Recommendation for HPLC Data System (<5 HPLCs, RD lab)

[jli1]

I am setting a small analytical lab to support pharmaceutical product development (RD only). There are less than 5 mixed brand HPLCs right now in single location. Cost, easy to use and remote access will be main factors to be considered. Any recommendation will be appreciated. Thanks!

JL

[Csaba]

Hi,
To select the best system for you is to know your need; so write a user requirement specification (URS). If you send me a mail at CsabaU at HotMail dot com I can send you a base URS. The URS has to be detailed, well though out and adapted to your specific need. I can also send a list of CDS systems on the market. The major market players are Agilent Openlab w ChemStation and EZchrome, Shimadzu LabSolution, Thermo Chromeleon and Waters Empower. When evaluating the URS you will see that Thermo Chromeleon fulfils my requirements best but maybe not yours.

[jli1]

Thanks, Casba.

I have experiences with Waters Empower and Agilent ChemStation/OpenLab ECM. I heard a lot of saying about Thermo Chromeleon. Is there any specific point that Chromeleon is superior than others?

I believe all of the CDS you mentioned will work with different brand instrument. This is small RD analytical lab my basic user requirements are

1. control instrument and collect data (mixed brand HPLCs (<5)
2. data analysis and reporting
3. data storage in local and network drives (backup will be handled in network level)
4. remote access (control and analysis)
5. user friendlily interface, easy to use, easy to share report/data
6. cost effective

[Csaba]

Hi,
Chromeleon user friendliness is the the strongest point although Chromeleon is strong on most parts. Weakest is support of LC-MS and GC-MS which is new in v7.2 and limited to Thermo instruments. My evaluations are several pages long and the space here is to small to go through everything (because the devil is in the details). I believe for you, the support of the devices you have may be most important requirement(and to doublecheck).

[cwehinger]

We use chromeleon on a HP5890 FID and two different Waters HPLCS, it is very easy to use. Most of my staff was able to pick it up with in a day. From our experience, depending on the age of your instruments you may not be able to have complete remote access. We have a Waters 486 detector that we cannot control remotely but we are able to collect the data using chromeleon.

[jli1]

Thanks cwehinger.

I have Agilent 1100 and some old Hitachi 7000. I hope chromeleon will work for both.

[bunnahabhain]

You should write your needs together (including detailed description of all of your 5 machines) and send it as a request for a quote to all available manufacturers of chromatography data systems. If one of them can't guarantee you control for some of the devices, don't go further. For the remaining options, ask for a sales representative to show you how the software actually works (no screenshots, ask for a REAL demo). Let them show you how to create sequences/start/stop/autozero/.../integrate data). Especially for integration, imho Chromeleon is unequalled.

Jörg

[rp18]

Chromeleon is my personal favorite because it is very flexible and easy to use. It has by far the best manual integration tools as well as a good automatic integration optimization. But it's really not the cheapest.

I'm using nearly all kinds of software, most came with the instruments. Recently I've set a up a simple 4-channel system with Clarity. I don't like that multi-windows user interface and manual integration is a pain, but it does the job and supports a lot of brands.

[jli1]

Thanks all.

It seems that Chromeleon is preferred by most of people here.

[varossf]

Interesting. OpenLAB EZChrom is multi vendor and comes with its new high performance and user friendly Data Analysis software and new Reporting tool. Are you interested in a Webex?

[sga]

I have also seen Chromelon used in many labs !