Katie De Santis is the Purchasing Officer for Aragen Bioscience, Inc.: a contract research organization committed to advancing human health. On a typical day, she places 20 or more orders for nine departments. Katie’s daily routine poses several challenges, to which she was seeking efficient solutions.
Until Katie implemented Quartzy, she relied upon traditional methods—including Excel spreadsheets and memory—to track her activities. Lab members made various requests via different mechanisms, such as stopping by Katie’s office, shooting off emails, or even faxing their wishes. Of course, as the laboratory staff members are very busy, these requests often omitted information, which might result in delays or other errors.
In February, 2016, Katie’s friend who worked for a biotech in the QB3 incubator recommended she try Quartzy. Katie had been researching ordering systems for some time, but most seemed expensive and complicated. The day she heard about Quartzy, she created an account and began to evaluate it. Shortly after, convinced it would be of tremendous help, Katie pitched Quartzy to her supervisors as their primary lab management tool. Quartzy is online, so Katie and her supervisors could easily access it from different locations, and at any time. The layout was easy for the lab to use, and allowed researchers to follow the ordering process, which meant they could more efficiently plan and execute their experiments without worrying if a certain reagent was in stock, ordered, or back-ordered.
Once her supervisors approved Quartzy, Katie optimized her account to handle the unique needs within each department at Aragen. She set up separate lab groups for each department, and invited all the lab members to their respective groups, introducing one department at a time to Quartzy.
After a few months on Quartzy, Katie now has a quickly accessible order history, making it easy for everyone in the lab to check the status of their orders. Quartzy plays an invaluable role in streamlining Katie’s ordering process and, consequently, Aragen’s as a whole, making the entire organization more efficient.
In addition to improving efficiency and communication, Quartzy has helped Aragen save thousands of dollars through its Effortless Quotes feature. Whenever someone places an order request, Quartzy searches for either the identical item or an equivalent product at a lower price. When Quartzy finds a favorable quote, Katie can accept the offer without ever having to worry about whether or not she’s getting a good price.
Quartzy’s easy-to-use platform and centralized order history have made it an essential tool for Katie, as well as her fellow scientists at Aragen.
To see how Quartzy can benefit your lab, email info@quartzy.com.
Quartzy is the world’s No. 1 lab management platform. We help scientists easily organize orders, manage inventory, and save money. We’re free and always will be. Visit Quartzy.com or reach out at info@quartzy.com.
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