OnLIMS is a LIMS that has run mining, smelter, terminal and environmental laboratories in production since 1989, and ICP LIMS integration — ICP-OES and ICP-MS — is one of its standard instrument interfaces. Instead of an analyst retyping a sequence into the instrument software and later retyping fifty elements per sample back out of it, OnLIMS exchanges files with the instrument software directly.
Bidirectional operation
Where the instrument software accepts it — and ICP software generally does — the integration runs in both directions:
- Sequence out OnLIMS writes a text file with the sample IDs of the run and, because ICP methods need them, the sample weights. The instrument software reads that file to build its sequence — nobody retypes IDs at the instrument keyboard.
- Results back When the run finishes, OnLIMS captures the instrument's output file through its configurable file parsers — watched folders handling CSV, TXT, XML and proprietary formats.
- Mapped to position Every result lands automatically on its OnWSH worksheet position, in a template that lays out samples with their standards, blanks and duplicates in run sequence.
Brands in service
ICP-OES and ICP-MS instruments from Agilent, Shimadzu, Thermo, PerkinElmer and Spectro are integrated in production laboratories today. New instruments are added by configuration, not by recompiling the system; where no driver exists yet, one is written as part of the project.
QA/QC on ICP data as it lands
A multi-element run multiplies the cost of a missed control failure: one drifted CRM can compromise fifty elements across a whole rack. OnQC evaluates CRMs, blanks and duplicates in real time as ICP results arrive, using Shewhart, X-Control, CUSUM and Thompson-Howarth control charts. A 2SD deviation raises a warning; a 3SD failure blocks sign-off until it is resolved. Every subsequent edit is recorded field by field — old value, new value, user, timestamp — and results lock on publish, moving through the Pending, Ready, Approved and Published cycle under supervisor control.
Frequently asked questions
Which ICP instruments does OnLIMS integrate with?
ICP-OES and ICP-MS. Brands in service include Agilent, Shimadzu, Thermo, PerkinElmer and Spectro. New instruments are added by configuration, not by recompiling the system; where no driver exists yet, one is written as part of the project.
How does bidirectional ICP integration work?
Where the instrument software accepts it, OnLIMS writes a text file with the sample IDs of the run and, because ICP methods need them, the sample weights. The instrument software reads that file to build its sequence; when the run finishes, OnLIMS captures the instrument's output file and maps every result automatically onto its worksheet position.
What happens when an ICP standard fails QA/QC?
OnQC evaluates CRMs, blanks and duplicates as ICP results arrive, using Shewhart, X-Control, CUSUM and Thompson-Howarth charts. A 2SD deviation raises a warning; a 3SD failure blocks sign-off until the deviation is resolved and justified — so a drifted standard cannot ride through to the certificate.
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