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eLabNext documents research and tracks samples. Seal runs development, the lab, the batch and quality.

Seal, the GxP execution system, is your eBR, your QMS and more. Neil, your AI agent, does the paperwork across your systems. You sign. MiAlgae cut documentation time by 75%. Start with one process beside eLabNext.

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Where eLabNext falls short.

From SciSure’s and eLabNext’s own pages.

  • SciSure, on average
    Around 12 weeks
    Largest organisations
    Up to 24 weeks
    Seal, a first process
    48 hours

    Weeks to productive use.

    SciSure says productive use takes around twelve weeks on average, up to twenty-four for the largest organisations. Seal has a first process working for you to evaluate within 48 hours, once the scope is agreed and the inputs received.

    SciSure, July 2026
  • 2010
    Founded, for research data
    2012
    eLabJournal, the notebook
    2025
    Lab safety, with SciShield
    Batch records, CAPA
    Not on its product list

    A research notebook, extended.

    eLabNext began in 2010 to document research and merged with a lab-safety company in 2025; its product list names no batch records or CAPA. In Seal, the notebook, QC, batch records and quality are one set of records.

    SciSure, home page
  • Advertised
    “Built-in adherence to … GxP”
    GxP signature workflows
    A Marketplace add-on
    Seal
    Part of the workflow

    GxP approvals, an add-on.

    SciSure advertises built-in adherence to 21 CFR Part 11 and GxP, yet signature workflows for “labs working under GxP regulations” are a Marketplace add-on. In Seal, review gates and signatures are part of the workflow your team configures.

    SciSure Marketplace, Signature Workflows
  • Protocol Generator
    Drafts from a prompt
    Astra Iris
    Reads SciSure’s product docs
    SciSure MCP
    Read-only
    Neil
    Drafts the change

    Its AI changes no records.

    SciSure’s Protocol Generator drafts from a prompt, and SciSure MCP gives outside AI read-only access. Neil prepares the change itself and the paperwork around it, for your team to approve.

    SciSure, SciSure and AI

See it in Seal.

Real Seal screens with fictional test data: a protocol, the experiment run from it, and a release test on the same records.

  1. 1

    A protocol, structured.

    PR-014 defines each parameter, keeps the calculation with its units, and says what it may be used for.

    Protocol PR-014, assay development, in Seal: a preparation instruction, a table of parameters with defined values and what each experiment records, the method reference and its intended use as a research comparison, not a released QC method.
    1. Units and calculation keptDilute to 2 mg/mL in 10 mL, with the calculation retained.
    2. Structured, not free textEach parameter with its defined value and what the experiment records.
    3. Its intended useResearch comparison; not a released QC method.
  2. 2

    The experiment, linked.

    EXP-043 links its protocol and reagent lot, keeps the instrument file, and is compared with earlier runs.

    Experiment EXP-043, incubation comparison, in Seal: linked protocol PR-014 and reagent lot RG-018, the recorded incubation time, relative signal and source file, and a table comparing it with runs EXP-041 and EXP-042.
    1. Linked to protocol and lotPR-014 and reagent lot RG-018, as records.
    2. Values with their source file30 minutes and 0.76 relative signal, from EXP-043-reader.csv.
    3. Runs comparedSame incubation, different reagent lots; cause not yet established.
  3. 3

    Each result with its method and source.

    Release test S-041-12: every result carries its method version, instrument file and limit, and the batch it came from.

    Sample S-041-12, release testing, in Seal: linked to batch B-041 and a potency preparation, a table of results for potency, impurity A and water content with unit, limit, status, method and source, and water content outside its limit with the investigation open.
    1. The batch it came fromB-041, linked to the sample.
    2. Method and source on every rowEach result keeps its method version, instrument file and limit.
    3. The exception, at the resultWater content 0.72% against ≤ 0.50%, with the investigation open.

What Seal’s customers measured.

Each figure links to the customer’s story.

QualityAcclinate and Skye Biologics

−50%
quality cycle times at Acclinate, from a procedure change to everyone trained.Acclinate
−40%
non-conformances at Skye Biologics, with training checked before execution.Skye Biologics

RecordsMiAlgae and Bioventix

−75%
documentation time at MiAlgae, from the lab to commercial production.MiAlgae
−80%
document admin time at Bioventix, after two decades on paper.Bioventix

ELabNext and Seal, side by side.

Every source is listed under References.

eLabNext (SciSure)Seal
What it isELN, LIMS, inventory and EHS¹The GxP execution system: your eBR, your QMS and more
Built forResearch documentation and lab safety²Process development, the lab, manufacturing, batch release and quality
Data modelThe experiment and the sample type³⁴Primitives your team composes: record types, their relationships, steps and checks
AIDrafts protocols; outside AI tools read records⁵⁶Neil, Seal’s AI agent, prepares changes to the process; your team approves them
OwnerSciSure, backed by Strattam Capital⁷Opvia Ltd., trading as Seal
Connected toSafety, training, inspections²QC, batch records and quality
SamplesSample types as templates⁴Containers checked at point of use
GxP approvalsSignature Workflows add-on⁸Review gates and signatures built in
Quality eventsNot on its product list¹Deviations, CAPA, change control
Getting startedAround twelve weeks to productive use⁹A 48-hour evaluation of one process, once the scope is agreed and the inputs received

