In late March, a new wave of COVID-19 hit Shanghai, forcing the city to slow down production. In the warm spring of May, the initial results of the epidemic control were achieved, and it became a top priority for Eurofins Central Laboratory Shanghai to resume work and provide sustainable clinical support services to customers. Under the guidance of the policy and the active communication with the government, the laboratory was finally included in the white list of resuming work in early May. Upon receiving the notice, the staff of the central laboratory immediately responded positively and rushed to the laboratory under harsh conditions to help the laboratory restart the testing.
Eurofins Central Laboratory always sticks to quality first. We passed CAP inspection during the epidemic in Shanghai
Laboratory technicians ensure that quality is under control every day during sample acceptance, sample analysis, report issuance, and sample storage. During the closed-loop period, Eurofins Central Laboratory Shanghai was entered into a two-day remote audit by the College of American Pathologists (CAP) and passed without any issues. All inspections concluded successfully. Remote foreign experts also spoke highly of the Eurofins Central Laboratory’s consistency and adherence to quality during the COVID period.
Eurofins Central Laboratory Shanghai manufacturing and shipping of specimen kits
We are proud to announce that our Eurofins Central Laboratory facility in Shanghai has re-opened for business after the authorities lifted the lockdown. This has been a very tough and challenging time for everyone in Shanghai and our heartfelt thoughts go out to the people in Shanghai.
ECL production teams within the facility have started preparing sample collection kit orders, and are shipping these to sites as needed. The Project Management team has communicated with clients and sites to check their inventory of kits and re-order kits as required. With the support of our global logistics team, we were able to establish a feasible process to ensure sample collection kits can be delivered to sits and patient samples returned to our facility.
We are surrounded by staff who have overcome difficulties to stick to their posts and do their best to work remotely, staff’s family members who have silently supported us, sister departments who have actively assisted us, sponsors/CROs, and sites who have been accompanying the Eurofins Central Laboratory, and many people from all walks of life who care about and support our teams. We would like to express our sincere thanks to all of you. Eurofins Central laboratory is committed to quality and service assurance. The epidemic will pass and the flowers will continue to bloom.
About Eurofins Central Laboratory China Co., Ltd.
Joining Eurofins in 2001, our Central Laboratory network is committed to providing end-to-end clinical laboratory solutions with global standards. In 2003, we began to serve clinical research in China with the help of our partners. In order to better support domestic clinical trials, or global trials involving Chinese subjects in the study protocol, the Eurofins Central Laboratory has been in operation in Shanghai since April 2008, and it is the fourth central laboratory in addition to our sites in the Netherlands, the United States and Singapore. In 2019, Eurofins Central Laboratory Shanghai expanded its service offering by including the manufacturing and shipping of specimen collection kits in China. In order to meet the increasingly complex requirements of the research program, the Laboratory was relocated to the group’s headquarters in Pujiang, Shanghai in 2021, nearly doubling in size to further facilitate the addition of key capabilities and business expansion.
In addition to standard safety testing in support of clinical trials, the Shanghai Laboratory is also providing biomarker testing. Our newly installed MSD platform can be used for biomarker analysis and immunoassay of multiplex biomarkers. The Shanghai Laboratory is also offering processing and transportation services for PBMC (peripheral blood mononuclear cells) at different levels. We ensure effective collection, processing, cryopreservation, and transportation of PBMC samples to ensure sample stability. In addition, the Eurofins Central Laboratories, including Shanghai Laboratory, have global flow cytometry capabilities. DNA extraction and RT-PCR platforms are planned to be added to the Shanghai Lab capabilities soon. The expanded capacity of laboratory testing services will allow more and more complex solutions to be offered to customers and improve the efficiency of the drug development life cycle, consistent with the regulatory environment in China.