Equipment records for modular analytical systems

The dominant technology in the BAS analytical chemistry laboratory is high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Logbooks have been too cumbersome and unworkable for recording maintenance and repair of HPLC systems. Liquid chromatographs can have 10 or more components that can all move independently of one another as systems are reconfigured for different types of analyses. One solution to the problem of keeping accurate, easily retrievable records of equipment maintenance and repair is to use a card to record the information and a database to catalog the cards. The card contains all of the required information for routine or nonroutine maintenance and for remedial action and/or repair. The document is controlled by providing each card with a unique number and maintaining a duplicate in a bound book. The cards are filed by equipment ID number, producing an historical record of the maintenance and repair of a piece of equipment. The information on each card is also summarized in a database. Using the database, regular schedules of routine maintenance can be produced, the inclusion of all cards can be verified, and the records of a particular piece of equipment can be displayed.