Summary

The story
eLabNext is good for documenting research in academic and start-up labs.¹⁰² Its two founders started it in 2010, having lacked tools for lab work and data as PhD students,¹⁰¹¹ and its notebook, eLabJournal, launched in 2012 for inventory, protocols and experimental results.¹⁰¹² Its records are still the experiment and the sample, stored by sample type.³⁴ SciSure, formed when eLabNext merged with a lab-safety software company in 2025,⁷ advertises built-in adherence to 21 CFR Part 11 and GxP,¹ yet multi-step signature workflows for GxP labs are a Marketplace add-on,⁸ and it puts the time to productive use at around twelve weeks on average, up to twenty-four for the largest organisations.⁹ Its AI drafts a protocol from a prompt, an add-on announced in 2023, and since 2026 lets outside AI tools read, but not edit, experiments, samples and protocols.¹³¹⁴⁶ If the notebook is the whole job, it can work well. It seldom stays the whole job once a method moves towards QC and the batch.

1What eLabNext offers.

eLabNext, founded in 2010 and based in Groningen, merged in January 2025 with SciShield, a Boston-based environmental health and safety software company, to form SciSure, which bought Labfolder and Labregister from Labforward in September 2025.¹⁰⁷² Experiments start from scratch or from templates with required fields, link to samples, reagents and consumables, and go for review and witness signing; procedures can carry variables and formulas.³ Samples are stored by sample type, which SciSure calls “only templates for storing sample information”,⁴ and inventory tracks samples, storage, stock, equipment and barcodes from receipt to disposal. The safety side adds chemical inventory with safety data sheets, training records, inspections and incident reporting.² A Marketplace sells add-ons, among them Signature Workflows for GxP approvals,⁸ and an SDK lets customers build their own applications on the platform.¹⁵

SciSure’s own AI is three tools, and Marketplace partners sell others. The AI Protocol Generator turns a short prompt into a draft protocol; Astra Iris answers questions from SciSure’s product documentation and does not access research records; and SciSure MCP gives an outside AI tool read-only access to experiments, samples and protocols in its ELN and LIMS, following each user’s permissions.⁵⁶

2Running Seal alongside eLabNext.

Teams start Seal on one controlled process while existing records stay where they are. Seal has no dedicated eLabNext or SciSure connector. Where a system is not on Seal’s integrations list, Seal’s REST API reads and writes records from another system, and Scripts, versioned Python changed, tested and published like other Seal records, can call an external service after an event or on a schedule. SciSure provides an API for connecting its platform to other software.¹⁵

Start with read access, such as reading the sample or reagent record a Seal workflow references. Treat any write-back as a separate decision with defined actions, review gates and audit evidence. Agree identifiers and mappings, test missing, delayed and duplicate records, reconcile what arrives against the source, and record which system is the source of truth for each record. Instrument files can come to Seal directly through the installable Seal IoT agent, which watches an export folder and uploads supported files to a configured Seal record.

3Moving from eLabNext to Seal.

Start with one process. Nothing else has to move first.

  1. Choose a process where material eligibility or controlled change matters: a QC test, a buffer or media preparation, or a method approaching transfer.
  2. Bring the procedure, a few representative runs and the files behind their results, and list the samples and materials the process uses. Start with sample material, or arrange an NDA before sharing confidential records.
  3. Neil configures the workflow from your procedure: required inputs, units, calculations and material links. Your team checks it against the work. Once the scope is agreed and the inputs received, Seal prepares the first working process and its validation pack to evaluate within 48 hours. Production timing then depends on scope, interfaces, migration and your release requirements.
  4. Test a normal run, missing data, an ineligible material and a changed protocol.
  5. If records move, use SciSure’s JSON or XML exports where you can, map sample types and fields, preserve the source records and keep gaps visible.⁴

Retention obligations continue for the records that stay in SciSure. The ELN blueprint shows the protocol and experiment model in detail.

