Before, computers and software data management in laboratories was a tedious and time consuming task. With handwritten reports and charts, there was a higher probability of human error to occur. Laboratory information management systems (LIMS) were only first developed in-house by the early 1980s. In 1982, the first generation commercial LIMS was created providing the first automated reporting features. By assigning laboratory functions to a centralized computer, productivity and functionality improved.As technology advances and work flow changes, the need for application specific features emerged. This initiated the development of second generation LIMS which was possible by using third-party commercial relational databases through the use of minicomputers. By the early 1990s the first client/server configuration was developed using a PC combined with the security of a minicomputer. Functionality “appeared” quicker by splitting the data processing between several clients and the main database server.
Theresa Webster
Theresa Webster is the co-founder of Broughton Software and serves as their Director of Product Management. After studying at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte receiving a BSc in Biology and a BA in Chemistry, Theresa began her career at Broughton Laboratories, a leading UK MHRA and US FDA GMP licensed contract laboratory. In her role as a Commercial Projects Manager, she developed business start-ups from idea to fully operational divisions, in particular, the stability storage facility and software services. Theresa led the software services division to become a stand-alone business in 2012 as Broughton Software providing the industry's leading LIMS solution for Quality Control Laboratories. In her personal time, Theresa enjoys travel and fitness.