Speaker
Description
The management of a wide range of laboratory equipment poses a challenge for Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), especially in support of its academic and research activities. Often, inadequate conventional techniques result in significant maintenance expenses and extended equipment downtime. By means of real-time monitoring and digital lifecycle records, this study aims to develop a comprehensive lab equipment monitoring and management system at UiTM, thereby improving operational efficiency, augmenting preventive maintenance, and enabling optimal asset utilization. To evaluate current management practices and the impact of the new system, the study gathered data from the College of Engineering through questionnaires. The system's implementation has simplified lab operations, reduced equipment downtime, and improved the preventive maintenance schedule. The centralized platform has encouraged operational transparency with comprehensive insights into equipment usage and maintenance needs. This paper demonstrates the major advantages of digital lifecycle records and real-time monitoring systems in laboratory management. The system's capacity to enhance operational efficiency and asset management at UiTM can serve as a model for other institutions. Building on this achievement, UiTM intends to develop and implement a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) across the university to improve data management, consolidate and automate lab operations, track samples, enable regulatory compliance, and support research collaboration. Initial systems developed include the E-PPM (Electronic Preventive Maintenance Notification System) and a booking system. Keywords: Laboratory Management, Equipment Monitoring, Preventive Maintenance, Asset Management
