In an era of abundant data, the challenge isn't just collecting information — it's navigating it with confidence. Instruments, Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) platforms, and laboratory systems each generate valuable information, yet without integration that data stays trapped in silos where it cannot be acted upon. This was the central message LabWare brought to the 2026 Pharma Xchange Forum, hosted by Sartorius, where connectivity, automation, and robust traceability were presented as the foundation for precision and compliance in today's industry.
That challenge has become urgent for a specific reason: the industry is moving from large language models toward agentic work — systems that don't just answer questions but take actions on a lab's behalf. The sheer volume of data being produced across every platform makes this shift both possible and pressing. But autonomous workflows are only as trustworthy as the information beneath them, and that is exactly where the difficulty begins — because the data itself has grown far more complex than the systems that were built to manage it.
Consider how much the object of that data has changed. The role of a modern Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) now reaches far beyond tracking a single active ingredient. Autoinjectors, patch pumps, and lipid-nanoparticle delivery systems such as mRNA vaccines are composite products — a drug, a device, and packaging that must all be tracked together. At the same time, blockbuster medicines are giving way to personalized therapies such as CAR-T treatments and gene therapies, made in small batches that demand patient-level traceability: knowing exactly what was made, from what, and for whom. Each of these trends multiplies the data a lab must connect — and none of it was something traditional systems were designed to handle.
Addressing complexity begins with connection. Here, a guiding principle applies: connecting systems is often the easy part, but connecting processes is where the real challenge lies. Through years of integrating laboratory equipment, LabWare has built a template-based connector library that establishes bi-directional, highly configurable interfaces with MES and ERP environments. And the ambition extends well beyond benchtop instruments: increasingly, it is entire, heavily automated production facilities that need to be connected — precisely the scale where an integrated platform delivers the most value.
Connecting the data is only half the task; it also has to make sense. As complexity grows, well-defined relationships between data objects become a genuine competitive capability. A sample's genealogy is no longer a simple chain but a web of parents, children, aliquots, and composites. Ontology — defining what things are and how they relate — means that when something goes wrong, or when an audit requires reconstructing a history, the data tells a coherent story. Guided by ALCOA and FAIR principles, this structured, relational data is what makes downstream analytics meaningful. Ultimately, AI-ready systems are only as good as the structure beneath them.
When data is both connected and well-structured, the benefits become tangible. By leveraging Electronic Batch Records (EBR) and full genealogy, laboratories gain complete, GMP-compliant traceability — capturing not just the results that came out of a batch, but everything that went into it. Digitizing these transactions eliminates paper, enables controlled batch release, and makes internal quality improvement straightforward. The result is transparency, audit readiness from day one, and organizations that spend less time on systems and more on science.
These connected themes were the focus of the session "Data Crossroads – LabWare, an Enterprise Laboratory Platform," delivered by Olivier Lévy, Territory Manager at LabWare, at the 2026 Pharma Xchange Forum on June 10, 2026, at the Sartorius Campus in Göttingen. The session reflected a collaboration rooted in years of integrating Sartorius equipment into LabWare software — one, both companies are keen to extend from benchtop instruments to entire automated production facilities.
Reflecting on where that partnership is heading, Olivier noted:
"We have a good starting point, we've established a good foundation, and we can go really, really far with this collaboration — and I'm excited to see where it will lead us."
Watch the full interview with Olivier Lévy:
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