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Lab equipment maintenance and temperature logs, without the clipboard
Quick answer
Catenix keeps every log an inspector asks for against the instrument it belongs to: service plans and service visits, cleaning schedules and cleaning records, downtime with the contingency used, fridge and room temperatures with excursions, device moves and custody, firmware versions and in-use reagent expiry. Because the same system receives the analyser's results and QC, a log entry can be checked against what the instrument actually did.
Most labs still keep maintenance and temperature records on paper sheets taped to the bench or in a spreadsheet nobody owns. They are complete until the week someone is on leave, and they are hard to search when an inspector asks what happened to a fridge in March.
This page covers the routine records ISO 15189, CLIA and CQC inspections expect for laboratory and point-of-care equipment, and how Catenix keeps them.
| What | How Catenix handles it |
|---|---|
| Service and preventive maintenance | Service plan per instrument with interval, provider and contract; each visit logged with engineer, parts, outcome and next due date |
| Back in service | Each service record notes whether QC was run and accepted afterwards |
| Cleaning | Schedule per model or device, with method and cleaning agent; each clean logged with who did it |
| Downtime | Start, end, reason, impact and the contingency used (backup analyser or send-away) |
| Temperature | Sensors per fridge or room with limits and check frequency; out-of-range readings open an excursion |
| Excursions | Acknowledged with a reason, affected lots recorded, linked to a non-conformance and escalated if left open |
| Moves and custody | Every move between sites or wards, who holds the device, and loan return dates |
| Firmware and reagents | Target and minimum firmware per model; in-use reagent expiry from the opening date and stability |
Why connected logs beat paper
A paper log says a service happened. Catenix can show that QC passed on that instrument afterwards, because the QC results arrive from the analyser in the same system. A downtime entry sits next to the results that were not produced, and a temperature excursion sits next to the reagent lots that were in that fridge.
From an excursion to a closed action
When a reading falls outside its limits, an excursion opens. Someone acknowledges it with a reason and records the affected lots and impact. It can raise a non-conformance, which runs through corrective and preventive action (CAPA) to closure. See quality management.
Part of the same record as QC and competency
Maintenance, temperature, QC with Westgard rules, operator competency and lot traceability are one system, so an inspection pack is one export rather than five folders. See device operations and lot traceability.
Questions people ask
What is the best software to replace paper lab maintenance logs?
Look for logs kept per instrument with due dates, sign-off by named staff, an audit trail and exports for inspection. Catenix does this and also links each log to the instrument's results and QC.
Can it record fridge temperatures?
Readings can be entered one at a time or in batches, with who recorded them. Out-of-range readings open an excursion automatically.
Does it record what happened during instrument downtime?
Yes. Each downtime record holds the reason, impact and the contingency used, such as a backup analyser or sending samples away.
Is it only for point-of-care devices?
No. The same logs work for benchtop analysers, fridges and rooms in a core or clinic lab.
Related: Device operations · NCs, CAPA and audits · Catenix vs Lab Logs · Lab compliance
Product and company names are trademarks of their owners and are used for identification only. Catenix moves, stores and displays results with traceability; it does not interpret results or give clinical advice. Reviewed October 2026.
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