Receipt Checklist for a Research Reagent Order
Package inspection, vial and lot verification, matching against CoAs, immediate storage: the ten-point procedure.
Contents
The fifteen minutes following delivery determine the traceability of everything that comes out of the package afterwards. Here is a ten-point procedure, usable as is.
Before opening
1. Inspect the outer condition of the package. Crushed, damp, or opened packaging: photograph before any handling.
2. Record the date and time of receipt. They serve as a reference in case of a dispute over transit duration.
On opening
3. Check contents against the order. References, dosages, quantities, associated consumables.
4. Check the integrity of each vial. Crimped cap intact, septum unpierced, glass uncracked, label legible and firmly attached.
5. Inspect the lyophilizate. The cake should be present and dry. A collapsed, wall-stuck, or partially liquefied lyophilizate indicates a thermal excursion during transport: document and report it.
6. Record the lot numbers. One per vial, exactly as printed on the label.
Documentary check
7. Match each lot to its CoA. The vial's lot number must appear on the certificate. Check the analysis date, the method (HPLC / MS), the measured quantity, and the match with the stated dosage.
8. Verify the report's authenticity. Where the third-party laboratory provides a report ID and verification key, retrieve the document at the source.
Putting into stock
9. Store immediately, without waiting for administrative checks to finish. Sealed lyophilizates in the refrigerator (2–8 °C), or at −20 °C for long-term stock, consumables and solvents at room temperature. A vial left on the bench "just until I'm done" is the most common cause of avoidable thermal excursion.
10. Register in the inventory. One row per vial: reference, dosage, lot, receipt date, location, link to the archived CoA.
In case of non-conformity
Do not put the lot into service. Place it in identified quarantine, document the finding (photos, description, lot number), and contact the supplier with those elements. A contested lot that has already been used is no longer usable as evidence.
Printable summary
- Package: condition, date/time, photos if anomaly
- Contents: conformity with the order
- Vials: crimp, septum, glass, label
- Lyophilizate: appearance, no collapse
- Lots: recorded and matched to CoAs
- CoA: lot, date, method, quantity, online verification
- Storage: immediate, correct zone
- Inventory: row created, CoA archived
To learn more
Research Use Only (RUO). This procedure concerns the receipt of reagents intended for laboratory research. It constitutes neither a usage recommendation nor a therapeutic claim.
