Cloud vs. On-Premises: Cost Comparison for Laboratory Monitoring System

A laboratory monitoring system can enable remote access, tracking, handling of data samples and instruments, among other functions.

In a situation where data integrity is in question, potential errors, in most cases, turn to the quality of reagents or perhaps a deviation from experiment protocols. Implementation of a Laboratory Monitoring System excludes the factors leading to some of these errors from the equation. Better still, connecting the system to the Internet of Things (IoT) will enable lab data to be monitored and managed more efficiently from a remote location.

Laboratory Management System, also known as Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS), comes in varied forms depending on the vendor. For instance, a system designed for a food and beverage lab differs from the one made for an industrial lab.

However, a better way of classifying the different categories of this system is by deployment. A Lab Management System can either be deployed in the cloud or on the premises. While both have benefits, companies need to compare cloud vs. on-premises costs to choose the best approach.

Many organizations are always trying to cut down on their operational costs. It is where the need for cloud vs. on-premises cost comparison comes in. By cloud vs. on-premises cost comparison, businesses can consider the recurring cost before implementing either of the two approaches. When it comes to comparing cloud vs. on-premises cost and determining the best of the two, as with many IT questions, the answer is: it depends.

You need to weigh the options carefully to avoid future regrets. The discussion below compares cloud vs. on-premises costs. It will assist your enterprise to come up with the right approach.

Cloud-Based

Cloud-based Laboratory Monitoring Systems are designed for seamless real-time data streaming from a device using integrated sensors or direct device integration. While its installation and operations are simple, cloud-based lab operators enjoy the relief of no software installation and maintenance cost.

Usually, cloud-hosted systems are on pay-per-use logic. The cost of backup and support is, therefore, included in the total service cost. Since it is a web-based system, its database and the entire architecture is hosted by the provider.

It means there are no requirements for additional hardware components. Also, there is a reduced need f

or IT support since the model's implementation comes with systems in place for day-to-day processes maintenance.

This type of system adds an extra margin of security by obviously preventing physical intruders from accessing it. Although the system will be vulnerable to potential hackers, there are measures in place to curb such cyber-crimes. In this case, only a fraction of funds intended for paying your labs' IT experts will be paid to the cloud-based solution providers.

Signing up for a cloud-based solution is a simple task and a relatively low starter budget. Mostly, the system will be functional within a day or two. However, an equivalent license fee based on the number of users and the level of functionality will be required. As the user team grows, so will the monthly charges. Conversely, a reduced number of users will reduce the monthly fee as well.

On-premises is also known as on-prem and entails using a physical infrastructure to run servers, emails, networks, and storage facilities in-house. It is a traditional approach that requires both hardware and software infrastructure to be owned and managed by the organization. On-prem may also mean the organization hosts its own data center on-site if it is a large scale business.

In terms of start-up costs, on-premises storage is more expensive. Due to the cost of hardware, server room, and power needed to implement on-premises storage, the overall cost is high.

There are significant upfront financial expenses that come with the purchase of the hardware and software infrastructure. On-premises also calls for IT experts to be readily available to maintain, monitor, and support the systems in the case of any downtimes or updates.

When equipment fails or breaks down, there is also the cost of repair or replacement. By factoring in all these, the costs associated with on-premises can run exponentially higher than cloud storage.

When looking at cloud vs. on-premises cost comparison, they both have advantages and disadvantages. Cloud vs. on-premises cost comparison might be misleading due to false assumptions. Most people believe that the cloud approach is cheaper than on-premises storage.

Although the on-premises approach has significant capital expenses during the initial set-up phase, it may be more suitable for companies with large amounts of data. Why is this? Cloud-based storage costs increase with increasing amounts of data. While the on-premises approach requires a lot of capital to start up, it doesn't have monthly charges once set up.

Cloud storage may seem cheaper, but may cost you more in the long run. However, cloud storage saves the enterprise both security and maintenance costs.

In the battle of cloud vs. on-premises cost, there is no clear cut winner. The solution that delivers the knockout punch will depend entirely on the facts on the ground and the factors specific to the business. So, when it comes to cloud vs. on-premises cost comparison, it pays to do extensive research before settling on the final choice.