Monday, June 10, 2013

Industrial Furniture That Works The Way You Do


At the end of the day, its not about the furniture in the lab, its about the work that you do.  What criteria do you use to evaluate a good piece of laboratory furniture from one that is not up to standard?  We think its pretty simple.  Furniture that doesn't give you any problems, and is durable enough to stand up to the rigors of consistent long-term use is the only acceptable outcome for Melete.  We hope you never notice our furniture.  That's how we measure success.

Alpha System Carts: Flexible Furniture Solutions For Your Changing Needs


We understand that valuable work is done outside the laboratory.  The scope and nature of this work is often largely dependent on the work being done in the lab and is subject to change on a project by project basis.  Alpha System Carts offer a modular furniture solution for your office that has the flexibility to meet your needs.  Alpha System Carts are also a perfect solution for smaller research centers and independent researchers who need to enhanced functionality from each individual piece. Alpha System Carts are available in a variety of styles, configurations, and material constructions.

Sunday, June 9, 2013

Equipping A World Class Laboratory


What makes a laboratory world class?  Can the structure of the facility itself have a hand in driving scientific innovation?  We'd love to hear your comments below.

Giving Students The Tools To Succeed In The Lab


Ambitious students will happily spend all day (and often all night) in the lab.  Once their thirst for knowledge is tapped, it is usually unquenchable.  It is this drive of the research scientist to know the unknowable that has made possible many of the great scientific discoveries of our times.  Like the tradesman needs his shovel. and the programmer needs his computer, so too does the young scientist need the proper tools to make the most of their intellectual curiosity.  In the lab, the proper tools begin with having a top quality workstation.  Once you have selected the appropriate workstation material, size, and design, you must stock that workstation to meet not only the needs of the student today, but anticipate the students needs in the future.  Melete workstations are flexible and adaptable to students needs based on the project.  You should never have to sacrifice quality, and with Melete, your school or university can count on workstations equipped to meet the needs of a twenty first century lab.  


Designing Work Surfaces For Cancer Research



The first step in selecting an appropriate work surface for a cancer research center is to decide among available work surface materials.  The primary materials used in laboratory work surface construction are laminate, wood, solid surfacing, or smooth stone, including but not limited to granite.  The standard for the laboratory industry is some kind of proprietary composite based on a laminate.  Every vendor claims to have their own secret surface that is measurably better than the competition.  What do you think is the best work surface material on the market today?  What characteristics are you looking for in selecting a work surface?

3 Tips for Selecting Laboratory Furniture for a Globally Competitive Research Center


High quality laboratory furniture is the among the most significant investments a research center makes, outside of the direct costs of research.  It is not a decision that is undertaken without multiple levels of formal corporate review and careful financial consideration.  With so much riding on the investment decision, we have put together a list of best practices to help guide your decision making.

1.  Choose Quality over Quantity and Price


When making a large capital investment, its tempting to save a buck here or there.  This can be ill advised.  Remember that this investment in laboratory furniture is for the long term, and a little money saved up front could mean a compromise in quality and potential headaches down the road.

2.  Identify Exactly the Pieces You Will Need


Conduct a thorough inventory audit of your current supplies.  Monitor the workflow around your research center.  Take note of what areas get the most use.  Often clients notice that their current space is either improperly designed for their needs, or is in some other way inadequate.  Eliminating equipment you don't need and replacing it with only what you do can be a source of significant savings.

3.  Shop and Compare


There are multiple vendors for Research Center laboratory furniture.  JUst as if you were buying a car, take your time and shop around.  You may uncover a vendor you had not previously considered by conducting a thorough investigation.

Proper Fume Hoods Vitally Important to Safe Medical Research


Perhaps the most important investment you will make in constructing your laboratory is your choice of fume hood.  From a safety perspective the fume hood is the first line of defense a researcher has against noxious fumes.  When selecting a fume hood, look for one that has been tested to ASHRAE standards. A fume hood should be built with rigid frame construction, with low vibration and sound levels.  In addition, the inclusion of Radius corner posts and air foils plus easy operator control of interior baffle settings assure a high level of comfort, safety and efficiency.  What are some of the key factors that you look for when comparing fume hoods?  

Designing a Workstation for the Modern Research Center


The modern research center workstation should be as advanced in its construction and design as the research activity that is conducted on its work surfaces.  Choosing the appropriate workstation for the job is an important task allowing research to reach its full potential.  What do you look for when evaluating a workstation? We'd love to hear your thoughts.

Outfitting Government Agencies with State of the Art Industrial Furniture Solutions

You know that winning government contracts can be a financial windfall for your industrial furniture manufacturing and marketing organization.  Government agencies often have large needs and large budgets allocated to filling them.  The challenge is not identifying qualified prospects.  I am sure you can make a list of government agencies that number in the thousands, and they all need furniture.  The problems lie in negotiating sealed bid processes that are often as mysterious as the alphabet soup of organizations that submit the call for submissions.



Government agencies also want nothing but the best quality products, yet select vendors based on a reverse auction method?  Does justifying expenditure solely on price automatically limit the top rated vendors from having a chance to compete?  It shouldn't.  This is where the window of opportunity lies for innovative organizations to showcase their unique expertise by highlighting value added solutions such as business process re-engineering and patented proprietary technology.  Organizations that continually invest in research and development are more likely to spot and eliminate inefficiencies that can lead to millions of dollars in annual savings through waste reduction.  These savings can then be passed on to customers in the form of lower prices.  The old days of your business living good off bloated government contracts are over.  You must provide the most state of the art products at the lowest possible price.  Is your business up for the challenge?


It better be, or else your days of doing industrial furniture business with government agencies are numbered.

Serving The Industrial Furniture Needs of Modern Government Agencies



Government Agencies have very specific needs when it comes to fulfilling their contracts according to prescribed institutional standards.  Does your industrial furniture manufacturing organization have complete knowledge of the hurdles that may stand in the way of your earning a major new piece of government business?  Wouldn't it be a smart investment of your time and organizational resources to set up a system that lessens the bureaucratic pain for your customers?  A common goal of many sales departments across industries is to make it easy for your clients to do business with you.  When dealing specifically with government agencies, one way to build your reputation is to extend the arms of your organization to undertake tasks that your client would typically be doing themselves.  Does this require more work?  Unequivocally the answer is yes, but a strategic investment in knowledge of your clients operational processes, and identifying where projects get bogged down and how you can streamline workflow, is likely to pay dividends the form of new business winnings.