Automation typically affects labor in what way?

• A. Increases the labor component
• B. Minimizes the labor component
• C. Eliminates the need for reagents
• D. Increases manual sample preparation

Answer: (B)

Automation reduces the labor burden in a clinical chemistry lab. By taking over repetitive, hands-on tasks such as pipetting, sample handling, and routine processing, automated systems perform these steps faster and with greater consistency. This lowers the hands-on time and the personnel needed per test—the labor component—so staff can focus on oversight, maintenance, or more advanced work. Reagents are still required for assays, so automation doesn’t eliminate them, and it generally decreases manual sample preparation rather than increasing it.