Analysis and Results Setup Objects

The catalog, methods, calculations, units, and fields behind laboratory results.

Availability varies. The descriptions below explain common operational meaning. Fields, labels, permissions, and availability depend on your Clearline implementation.

Analysis Categories#

Organizes analysis services into meaningful laboratory or customer-facing groups.

Example

Create a “Microbiology” category to group Total Coliform, E. coli, and Heterotrophic Plate Count services.

Core pieces: Name and description
Sort key/order
Comments or internal context
Connects to: Analysis Services; service pickers; categorized result entry and reporting views.
Configuration guidance: Use stable categories that match how the laboratory sells, performs, or reports work. Avoid turning categories into one-off tags.

Analysis Profiles#

Reusable panels of analysis services that accelerate intake and standardize common scopes of work.

Example

Create a “Drinking Water Routine Panel” that selects pH, turbidity, total coliform, and E. coli together during intake.

Core pieces: Name, description, and profile keyword
Included analysis services
Per-service visibility and optional unit overrides
Commercial/profile identifier
Profile-level price and tax settings where enabled
Connects to: Analysis Services and sample registration. Selecting a profile creates the corresponding requested analyses.
Configuration guidance: Use for recurring panels, not as a substitute for a method or specification. Review profiles whenever a service is retired or pricing changes.

Analysis Services#

Defines a requestable laboratory test or measured parameter. It is the central setup object from which transactional analyses are created.

Example

Define “Lead by ICP-MS” with keyword PB, default unit µg/L, a standard turnaround time, method reference, and reporting limit.

Core pieces: Name, short title, keyword, category, department, and sort order
Default unit and allowed unit choices
Result type/options, default result, precision, and scientific notation behavior
Detection and quantification limits; manual uncertainty where used
Methods, default method, available instruments, and default instrument
Calculation and interim/result variables
Turnaround time and point of capture
Price, tax, accreditation, and report visibility settings
Container, preservation, partition, and sample-type rules
Analysis conditions requested at intake
QC and duplicate-related defaults where enabled
Connects to: Profiles, specifications, methods, instruments, sample registration, analyses, worksheets, calculations, results reports, price lists, and exports.
Configuration guidance: Changes can alter intake, bench work, calculations, limits, reports, and billing. Inactivate obsolete services instead of deleting them; protect keyword stability because integrations and specifications often reference it.

Analysis Specifications#

Defines expected or permitted result ranges for selected analyses, usually in the context of a sample type.

Example

For a finished-water Sample Type, define an expected pH range of 6.5–8.5 and flag results outside that range for review.

Core pieces: Sample type
Analysis/service result ranges
Minimum, maximum, error bounds, and applicability data as configured
Optional link to a dynamic specification
Connects to: Sample Types, Analysis Services, Dynamic Analysis Specifications, result validation, review, and out-of-range indicators.
Configuration guidance: A specification is not a detection limit. Detection limits describe method capability; specifications describe acceptance or expected ranges.

Calculations#

Defines reusable formulas that derive a result from raw results, interim values, or other analyses.

Example

Calculate Total Suspended Solids from filter weights and sample volume using controlled interim variables and a tested formula.

Core pieces: Name, description, and keyword
Formula and referenced variables
Interim variables and default values
Calculation module/function where applicable
Raw-result and calculated-result test tools
Connects to: Analysis Services, Methods, interim fields, result entry, and calculated analyses.
Configuration guidance: Validate formulas with known examples, units, rounding, missing inputs, and zero/blank behavior before operational use. Formula changes affect future calculations and may affect retests.

Dynamic Analysis Specifications#

Loads specification ranges from a structured spreadsheet when limits vary by attributes beyond a simple sample-type mapping.

Example

Upload a workbook that sets different nutrient limits by service keyword, permit class, and discharge location.

Core pieces: Specification spreadsheet
Required columns: Keyword, min, and max
Optional matching columns tied to sample attributes
Rows defining context-specific limits
Connects to: Analysis Specifications, sample metadata, service keywords, and result range evaluation.
Configuration guidance: Treat the workbook as controlled data. Headers must be valid, keywords must match active services, and representative rows should be tested before activation.

Interpretation Templates#

Provides reusable narrative language for interpretation, conclusions, or contextual comments on reported results.

Example

Create approved language explaining that a “Not Detected” result means the analyte was below the stated reporting limit.

Core pieces: Name
Description/template narrative
Connects to: Result review and results reporting, subject to the tenant’s reporting workflow.
Configuration guidance: Keep language approved, version-conscious, and bounded. Templates assist reviewers; they should not silently replace professional judgment.

Next step

Return to the object map, continue through the setup journey, or contact Clearline Support for tenant-specific guidance.