Project Entry & Management Program

Overview
Testream/CS’ Project Entry & Management program effectively meets the needs of two audiences: laboratory managers who have to keep track of projects sent to the lab and project submitters who have to describe the work they want the lab to perform. Browser-based, this program can be easily accessed at any PC with a network connection to the Testream/CS server. User ID and password protections control each individual’s access to the various features and capabilities of this program.

From the submitter’s perspective….
When a scientist or researcher needs some test lab work performed, they simply log on to the Testream/CS Project Entry & Management program. They will be prompted to enter in their user ID and password that verifies their privileges within this program.

A list of all of the projects they have sent to the various labs in the technical center will be displayed. The current status of each project – submitted, scheduled, in progress, completed, etc – will be shown. By double clicking on any project they can open that project to see the work requirements they had defined for it. By double clicking on ‘New’ they can open a new project.

A wide variety of information may be captured for each project. For example two open-ended text fields are available for the entry of research hypotheses, goals/objectives of the project, detailed notes and instructions to the lab on how the work should be performed, etc. The submitter can choose the lab to which the samples are to be sent, if more than one lab exists: the microbiology lab, the graphics lab, the finished products test lab, etc.

Ten user-definable data entry fields are also available to capture such project information as source of the samples, formulations used on the samples, cost centers to be charged, customer/product initiating the project, etc. Submitters can label their samples as they require, and indicate the tests to perform and the number of readings/measurements to take per sample.

If a researcher works in the same area, he/she can save project definitions for easy repeat use.

From lab management’s perspective…..
As projects are sent to the lab(s) for testing they will automatically update the Submitted Projects List. Each lab (if there is more than one) will have its own Submitted Projects List. Each list is viewable only by those with the appropriate password/user ID.

The lab manager can sort the list by any of its data elements: by submitter, by date submitted, by current status, by tester assigned, by due date, etc. By double clicking on a project they will open that project and view the information contained.

Lab management can add to each project’s definition: they can enter in the date the samples are received at the lab, they can translate the submitter’s sample IDs into the ID scheme used by the lab, they can add tester notes/instructions of their own.

From the test technician’s perspective….
All of the information on a project is available to the assigned test technician in that project’s Cover Page. Cover Pages are typically printed out and carried around the lab to guide and direct the test technician.

A single command – ‘Print Today’s Cover Pages’ – will produce the Cover Pages for all of the projects scheduled by lab management to begin on that day.

Upon a project’s completion…
When all of the tests to be performed on a project have been entered into the Testream/CS database the Project Entry & Management program will signal that the project is ‘complete’. An email notification of that fact can be sent to the lab manager. A variety of different actions may now take place:

• Unreleased data review & report creation. If the lab has set up their Testream/CS database to store all new test data as ‘unreleased’, only password-authorized lab management can QA the ‘unreleased’ data. If it passes management inspection, it can be changed to ‘released’ and made available to all others for report production. The final report may be sent to the submitter.

• Unreleased data review. As above, password authorized lab management only can review the project’s data and subsequently ‘release’ it. Once released, the Project Entry & Management program can be set up to automatically send an email to the submitter advising them of the availability of their data in the Testream/CS database. The submitter may then retrieve the data and produce whatever type of report/analysis he/she requires.

• Released data. If the lab has set up their Testream/CS database to store all new test data as ‘released’, the Project entry & Management program can automatically send an email to the lab manager and/or the submitter when a project is complete. Either party can then do report production.