What is Scientific Data Management System “SDMS” Software?
A Scientific Data Management System (SDMS) is a electronic document management software solution that allows researchers and scientists to collect, catalog, organize, retrieve, and store digital files and data generated from a lab more effectively and securely.
SDMS solutions are designed to integrate with and handle unstructured data from data systems like a Laboratory Information Management Systems “LIMS” and Electronic Lab Notebooks “ELN.” As such, researchers, scientists, analysts, and other lab personnel are able to store and search for lab data and insights, speed up workflows and approval processes, and streamline collaboration across their entire organization.
SDMS software is commonly used to help R&D organizations in industries where compliance and record-keeping are important, including (but not limited to):
- Pharmaceutical and biotechnology: drug discovery, clinical trials, and other research activities in the life sciences
- Academic and research institutions: research projects in universities, government labs, and other institutions
- Environmental and agricultural: environmental monitoring, agricultural research, and related activities
- Energy and utilities: energy exploration, production, and distribution activities
- Manufacturing and engineering: product design, prototyping, testing, and manufacturing processes
- Chemicals: analytical chemistry, quality control, and safety
How Does SDMS Differ From Other Scientific Data Systems?
SDMS systems are unique in that they act as a document management system that captures data generated from applications such as Laboratory Information Management Systems “LIMS” and Electronic Lab Notebooks “ELN” and then catalogs and archives the data in a compliant, often pre-defined manner.
While ELNs focus on capturing and managing data from research, LIMS focus on managing laboratory operations including sample tracking and inventory management. In contrast, SDMS manages scientific data generated in research labs, from capture to storage, retrieval, analysis, and reporting. Key features of SDMS solutions include:
- Collecting, storing, and managing various unstructured data formats
- Supporting efficienct data imports and exports
- Analyzing data and generating experiment and test reports
- Interoperability via the connection across all lab instruments, equipment, applications, and databases
- Integration between laboratory information management systems “LIMS” and electronic lab notebooks “ELN” systems
The Benefits of SDMS Platforms Include:
- Efficient Data Management: SDMS offer a centralized platform to store, organize, and retrieve scientific data. One feature, metadata tagging, is a key aspect of digital asset management and organization – helping internal and external teams easily find data and content by searching for key terms associated to files.
- Improved Collaboration: With SDMS, researchers can easily share and collaborate on scientific data, with full-text search capabilities, version control, and web-based accessibility, key features that help R&D teams increase productivity and efficiency.
- Compliance with Industry Standards: to ensure research and developmental outputs are in compliance with industry standards, such as FDA regulations and ISO audits, SDMS allow for audit trails, electronic signatures, and other compliance-related features.
- Data Security: SDMS platforms provide enhanced security features from version control to user permissions, critical features that protect scientific data from unauthorized access and ensures confidentiality and integrity of the data.
- Improved Workflow: to streamline workflows, SDMS platforms provide various tools for data processing, analysis, and reporting, such as easy-to-use query and search capabilities to variety file type support – saving labs significant time and increasing efficiency.
Overall, SDMS solutions are essential for any organization that generates and manages scientific data and can help improve research productivity, accuracy, and reproducibility. With an SDMS platform, researchers have a centralized and efficient way to manage and analyze scientific data while ensuring data integrity and regulatory compliance.
To learn more about Uncountable's SDMS and data management solutions, request your free demo, today!
