Primary
Focus

Designed for
bio/chemical/clinical labs
(sample-centric workflows:
blood, water, chemicals).

Designed for hardware test
labs (unit-centric workflows:
prototypes, electronics, hardware
devices).

Test
Scheduling

Basic scheduling (sample
batches, assays). Often
limited in handling
equipment conflicts.

Advanced scheduling
accounts for chambers,
operator certs, calibration
status, and complex test
sequences.

Equipment
Management

Tracks instruments but
usually assumes high-
volume repeatable assays
(pipettes, centrifuges).

Tailored to hardware test gear
(antennas, spectrum analyzers,
LISNs, chambers) with
calibration + availability logic.

Unit /
Prototype
Tracking

Not designed for versioned
hardware. Focus is on
unique samples with IDs.

Configuration Manager:
tracks hardware units,
firmware, BOM versions, and
their test history.

Test Method
Templates

Method management usually
chemistry-focused.

Test-specific workflows: profiles can
be templated and reused
across requests.

Operator
Certification

Often limited to lab access
roles; not integrated into
scheduling.

Scheduler enforces only
certified technicians
can run specific tests.

Compliance
(ISO /
Regulatory)

Typically supports GLP, FDA
21 CFR Part 11, CLIA - biomedical compliance

Built for ISO 17025,
FCC/CE/MIL audits, and
hardware test compliance records.

Data
Capture

Strong at structured assay
data (numeric sample
results).

Designed for engineering test
data - logs measurements,
operator notes, anomalies, and
ties results to test units.

Reporting

Generates lab reports for
samples (lab certificates,
CoAs).

Auto-generates
engineering/hardware test
reports with MS Office
templates, directly consumable
by regulators/customers.

Scalability to
Hardware
R&D

Not a natural fit - needs
customization for hardware
testing.

Purpose-built for R&D
hardware validation labs,
including EMC.

Adoption in
Industry

Dominant in life sciences,
pharma, environmental
labs.

Trusted by hardware-driven
companies.