Mar 10, 2016
Nearly a year after the merger of Brooks Rand Labs and Applied Speciation & Consulting, and five months after consolidating into Brooks Applied Labs’ current location in Bothell, WA, our remodeling is finally completed! As part of the many improvements finished up last month, BAL now has a brand new Sampling Equipment Decontamination Clean Room. The lab is fed by HEPA-filtered air and contains large vats of nitric and hydrochloric acids and deep well-ventilated sinks for rinsing equipment. This facility allows BAL to safely acid-clean a wide range of sampling equipment, including sample bottles, tubing, carboys for reagent water, and field-filtration units. Every piece of equipment that BAL sends out to our clients, including every sample bottle, is acid-cleaned and/or lot tested to ensure all sampling equipment is Certified Clean down to BAL’s ultra-low reporting limits. If you find yourself in the Seattle area and you’d like to come take a tour of our newly remodeled 18,000 sf laboratory, we’d be happy to show you around, so contact us!
Feb 19, 2016
Congratulations to Russell Gerads, Brooks Applied Labs’ Business Development Director and Scientific Liaison, for reaching a significant career milestone: his publications have now been cited in scientific journals over 500 times! Russ has published on a wide-range of topics, from pharmacokinetic studies and analytical limitations associated with industrial byproducts, to transport of metals through cell membranes. Russ is one example of the exemplary level of scientists on staff at BAL, able to draw on their expertise to make our collaborations with our clients a success. We are solution providers, able to apply our analytical chemistry skills and broad experience to help solve our clients’ problems!
Feb 19, 2016
Collaborations with scientists at Brooks Applied Labs has yielded yet another scientific publication. Through the efforts of Russell Gerads and the entire laboratory staff at BAL, research was made possible to ascertain the health implications of exposure to arsenic containing dust. The recent publication, “Immunotoxicological and neurotoxicological profile of health effects following subacute exposure to geogenic dust from sand dunes at the Nellis Dunes Recreation Area, Las Vegas, NV“, published in Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology (January 2016), provides insight into how certain recreational activities may contribute to health concerns. BAL continues to collaborate with scientists around the globe in the pursuit of expanding our scientific understanding of the world around us, applying our considerable experience and knowledge to everyday projects. This results in a level of data defensibility that is unrivaled. Check out our website or contact us to find out how we can take the uncertainty out of choosing a lab for your next project.
Feb 19, 2016
Are you doing interesting work in the field of metals analysis and speciation for environmental monitoring projects? The 2016 National Environmental Monitoring Conference (NEMC) will be held at the Hyatt Regency in Orange County, CA, August 8 – 12. The conference technical program will feature presentations on a variety of cutting-edge environmental monitoring issues, including a session on Metals and Metal Speciation Analyses in Environmental Samples chaired by Brooks Applied Labs President/CEO, Michelle Briscoe. The NEMC Steering Committee is currently inviting abstracts for oral or poster presentations. Although the abstract deadline has technically passed, additional abstracts will be considered through the end of February. Abstracts may be submitted on-line at http://nemc.us/meeting/2016/submit-abstract.php.
Jan 20, 2016
The report associated with the 2014 Brooks Rand Labs International Interlaboratory Comparison Study for Arsenic Speciation in Food is now available! In its second year, this study continues to be one of the largest intercomparison studies for arsenic speciation in food conducted. This report summarizes where the methods are successful at providing reproducible data and where more research and method development is needed. As demonstrated by the data, this kind of comparison study is vitally important for establishing and maintaining best practices for the arsenic speciation analyses of food and supplements. A copy of the report can be downloaded from our website. For more information or if you have questions regarding this important intercomparison study, please contact Elizabeth Madonick.
Jan 20, 2016
With the application of the specialized metals speciation testing methods available from Brooks Applied Labs, a multitude of contaminated sites have been found to naturally attenuate contaminants, saving millions of dollars for our clients! For example, various arsenic species will behave differently in soil depending on many factors, which necessitates a more detailed characterization than most commercial laboratories can provide. Not only does natural attenuation reduce the costly burden of site remediation or disposal, but it can also preserve the environment by reducing disturbances in the ecological system, especially when a pump-and-treat approach would otherwise be implemented. Contact us today to learn more about how we can assist with identifying if natural attenuation is an appropriate technique for your remediation project.
Jan 20, 2016
Are you doing interesting work in the field of metals analysis and speciation for environmental monitoring projects? The 2016 National Environmental Monitoring Conference (NEMC) will be held at the Hyatt Regency in Orange County, CA, August 8 – 12. The conference technical program will feature presentations on a variety of cutting-edge environmental monitoring issues, including a session on Metals and Metal Speciation Analyses in Environmental Samples chaired by Brooks Applied Labs President/CEO, Michelle Briscoe. The NEMC Steering Committee is currently inviting abstracts for oral or poster presentations, and the abstract deadline is January 29, 2016. Abstracts may be submitted on-line at http://nemc.us/meeting/2016/submit-abstract.php.
Dec 4, 2015
AOAC Method 2015.01, Heavy Metals in Food by ICP-MS, authored by the scientists at Brooks Applied Labs, is currently in First Action status. To complete the move to Final Action, a multi-lab validation (MLV) study is required. You are invited to participate in the MLV study for the determination of the Big 4 (arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury) in food by this method. The scope of the method lists food and beverage matrices including solid chocolate, fruit juice, fish, infant formula, and rice.
Anyone interested in participating in the MLV study is encouraged to contact study organizer, Rick Reba, at the Nestle Quality Assurance Center (rick.reba@us.nestle.com). Copies of the method are available on the Brooks Applied Labs and AOAC websites, or contact us directly for a copy. Please feel free to forward to any colleagues that may also have an interest.
Dec 4, 2015
Northwest Environmental Conference
Join our Technical Sales Manager, Jamie Fox, at the Northwest Environmental Conference & Tradeshow (NWEC) from December 8-9, 2015 in Portland, OR. The NWEC is in its 27th year and combines topics on environmental protection and compliance, new technologies and services, sustainable business management, and current and emerging policy issues. This conference is presented each year by the Northwest Environmental Business Council (NEBC), a professional business association that Brooks Applied Labs has been proud to be a member of for over 9 years. Contact us if you will be attending, and we hope to see you there!
Dec 4, 2015
Russell Gerads, the Business Development Director at Brooks Applied Labs, gave a presentation on October 22nd, 2015 at the EPA Region 6 Quality Assurance Conference in Dallas, TX, entitled, “Critical Considerations for Data Quality in Elemental Speciation”. This presentation by Russ and Hakan Gürleyük provided a basis of understanding for what laboratory QA/QC procedures must be in place for reliable and quantitative determination of various elemental species. Brooks Applied Labs provides unmatched technical expertise in metals speciation analyses and is the leading provider of specialty metals testing services. Contact us to learn more.
