Working in a medical laboratory can be an extremely stressful job, a fact that even those outside of the profession would likely agree with. Aside from working with generally hazardous material, few people understand the external factors that lead to trouble in labs around the world. One of the greatest issues laboratory technicians encounter is the limited budget they are forced to work with.

With the cost of medicines and medical procedures increasing over time, trying to stick to a strict budget can be difficult. Thankfully, it is possible to balance those pesky numbers without fighting for an increase in finances! Below is a list of helpful, effective methods of saving money in the lab.

Repair Before Replace
One of the largest money sink in any laboratory’s budget is the collection of expensive equipment they need. Unfortunately, these machines can get old and eventually break down, which leads to spending even more money to replace it. However, lab equipment repair can cost a fraction of buying entirely new pieces of equipment.

Know Your Costs
Be aware of and understand the cost of each, or at least the most common, procedures that occur in your laboratory. This can be done by combining the costs of a single procedure across time, then dividing by the number of times it happened. When you have a price per occurrence, you can better manage your overall funds.

Order in Bulk
If the supplies you are ordering are frequently used and unlikely to go out of date ordering in bulk can decrease the cost of individual supplies by a significant amount. This can be done for products that expire too, as long as you make sure not to over-order.