents, Quartzy allows LabMates to share protocols. Scientists can add comments and make suggestions on-line, and the protocol can be revised accordingly, printed, and taken right to the bench. Quartzy can also be used to administer and schedule time on shared facilities such as microscopes, FACS machines, or culture hoods.

Having fine-tuned the site, Quartzy is now ready for a wider release. "Now that we know users are happy with the site, we are actively publicizing how Quartzy improves life in the lab." Dr. Regelmann says.