Skip to content
GIMLabsDocs
Request a trial

Testing schedules

Build a sample-by-test schedule, send it to the lab, and track it until the results are in.

A testing schedule sets out which tests to run on which samples, ready to send to a laboratory. It then follows the samples through the lab - picked, dispatched, received, results back and imported - with a record of who did what and when.

Build a schedule

Choose New schedule and fill in the builder:

Reference and lab

Give the schedule a reference and choose the laboratory - its test catalogue becomes available to pick from. The reference can auto-fill from a format you set in Product OS (for example project ID, lab code and date, such as AB1234-ENV-20260929) - it fills in the lab's code / initials once you pick the lab, and stays editable. If a lab has no code set in Product OS, that part of the reference is left out.

PO reference

Add the PO reference for the job. On a new schedule it is filled in from the project's last schedule, since a PO usually covers the whole job - a note says where it came from, and you can change it.

Details

Set Prepared by, the issue and due dates, a status and any remarks. Prepared by can be prefilled automatically (for example with your initials) - set that up in Product OS. The due date can prefill from the issue date plus the lab's turnaround, and is marked preliminary until the lab confirms it - both stay editable.

Tests

Picking the lab adds its default tests for you - the everyday tests marked Add by default in Product OS. They are only a starting point: remove any with the x next to the test name. Add more from the lab's catalogue or type a custom test. Each test is listed below the picker, so you can see and remove them even before any samples are chosen.

Sample-by-test matrix

Pick the samples - the picker has a quick search, per-column filters (the same operators as the data tables) and click-to-sort headers to manage long lists. Then tick each test you need for a sample. The quantity defaults to 1 - adjust it in the box that follows, or add a note.

Laboratory or Issued to?

Usually the same. Laboratory is the lab doing the testing. Issued to is who the schedule is addressed to on the paperwork - leave it blank and it uses the lab's name. Fill it in when the schedule should go to a named contact, another branch, or a lab the work is passed on to.

Picking samples

  • Hide scheduled in the Add samples window hides every sample already on another schedule in the project (unless that schedule was cancelled - completed schedules still count), with a count of how many it hides. Tick it, then use select all to pick everything not yet scheduled. Samples already on the schedule you are editing stay listed and ticked.
  • A sample that is out for testing on another schedule shows an amber tint and a warning sign in the picker and the matrix - hover the sign to see which schedule it is on and its status. When you add samples and some are already out, a pop-up lists them: choose Add anyway, or Leave them out to add just the others. A sample counts as back once its schedule reaches Results received or Imported.
  • A sample that has been disposed of shows a Disposed tag, and adding it to a schedule asks you to confirm. See Sample retention and disposal.

Closing without saving

Clicking outside the builder does not close it. If you press Cancel, the X or Esc with unsaved changes, it asks Discard changes? first - choose Keep editing or Discard. With nothing changed, it closes straight away.

The Details and Progress sections can be collapsed to keep a long schedule manageable.

Progress

Each schedule has a Progress section with a date for each stage of its journey:

StageNotes
PO sentWhen the purchase order went to the lab. Hide it in Product OS if you don't send POs. Never moves the status.
Samples picked
CollectedWhen the samples left for the lab, collected or sent. Locks the schedule - see below.
Received by lab
Results receivedSamples count as back from the lab from here.
ImportedFilled in by hand.
Report issuedOptional - off until your company turns it on. Starts the sample retention clock. Never moves the status.

Under every stage there is a By box to pick who did it from your team, such as who picked the samples or handed them over for collection. It is greyed out until the stage has a date.

Filling in a stage moves the status on to match, if your status list has the matching status. It only ever moves forwards, and clearing a date leaves the status alone.

Stage names can be renamed and hidden for your company in Product OS - for example calling Collected "Dispatched" if you send samples yourself. The company's name is used everywhere the stage appears: on the schedule, in History, in the Table Editor, in Insight and on the exports. A hidden stage still shows on a schedule that already has a date for it.

Lab receipt

The Lab receipt area in Progress holds the lab's Lab receipt ref and a Receipt issue choice - Not confirmed, No issues or Issue reported - with Issue notes when an issue was reported. It works whether or not you use the Received by lab stage, and stays editable after dispatch. You can search the schedules list by the lab receipt ref or the PO reference.

Missing samples

If a sample cannot be found, is damaged or there is not enough of it, click the box icon at the end of its row and choose Mark missing. Pick a reason (Not found, Damaged, Not enough material or Other), when it was noticed and any notes. Found it takes the mark off again.

  • You do not record a partial pick or collection yourself: while any samples are marked missing, the stage dates show (partial, 2 missing) and a red note above the samples lists which ones and why.
  • Missing samples stay on the paperwork, marked as missing with the reason, so the lab knows what was not sent and the record stays complete.
  • Marks can be changed after dispatch, since they record what happened physically.

