Quality-assured Temperature Monitoring

In a short time, we have experienced two tragic incidents where priceless research has been needlessly destroyed. Two independent incidents that could have been prevented if there had been a qualified automatic alarm and logging system for parameter monitoring.

At Lunds University, animals have rotted, and priceless research material has been destroyed, https://sverigesradio.se/artikel/fryshaveriet-hundratals-djur-ruttnade-pa-lunds-universitetand at the Karolinska Institute, research material collected over 30 years was destroyed, https://www.dn.se/sverige/ventil-trolig-orsak-bakom-fryshaveriet-pa-karolinska-institutet/

For over 30 years, ICU Scandinavia has worked with monitoring, logging and alarm management of parameters such as temperature, CO? (carbon dioxide), O2 (oxygen), air humidity, differential pressure etc. Temperature is the most common parameter when monitoring materials in refrigerators, freezers, and ambient air in room, other parameters are often used as a supplement to temperature monitoring or as an individual parameter for monitoring. Storing sensitive material with high quality requirements such as blood samples, organs, tissues, various blood components is carried out with the advantage of several contemporary parameters in a system where alarm handling is distributed among several different components, independent of each other's functionality. Boomerang (icuscandinavia.se)

An ordinary alarm monitoring system in a laboratory or similar business that stores materials in cryotanks (liquid nitrogen freezers, LN2) is usually performed via a sensor placed inside the tank that measures temperature and/or sensor that measures the level of LN2. If the temperature exceeds a predetermined value or the level of LN2 drops, the system creates an alarm that is distributed via SMS, email, phone call or similar.

ICU Scandinavia has over 1,000 customers who all have one thing in common. They invest in a log system for parameter monitoring and take responsibility for the quality and regulatory requirements of their operations.

We have experienced from having worked with automatic systems within parameter monitoring for over 30 years with customers in Life Science, research, hospitals etc. realize the importance of investing in a system with several different sensors that measure the same - or different parameters distributed among different alarm functions.

Using 1 sensor (usually temperature) with 1 alarm connection is better than having no system at all, but unfortunately the risk of serious errors is high (events like Karolinska Institute and Lund University). To ensure quality and meet regulatory requirements for the storage of blood samples, organs, tissues, various blood components, etc., monitoring of several different sensors that measure the same and/or different parameters distributed in different systems for alarm management is required.

Example:

A unit with several liquid nitrogen cryotanks that store material in temperatures down to minus 196 degrees needs to have a temperature sensor placed inside the tank. If a leak of LN2 occurs and the temperature rises, an alarm is generated. The alarm is distributed through a cloud-based (or local) server solution via SMS, email, dialing signal, Telephone- app, etc.

The alarms can also be distributed locally to flashing lights that emit both a visual and acoustic alarm, to a panel/web-screen or forwarded to external alarm operators.

As a complement to the sensors in cryotanks, we always recommend customers to install a sensor that measures the oxygen level (O2) in the room where the tanks are stored.

If a leak of liquid nitrogen occurs, the oxygen level drops, and an alarm will be generated. The alarm is distributed locally and/or via Boomerang, Boomerang (icuscandinavia.se)?

To further secure the handling of material in the cryotanks, a temperature sensor is installed on the outside of the tank or far down the wall. If a leak of nitrogen gas occurs, the temperature in the room drops rapidly and an alarm is generated. The temperature sensors installed on the nitrogen tanks or on the wall are very small in size (19×19×3.5 mm) and transmit data wirelessly to Boomerang. TinySense-data-sheet.pdf (icuscandinavia.se)

An automatic and continuous parameter log system that offers alarm functionality, trend and log system of parameter data as well as a complete audit trail functionality is a very cost-effective solution that ensures quality for businesses like research, Life Science, hospitals etc. DSboom30oview_EN.pdf (icuscandinavia.se)

Contact ICU Scandinavia for more information about quality-assure your business in terms of parameter monitoring using Boomerang, a system developed according to GLP, GMP and FDA 21 CFR part 11.