We are moving our entire laboratory in about 3 months. I need to know if there are any regulations on relocating/moving the storage refrigerators, freezer, platelet incubator. We are only moving down one floor of the hospital.

Can we move one frig at a time, watch the temp for a few hours and then reload, or do we have to let them sit empty for 24 hours. The movers should be able to move them by keeping them upright....we are pretty sure the doors are all big enough.

I have searched and searched and can't really find any guidelines .

Thanks for any help you can offer.

When product storage units are moved a short distance within our facility, we allow for use immediately after the unit stabilizes at its required temperature. We use our remote temperature monitoring system to qualify that the temperature is OK after products are returned and would move them out if the temperature became unacceptable.

If we have a longer distance or downtime, then we sometimes monitor the temperature ever 4 hours for 48 hours and compare it with our remote temperature monitoring system to ensure that everything is functioning. We picked these times because our QA department found them agreeable -- I don't think that we had any other logic than that.

You should definitely have a plan stating how you will qualify the product storage units after the move.

For moving equipment (defined as having to unplug to relocate to a new location), I use the same process for post-repair qualification. For temperature-controlled storage equipment, that would mean maintaining temp for 24hrs of continuous monitoring, verifying the system settings, rechecking the sensor and alarm system calibrations, and documenting the entire procedure through approval.

We moved our entire lab a few years back. We moved one BB refrigerator first, and let it sit for several days. Then moved the 2nd one later. For some reason we used 72 hours. At the time, we had a reason for 72 hours, but now I don't know where 72 hours came from.... duh.

We had some problems with electrical outlets in our new area, so don't forget to have heat blocks, centrifuges, gel stations, etc. set up and 'validated' before the day of the move. Make sure your phones work and everybody knows the new numbers.

Linda Frederick

Generally speaking, 24 hours would be the norm to allow the refrigerator to stabilize. This would also give you time to record temperatures on the charts, thus documenting the temperature had stabilized. We have a refrigerator specialist in our hospital and he has always required us to wait 24 hours after a repair to use it again, if it required unplugging it. As mentioned above, if you had any problems (i.e., plugs, etc) your supply would be in a stable environment until the issues were resolved.

I am not aware of any standards dictating a time though.

MLW

We will also be moving in the next year, but only to to room next door. Any suggestions on equalizing the temperature? I thought it might only take a short while.

We have "traded" product storage units in the past between adjacent departments or moved equipment from one area of our the department to another. This is a quote from my Change Control Form:

When the Johnson Control shows that thet refrigerators are within acceptable temperature range, return the products from CL1 to IC1 and CL4. Because of the short distance of the move, accept continuous monitoring by Johnson Control as verification that the refrigerators are functional and handle any alarm situations per SOP.

Thanks to a fellow Hoosier!

We perform the Quarterly Alarm check and wait 24 hours mainly to ensure that the repair [or the move] is effective before moving a great quantity of blood products.