Release notes Workflow 2.1 (April 04, 2023)

General

The release of FastFinder Analysis 4.11,  Lab management 1.11 and Workflow 2.1 contains new features that provide compatibility of FastFinder with sample-to-result solutions. In Analysis we extended the support for complex calculations in the assay logic and provided an option for automated plate setup for melt assays.

As always, it is feedback from you that informs our roadmap, and allows us to keep improving FastFinder, so we want to thank you for your continued suggestions. Don’t hesitate to let us know how we can improve FastFinder even further.

For the specific release notes for FastFinder Analysis 4.11 and Lab management 1.11, see link.

Workflow 2.1.1 (April 04, 2023)

New features

Upload of instrument files used within workflows can be done now via the FastFinder platform.

• In pending files we provide you the possibility to select a workflow, activity and instrument together with the instrument file. This allows you to intervene in case the connection with the instrument is (temporary) broken. The uploaded instrument file will then automatically be assigned to the selected activity & workflow.
• Per activity, where an instrument file is expected, you are also allowed to upload the instrument file in that activity itself. In this case, you are not required to add information about the workflow, activity and instrument since this information is already known within that run of the activity.

We also allow discarding the run, if no instrument is involved or started yet. Be aware that physical actions in the lab may need to take place after discarding a run. After the discard of a run, all related output carriers can be selected again and all related input carriers and samples are put back on the input queue of that activity.

On manual creation of one or multiple orders for which there is no workflow defined yet, the user will be informed about it.

If configured in your workflow, you can make a sub-selection of sample & one or more requested assays. This way an activity can be setup where all the possible assays are allowed and where you will be able to create a run for a subset of those requested assays for that ordered sample. The necessary bookkeeping is then executed in the background, meaning that we will track which assays of the ordered sample have already been executed in a run.

You will be able to make use of a few extra lab activity variables:

• Number of selected ordered samples: The total number of selected ordered samples;
• Number of selected ordered assay samples: The total number of selected ordered assay samples;
• Number of selected assays: The total unique number of selected assays;
• Number of selected assay mixes: The total number of mixes linked to the selected assays;
• Number of required PCR Sample wells: The total number of required PCR sample wells;
• Number of selected required positive controls: The total number of required selected positive controls linked to the selected assays;
• Number of selected required negative controls: The total number of required selected negative controls linked to the selected assays;

All lab activity variables, visualized in an instruction section, will automatically be updated based on actions that take place in that same view (for example: If you are selecting samples, the lab activity variable “Number of selected ordered samples” will automatically be updated in the screen). The capability to configure custom variables and real-time run formulas within a workflow allows you to calculate and show an estimated time of arrival for the instrument to complete a run based on formulas using various lab activity variables.

An admin is allowed to enable activity input constraints, by using all available lab activity variables, in order to make the flow more efficient and/or reduce errors further along the lab process. These constraints can have warning and error conditions. Where warning conditions inform the lab technician to take action but still allow to continue the run. And error conditions informing the lab technician to take action and block further completion of the run. These activity input constraints can be configured per instruction section within an activity run. If an activity input constraint is used within an instruction, different colors will display a warning or error constraint.

A lab manager can enable activities with multiple steps that can capture intermediate updates* from a sample to result instrument. This is only relevant in case a sample to result instrument is capable to deliver intermediate updates. These intermediate updates are made visible automatically while having the run detail view opened (no refresh of the page is needed). A use case for this is a sample to result device that executes both extraction, PCR setup and qPCR which gives intermediate updates towards FastFinder. If these sample to result instruments support an abort run action and the instruments are capable of informing FastFinder with the necessary abort information then the run can be aborted in FastFinder. After this abort action all related samples are automatically discarded with the retest action to restart the entire workflow. Based on the capabilities of the instruments in the lab, within a workflow setup like this it is also possible with some extra configuration to put the generated extraction plate on the queue of a separate activity that requires extraction plates as input.

* Currently only the following instruments are supported for intermediate updates: Prime MDx and Sentinat 200

Since completed orders, now visible in the orders overview on the completed tab, can automatically be found with their full track & trace below the samples archive (Archive > Sample results) there is no reason to keep these available in the completed orders overview. We now automatically clean up all completed and discarded orders that are older than 10 days.

We now allow you to adjust the layout of your workflow in the Lab Management (Lab configuration – workflows) by means of a drag and drop functionality combined with a size selection per activity. Per activity it can be decided to have a small, medium or large size activity box.

When preparing for manual PCR Setup, you were already able to download and print the PCR Setup instructions (carrier well layout). In this layout you could only see the barcode of the sample with all the related assay mixes and controls information. Now you can choose to show the barcode or the discriminator of the sample when downloading these instructions.

In Workflow we now provide support for the following instruments:

• RotorGene 6000 and RotorGene Q: Processing and visualization of the Rotor and sample, assay and control position
• Prime MDx: Processing and visualization of intermediate updates. This device allows a lab technician to start a second run once the PCR Setup is done.
• Sentinat 200: Processing and visualization of intermediate updates

Soon after migrating to this new version, all sample data will be converted to the new sample archive. Therefore the link which was available on top of the screen to go to the older data has been removed. However to overcome the time that not all data has been moved yet, the link to switch to the previous sample screen will stay available if the selected filters do not return any data. The archived samples will show the comments which were added in all the steps (incl. the ones added in the analysis step). It is possible to filter on these comments by choosing the ‘Well Comment’ filter. Furthermore, it is possible to click through to target results.

Fixed bugs

• Runs overview had the wrong scroll scope
• The carrier tab overview was reset on completion of an instruction
• The link to go to the run in the incoming samples table within a next run is fixed.
• Completing a run does not execute properly
• Edit SampleID to control name is not blocked/supported
• Sample type filter does not refresh after creation of an order
• Exception because of adding a sample during opening of a run