Business Central for life sciences: pharma, biotech and lab companies

Lot, serial and expiry tracking in Business Central for life sciences

Item tracking codes require lot or serial numbers and expiry dates at receipt, in production and on shipment. You can track instruments by serial number. Reagents, active ingredients and finished batches are tracked by lot. You set each one per item. So the rules fit the product.

Picking can follow first-expired-first-out, and expired lots can be blocked so nobody ships them. Item tracing follows a lot forward through production to every customer and backward to the supplier lots it came from. So a mock recall takes minutes, and a real one starts from facts.

Approved suppliers and controlled items

You can block items and vendors for purchase until they are approved. Item vendor records show which supplier provides which item, with its catalog number. So buyers cannot quietly switch to an unapproved source. Purchase approval workflows add a second check.

Attachments on items, vendors and lots keep certificates of analysis and supplier documents with the record they belong to. They do not sit in a shared folder that nobody can find at audit time. So your quality team finds a document in seconds.

Quality holds before stock can be sold with Business Central for life sciences

You can receive incoming goods into a quarantine location. You can also block the lot until quality release. Only released stock shows as available for picking. So nothing slips out before someone has checked it.

Inspection plans, test results and deviation records need more. Standard Business Central relies on a quality management app or an extension for them. We scope that with your quality team. So it covers what your regulators and customers ask for, and no more.

An audit trail of who changed what

The change log records changes to the fields you choose. Examples are item setup, prices, vendor bank details and lot information. It stores the user and the time of each change. You cannot edit posted documents. You can only reverse them. That keeps the ledger trustworthy.

Business Central gives you the tools. However, checking a system for your own regulatory scope is your organization's job. We document the setup and the test scripts. So your quality team has what it needs for that work.

R&D cost tracking in Business Central for life sciences

Research programs and studies can run as projects in Business Central. Lab time, materials, outside lab fees and supplier invoices post against each project and task, with a budget beside them. So finance sees spend per program without a spreadsheet.

Dimensions add a second view, such as program, grant or development stage, across every ledger entry. That helps when R&D costs must be split for grant reports or tax credit claims. Your accountant prepares those claims from the figures.

Questions about Business Central for life sciences

Is Business Central used in life sciences?

Yes. Pharma, biotech and lab companies use Business Central for lot and serial tracking, expiry dates, recall tracing, R&D project costs and an audit trail. Many add a quality app on top. We look at your products and your customers first. Then we design a setup that keeps the records your regulators and buyers expect, and that your staff can follow every day.

Is Business Central validated for regulated use?

Validation depends on how a system is set up and used. So it is always the company's duty. We document the setup and help your quality team with test scripts. We also keep a record of each change we make. So your team can show an auditor what the system does, why it does it and who approved each change along the way.

Can Business Central track serial numbers on instruments?

Yes. Item tracking can require serial numbers on receipt, assembly and shipment. You can trace each serial to the customer who received it. That helps with service and with recalls. We also set up warranty dates on the serial, if you need them. So one lookup tells you where a device went and what happened to it.

Does Business Central record who changed data?

Yes. The change log records old and new values, the user and the time. It covers the fields you choose to track. We help you pick those fields, such as prices, bank details and lot data. So you track what matters, and the log stays easy to read. Nobody has to sift through noise to find one change.

Does Business Central include quality management?

Not a full module. Quarantine locations and lot blocking are standard. Inspection plans and test results come from a quality app or an extension. We scope the extra tool with your quality team. So it covers the checks your customers and regulators ask for. It also posts its results back, so quality holds and stock stay in step.

Related pages for Business Central for life sciences

Life sciences projects share a lot with food and manufacturing. Lot tracking, quality holds and recall tracing each have a page with more detail. Start with the area your auditors ask about most. Then ask us how Business Central for life sciences can fit your products and your suppliers. For the product detail, see Microsoft's guide to working with item tracking.