Requirements engineering for the management of reagents and materials in university laboratories

Abstract

The management of university laboratories represents a critical challenge due to the high demand for resources, the coexistence of teaching and research activities, and the need to maintain traceability of equipment and supplies. This paper presents the requirements engineering of a Digital Control System for Laboratory Reagents and Materials (SDCRML, by its Spanish acronym), aiming to transform current manual management into an automated, secure, and efficient system, developed under an agile approach oriented toward User Stories (US). The requirement gathering process with institutional actors from the Faculty of Chemical Biological Sciences (FCQB) at the Autonomous University of Campeche (UACAM) is documented up to the formalization of acceptance criteria and its corresponding solution architecture. System evaluation using the System Usability Scale (SUS) and user testing demonstrated that the system provides real-time inventory control, complete traceability of supplies, a reduction in human error, and strengthened decision-making, thereby contributing to operational efficiency, safety in substance handling, and institutional transparency.