Tubes coming back from the lab

Some samples, such as undisturbed tubes, have to be sent back by the lab. When your company has set which sample types or containers must come back (in Product OS), those samples are tagged Tube on the schedule and get a Back tick in the samples table.

  • Tick each tube as it comes back, or use Mark all back in Progress.
  • Progress shows Tubes to come back, for example "1 of 2 back". Samples marked missing are not counted.
  • Ticks stay editable after dispatch, and each one is recorded in History.

If your company has not set any codes, none of this shows.

Handle with care

Flag a sample Handle with care with a short note (for example "possible fibres seen on site") so the lab knows to handle it in a controlled way. It is a precaution raised from what was seen on site, not a hazard assessment - whether a sample is actually hazardous comes from the lab results.

  • Set or clear it from the shield icon on the sample's row. It saves straight away, even after dispatch.
  • The flag belongs to the sample, so it shows as a red Handle with care tag on every schedule and chain of custody the sample is on, and in the sample picker. Hover it to see the note and who flagged it.
  • The lab sees it on the paperwork: the PDF Notes cell starts with "Handle with care: ...", and the note leads the sample remarks in the AGS and CSV.
  • It can also be set from the Table Editor.

Files

The Files section, under Notes, holds the paperwork that goes with the schedule - the signed schedule copy, the lab's receipt, certificates, results, photos of damaged samples or the PO. Drag files onto it or choose Add files; the file types and 10 MB limit match the Media page. Click a file's name to open it, or the cross to remove it.

Files save as soon as they upload - no need to press Save - and can be added after dispatch. They also appear on the project's Media page, tagged with the schedule. Files are for your team only; clients in Connect do not see them.

Locking once dispatched

Once a schedule has been dispatched - it has a Collected date, or its status is Collected or later - its samples, tests, laboratory and reference are locked, so the paperwork does not change underneath the lab. A note at the top says when it was dispatched. Cancelled schedules are never locked.

Everything else stays editable: status, Progress dates and people, lab receipt, PO, notes, due date, missing marks, tube returns, handle with care and files.

If something does need to change, choose Unlock to amend and confirm. The unlock and every change you then make are recorded in History.

History

Open a schedule and expand History at the bottom to see who changed what and when, newest first: creation, status changes (including ones that moved on by themselves from a Progress date), stage dates and people, lab receipt, missing samples, tube returns, handle with care, files, disposal, unlocks and archiving. The same entries appear in the audit log in Product OS. History starts from when this was introduced, so older schedules begin with an empty history.

Statuses

Schedules use a status list you control. Out of the box it is the standard AGS testing statuses (Awaiting start, In progress, Completed, Cancelled, Not received, Not required and Restricted) plus the journey statuses that match the Progress stages (Samples picked, Collected, Received by lab, Results received and Imported). In Product OS, under Labs, you can reorder them, rename the labels, hide any you do not use and add your own. Built-in statuses keep their standard AGS code; custom statuses still export cleanly.

Export and print

From a schedule's menu, export it as AGS (versions 4.0.3 to 4.2.0), CSV or PDF, or all three at once with Export all. The list shows each schedule's reference, lab, sample and test counts, due date and status.

PDF always uses one of your company's schedule templates, so it matches what you send the lab. To send a paper copy with the samples, choose Export PDF: it opens in a new tab, ready to print or save. If your company has no schedule template yet, Export PDF is unavailable until one is set up in Template.

CSV downloads a zip with two files: a summary (the schedule's general data - reference, PO, prepared by, issued to, dates, status, stage dates and who did each, lab receipt and the overall note) and a details sheet (one row per sample and test). Splitting them keeps the details sheet clean for import while still capturing the header information.

Export all downloads one zip holding the AGS file, both CSVs and the PDF, named as they are when exported one at a time. Choose the AGS version from its menu; if your company has more than one schedule template, you pick the PDF template too.

AGS has no standard headings for some of this, so it goes out as user-defined LBSG headings, declared in the file's DICT group:

HeadingHolds
LBSG_PORFPO reference
LBSG_POSD, LBSG_PICK, LBSG_DISP, LBSG_LRCV, LBSG_RRCV, LBSG_IMPD, LBSG_RPTDStage dates: PO sent, samples picked, collected, received by lab, results received, imported and report issued
LBSG_LREFLab receipt ref
LBSG_RCPI, LBSG_RCPNReceipt issue and its notes
LBSG_RETS, LBSG_RETNTubes sent and tubes back

Notes flow through to the CSV, AGS and PDF: the per-sample note and each per-test note appear in the schedule's Notes, led by "Handle with care: ..." or "Missing: ..." when the sample is flagged. In AGS these are in LBST_REM.

Last updated 5 October 2026