Sample Management and Chain of Custody

Focuses on the practical controls needed to protect sample integrity from field collection through to disposal, including labelling, transport, storage and documented chain of custody. Draws on examples from environmental, water, mining and forensic style testing relevant to South African and regional laboratories facing long transport distances and variable field conditions.

What you will be able to do

Apply correct labelling and identification practices to incoming samples.
Complete chain of custody documentation accurately at each transfer point.
Manage sample storage conditions, holding times and preservation requirements.
Handle sample receipt discrepancies and rejection criteria consistently.
Maintain traceability of samples through preparation, testing and archiving.
Dispose of retained samples in line with documented procedures and timeframes.

Course outline

01Principles of sample integrity
02Labelling and unique identification
03Chain of custody documentation
04Transport, storage and preservation
05Holding times and stability limits
06Handling non conforming samples
07Traceability through the testing process
08Retention, archiving and disposal

Who should attend

Sample reception staff, laboratory technicians, field samplers and quality officers responsible for sample integrity.

Dates, venues and fees

Dates	Venue	Days	Fee
17 to 18 Aug 2026	Pretoria	2	R10,000
24 to 25 Aug 2026	Cape Town	2	R10,000
7 to 8 Sep 2026	Online	2	US$900
14 to 15 Sep 2026	Mozambique	2	US$1,100
21 to 22 Sep 2026	Cairo	2	US$1,100
28 to 29 Sep 2026	Accra	2	US$1,100
5 to 6 Oct 2026	Lusaka	2	US$1,100
12 to 13 Oct 2026	Kigali	2	US$1,100
19 to 20 Oct 2026	Nairobi	2	US$1,100
26 to 27 Oct 2026	Durban	2	R10,000
2 to 3 Nov 2026	Johannesburg	2	R10,000
16 to 17 Nov 2026	Mauritius	2	US$1,100
23 to 24 Nov 2026	Dubai	2	US$1,100
30 Nov to 1 Dec 2026	Lagos	2	US$1,100
7 to 8 Dec 2026	Harare	2	US$1,100
14 to 15 Dec 2026	Kampala	2	US$1,100
21 to 22 Dec 2026	Dar es Salaam	2	US$1,100

Fees are per delegate. South African venues are priced in rand; other locations and online in US dollars. Fees exclude 15% VAT where applicable. Group bookings of three or more delegates from the same organisation qualify for a reduced rate; contact us for a quotation.

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Training a whole team?

We can run Sample Management and Chain of Custody privately for your team, on your dates and built around your own systems. Group delivery is usually more cost effective from about six delegates.

Run this in-house