Design and Implementation of an On-Line, Bar Code-Based Chemical Inventory and Tracking System

Abstract

Abstract The numbers and types of chemical substances used in research environments are typically greater than those used in the manufacturing sector. Although laboratory chemicals are used in smaller quantities their toxicology may not be well understood. A system was designed and implemented to manage inventory and materials tracking. Chemical inventory management is mandated by local, state, and federal regulations, most notably the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Hazard Communication and Laboratory Standards. Ideally, computer-based inventory and tracking software should be capable of rapidly identifying materials, storage locations, users, number and quantity of chemical substances, and provide hazard information. The inventory and tracking system was developed in Smarstar, a form based, 4-GL structured query language applications developed tool and resides on a Digital VAX 6210 minicomputer. The system is user-friendly and employs the use of bar code technology to track chemical subs...