Will you set up your own lab?

[Anthony_Ng]

Hello all,

Just want to know, if captial is enough, will you set up your own lab? Maybe just 1 HPLC and 1 GC during start up.

I am 30++ yrs old now. Just want to know if I can start up my bussiness at around 45-50 years old. Or just stay in the boss's lab as a technical staff until retire.

Any experience to share with us?

[Bruce Hamilton]

You can be any age when you set up a lab, there are successful ones here that were set up by 25-65 year olds.

I set up my own lab several years ago. Running your own lab is a business, consequently there are a lot of collateral activities required -other than just being a good analyst/lab manager.

1. Create a business plan - most banks/finance companies/regional authority development funds, etc. will have free electronic templates for these. Anybody can ask, and they will help fill it out - everybody, other than your competitors, wants you to succeed..

The plan's marketing and financial spreadsheet determines whether your proposed business is viable - basically because you have to be realistic about potential customers, competitors, startup costs, regulatory approvals. etc.

2. Decide where the money is coming from.

If you are going to mortgage property, you may need to set your other assets up ( eg family home into a trust ) so they aren't exposed if business fails.

3. Understand accounting, or identify a good accountant.

The taxman represents your community's interest, and is fair, but isn't usually benevolent - at least in developed countriss.

4, Unless you purchase an established business, startup costs are very significant.

There's no point in having an HPLC or GC without all the associated paraphernalia - designated laboratory with fume extraction, safe stoarge, sample prep equipment, plasticware, glassware, pH meters, purified water, chemicals, waste disposal, SPE, vacuum, compressed gases.

5. Your national govt, regional authority, and landlord will require compliance with all relevant regulations.

They will have location and insurance requirements for chemical laboratories, especially OSH and environmental rules, and most clients/landlords will require compliance with OSH, public liability, professional liability, property insurance etc.

There are many more, but if item 1 is honest, and looks good, they rest are all manageable with common sense, money, and time.

Please keep having fun,

Bruce Hamilton

[HPLC_Help]

I've been thinking a lot of opening a business repairing/maintaining HPLCs.

Does anyone here have any experience with setting up this type of operation? I live in an area with a lot of universities and start-ups - the kinds of places that might not have service plans.

I think it would be the type of thing that could start on the side ... except for the fact that I'd be taking off work at my day job to go somewhere else and repair their instruments!

Any feedback/ideas would be appreciated.

HH

[Anthony_Ng]

Dear HPLC_Help,

Also I am thinking either staying in a contract lab or go out to become a "freelance" service engineer. I think the set-up cost will be much lower than setting up a small lab.

What I concern is that I didn't got enough experience to repair different brands and models of instruments. The source of spare parts is also a problem.

Anyone can share your experience to us? Thanks in advance.

[Kostas Petritis]

Most companies would prefer to have customers under service contracts so they do not like much freelancer service engineers and do not support them, especially in the US. Where you are at might be different...

PS: I know someone in the US that tried it but was really tough for him mainly due to the >12% of his salary for social security tax costs and >$1500 per month of health insurance that he needed to cover his family. He ended up going back to work for the same company...

[Bruce Hamilton]

A few comments, may be different in other countries...

1. Employment contracts usually specify that any other paid work has to be cleared by your current employer. Don't be surprised if their HR/legal people say No.

2. Most equipment warranties and out-of-support service contracts specifically invalidate if the equipment has been serviced by an "untrained" person, whether on staff or as a contractor. That means significant ongoing expense, even for non-hardware issues such as reinstalling software - assuming you can obtain the training..

3. Local franchises expect to make money on support, and often discount purchase price based on that. They can get rather unhelpful ( restricted access to service manuals, spares, software patches etc.) if a contracter tries to offer the support.

4. If there are a lot of potential customers in your area, then the franchise holders are likely to offer support, it's where orphans instruments exist that the greatest potential lies.

5. Smaller firms that sell instruments without in-house support often use contractors, but don't train them, so the customer who was promised 24 hour repairs as part of the deal soon blames the contractor for slow support. The franchise firm doesn't disillusion them.

6. Customers ( like me ) who are cheapskate enough to avoid service contracts, are not going to pay large sums to non-franchised contractors.

Please keep having fun,

Bruce Hamilton

[AICMM]

Anthony_NG,

I do contract service (along with other things.) I don't do it on the side and, as Bruce noted, I don't think many employers would take a pleasant view on that. I will say that it is a hard living in some ways but I also love the work. Your comment about knowing instruments is probably the most important since, as a contractor, you will be repairing many makes and models. I will also say that I do just GC's and no other instruments so that limits my focus quite well. Parts are not that difficult to come by in my experience.

Best regards