No laboratory monitoring program is complete without an effective cold storage temperature monitoring system. At a minimum, this means getting the right tools in place to not only monitor refrigerator, freezer, and environmental (or ambient) temperatures, but to enable wireless or remote temperature monitoring via cell phone or other portable, connected devices.
What are the key factors in a successful cold storage monitoring system? What are the benefits? Keep reading for the answers to these and other questions about cold storage monitoring and the best practices you need to know.
The primary difference between cold storage and freezer storage is based on temperature thresholds. For example, in a resource discussing “cold chain” recommendations for vaccine storage, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) outlines the following requirements:
In a laboratory, hospital, or similar setting, cold chain monitoring refers to a specific set of best practices for maintaining required temperatures. This is to ensure that samples and related materials are not compromised. Put another way, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) defines a cold chain as “a series of climate-controlled transport and storage facilities that ensure the viability of testing reagents, medicines, vaccines, and blood products from factory to patient.”
The main difference between cold storage and cold chain monitoring is that “cold storage” refers to a single location or environment, while “cold chain monitoring” refers to the full chain of locations a specific material might be moved through. For example, a cold chain for certain biomaterials could include a hospital refrigerator temperature monitoring system as well as laboratory freezer temperature monitoring.
Cold chain monitoring is important because it enables laboratory personnel to keep an eye on cold storage temperatures at each point in the chain in real-time. This is crucial whenever temperature-sensitive materials are being stored or transported.
One of the most significant advantages of modern cold storage monitoring solutions is their alerting capabilities. Within a lab setting, for example, there are at least two types of critical alerts:
Cold storage temperature monitoring requires specific tools and technologies at each location within the cold chain, usually making use of at least one of the following:
Wireless and IoT cold storage monitoring solutions provide a wide range of benefits that empower laboratory personnel to know that their valuable materials are being properly maintained. Elemental Machines provides modern, intuitive tools for cold storage monitoring that include, among other benefits:
Learn more about our platform today, or reach out to schedule a demo.