Multi-Site LIMS Deployment: Unifying a National Laboratory Network
How a laboratory network standardized operations across 7 sites in 14 months, achieving 59% cost reduction and real-time visibility across all locations.
Background
Growth Through Acquisition
Precision Diagnostics Network (PDN) — we're using an alias for confidentiality — grew from a single toxicology laboratory in 2015 to a network of seven facilities across five states by 2024. Most of that growth came through acquisitions.
Each acquisition brought new capabilities: pain management testing, workplace drug screening, clinical chemistry, molecular diagnostics. Each also brought its own LIMS, workflows, and ways of doing things.
The Fragmentation Problem
- Three sites ran LabWare, two had custom-built systems, one used STARLIMS, one was on a 1990s-era legacy platform
- No unified view — the CEO couldn't get a single report showing company-wide performance
- $3.2 million annually in fragmented LIMS costs
Our Approach
Standardize, Then Implement
A phased rollout designed to reduce risk and build momentum across every site.
Governance and Standards (Months 1-2)
Established steering committee, common definitions, master test menu with 2,400 tests, and workflow templates.
Platform Selection and Core Configuration (Months 3-5)
Selected cloud-native LIMS with multi-site support. Core configuration created the shared foundation.
Pilot Site (Months 6-8)
Deployed to smallest 15-person site. Every lesson fed back into the plan for remaining sites.
Regional Rollout (Months 9-14)
Deployed to remaining six sites in three waves, following a repeatable 10-week playbook per site.
Results
The Results
Measurable improvements across every key operational metric.
| Metric | Before | After | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toxicology panel TAT | 42 hours | 26 hours | -38% |
| Clinical chemistry TAT | 18 hours | 11 hours | -39% |
| Annual LIMS costs | $3.2M | $1.3M | -59% |
"I used to spend two days a month compiling reports from seven sites. Now I look at a dashboard for five minutes."
— CEO, PDN