Scientific Services has recently been represented at the Northumbrian Water Innovation Festival in a lab-based Sprint entitled 'Trolley Dash'.
The concept of a Sprint is simple but effective - within the span of a few days, teams are challenged to brainstorm, develop, and present solutions to specific problems. It’s a fast-paced environment that requires agility, creativity, and collaboration in order to produce results.
Our sprint began with an introductory session where we briefed the delegates on the challenge which for us had started many weeks ago following a H&S visit from CEO Heidi Mottram to the Howdon Lab where she had noted the use of trolleys as well as a broken one which had recently been taken out of service. Heidi went on to prompt us to take this to the Innovation Festival team to see if it was something that we could run as a Sprint. Although the initial idea for the sprint was based around the use of trolleys within the lab, it quickly became clear in the preparation for the festival that trolleys were a symptom of the current flow of samples throughout the lab. Our challenge statement for the week therefore became 'how might we redesign the way we handle lab samples to improve transit, storage, tracking and disposal whilst reducing manual handling risk?'
The initial phase was all about ideation with day one looking at ideas which could be rolled out in less than 3 months and day two expanding out to ideas which could be implemented in a 3 year timeframe. We engaged in a number of brainstorming sessions, with each delegate contributing unique perspectives and insights. The diversity of our team, with delegates from the lab, creative industries, lab supply providers and instrument manufacturers proved to be a great asset, as it allowed us to approach the problem from multiple angles. We explored various concepts, from simple knowledge sharing schemes through to RF tagging of samples and innovative lab automation and robotics. We were fortunate enough to have the use of an illustrator for the day and if you’re at Howdon you’ll be able to see some of the idea boards which he designed for us which have been put up along the bottom corridor.
Once we had a some solid ideas, the real challenge began: refining and improving our shortlisted ideas on day 3 with the finalists being compared to one another on their time to implementation as well as their value to the business. As the day drew to a close, three teams of delegates each presented their chosen idea to the room with the top idea being decided by the loudest round of applause. Despite the time constraints, the solutions were all remarkably well-developed and thought-provoking and the overall winner was taken forward by Rick and I and presented to the Directors on Friday.
It wasn’t all work however and we were lucky enough to have a meet and greet with Gladiators and former Olympians Montell Douglass and Harry Aikines-Aryeetey (also known as Fire and Nitro) and we got the chance to try our hand at a tyre change on a Formula 1 car! Both great opportunities and something totally different to the day job.
Reflections and Takeaways:
Having a lab based Sprint at the Innovation Festival was a fantastic experience. It was a crash course in innovation, requiring quick thinking, teamwork, and resilience. More importantly, it reinforced the idea that some of the best solutions emerge when people from different disciplines come together to tackle a common challenge. As in previous years, the festival underscored the importance of innovation in addressing many varied issues and demonstrated how collaborative efforts can lead to potential solutions in a relatively short space of time. The potential for innovation to drive change within the labs and wider business offers learnings which can also be applied to future projects.
Next Steps:
We’re excited to share our winning idea from the Innovation Festival’s ‘Trolley Dash’ Sprint: the use of RFID tagging for sample bottles. We believe this technology offers the potential for significant benefits for sample tracking, efficiency, and cost savings. It aims to modernise operations, ensure better compliance, and enhance overall sample management through quick and efficient sample entry alongside a streamlined approach to tracking and handling of sample bottles. We’ll shortly be conducting research and proof-of-concept trials with our IS, Informatics, and other internal teams to evaluate the feasibility of the project and ensure compatibility with existing infrastructure as well as collaborating with key stakeholders within the business.