References

  1. 1Lab Management Software for Modern Labs, SciSure. https://www.scisure.com/ (read 5 November 2026)
  2. 2About SciSure, formerly eLabNext & SciShield, SciSure. https://www.scisure.com/about-us (read 5 November 2026)
  3. 3Electronic Lab Notebook (ELN) Software, SciSure. https://www.scisure.com/eln (read 5 November 2026)
  4. 4FAQs, SciSure (formerly eLabNext & SciShield). https://www.scisure.com/faq (read 5 November 2026)
  5. 5SciSure and AI for Scientific Research, SciSure. https://www.scisure.com/ai (read 5 November 2026)
  6. 6SciSure MCP: Connect AI with Scientific Data, SciSure. https://www.scisure.com/ai/mcp (read 5 November 2026)
  7. 7SciShield and eLabNext Merge to Create SciSure and Deliver the Future of Scientific Research Management, SciSure, 29 January 2025. https://www.scisure.com/blog/scishield-and-elabnext-merge-to-launch-scisure-0942d (read 5 November 2026)
  8. 8Signature Workflows, SciSure Marketplace. https://www.scisure.com/marketplace/signature-workflows (read 5 November 2026)
  9. 9ELN and LIMS Consulting: Do You Actually Need It?, SciSure, 29 July 2026. https://www.scisure.com/blog/benefits-of-hiring-an-eln-consultant (read 5 November 2026)
  10. 10About Us, eLabNext, archived 3 January 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240103175138/https://www.elabnext.com/about-us/ (read 5 November 2026)
  11. 11Customizing Digital Lab Experiences With Ease: an interview with eLabNext co-founders Erwin Seinen and Wouter de Jong, TetraScience, 2 May 2022. https://www.tetrascience.com/blog/elabnext (read 5 November 2026)
  12. 12The Paper Lab Notebook is Finally Dying, SciSure. https://www.scisure.com/content-hub/the-paper-lab-notebook-is-finally-dying (read 5 November 2026)
  13. 13Revolutionizing Laboratory Management with generative AI Integration and our Protocol Generation Add-On, eLabNext (SciSure), 18 September 2023. https://www.scisure.com/blog/revolutionizing-laboratory-management-with-generative-ai-integration-and-our-protocol-generation-add-on (read 5 November 2026)
  14. 14Connecting AI to Scientific Data: The Next Step for AI in Labs, SciSure, 2 April 2026. https://www.scisure.com/blog/connecting-ai-to-scientific-data-the-next-step-for-ai-in-labs (read 5 November 2026)
  15. 15SciSure Developer Hub (formerly eLabNext & SciShield), SciSure. https://www.scisure.com/developer-hub (read 5 November 2026)

AQuestions and answers

Is Seal better than eLabNext?

Yes. eLabNext is good for documenting research in academic and start-up labs. Its two founders started it in 2010, having lacked tools for lab work and data as PhD students, and its notebook, eLabJournal, launched in 2012 for inventory, protocols and experimental results. Its records are still the experiment and the sample, stored by sample type. SciSure, formed when eLabNext merged with a lab-safety software company in 2025, advertises built-in adherence to 21 CFR Part 11 and GxP, yet multi-step signature workflows for GxP labs are a Marketplace add-on, and it puts the time to productive use at around twelve weeks on average, up to twenty-four for the largest organisations. Its AI drafts a protocol from a prompt, an add-on announced in 2023, and since 2026 lets outside AI tools read, but not edit, experiments, samples and protocols. If the notebook is the whole job, it can work well. It seldom stays the whole job once a method moves towards QC and the batch. Seal has no fixed model of one kind of work. It is built from primitives: record types, the relationships between them, and the steps and checks that use them, which your own team composes into your process, with Neil able to prepare each change for approval. So one platform runs process development, the laboratory, manufacturing, batch release and the quality system, and each change becomes a new version, released once its selected tests pass, while earlier runs keep theirs. Moving from paper, MiAlgae cut documentation time by 75% and went from the laboratory to commercial production on one platform.

What happened to eLabNext?

In January 2025 eLabNext merged with SciShield, an environmental health and safety software company, and the combined company was renamed SciSure. SciSure, backed by Strattam Capital, acquired Labfolder and Labregister in September 2025.

Is Seal an alternative to eLabNext or SciSure?

Yes. Seal is an ELN with sample and inventory records on the same platform as process development, QC testing, batch records and the quality system. It checks materials at the point of use and releases each change with its acceptance tests. SciSure is designed for research and lab safety, and its product list names no batch records, deviations or change control.

Does Seal manage samples and inventory?

Yes. Seal records each sample and physical container with its quantity, status, location history and actual use, and evaluates shelf life, retest, open life and use-by rules at the moment of use. The execution record keeps the exact container and quantity consumed, so a questioned lot can be followed to every experiment, test and batch that used it.

Can Seal work alongside SciSure?

Yes, and that is how most teams start. Seal has no dedicated SciSure connector, but its REST API and Scripts can connect a system that is not on its integrations list, and SciSure provides an API. Start with read access and agree which system is the source of truth for each record.

How does SciSure’s AI compare with Neil?

SciSure’s AI Protocol Generator, announced in 2023, turns a short prompt into a draft protocol. Astra Iris answers questions from SciSure’s product documentation and does not access research records. SciSure MCP, introduced in 2026, gives an outside AI tool read-only access to experiments, samples and protocols in SciSure’s ELN and LIMS, and does not let it edit them. Neil prepares changes to the process itself, configured from your procedures across Seal’s laboratory, manufacturing and quality records, for people to approve. In line with the EU’s draft GMP Annex 22 on AI, Neil is not used in GMP execution. It helps set up configuration, which your team verifies and releases under change control.

How long does it take to start with Seal?

Once the scope is agreed and the inputs received, Seal prepares a first working process and its validation pack to evaluate within 48 hours, configured from one of your protocols or procedures. Production timing then depends on scope, interfaces, migration and your release requirements.

Start beside eLabNext.

Start with one controlled process, such as a QC test or a buffer preparation. Seal reads the sample or reagent records it needs through its REST API and Scripts, so nothing has to move on day one.

Book a demo