What Are Laboratory Supplies? A Beginner-Friendly Overview
If you’ve ever stepped into a research lab, you know it’s filled with specialized tools and equipment—all essential for keeping experiments running smoothly. When people ask “What are Laboratory Supplies,” the short answer is: they’re the essentials that help scientists and researchers get their work done. That includes everything from basic items like petri dishes and pipettes to more advanced laboratory equipment like microscopes and micromanipulators.
The Basics: What Counts as Lab Supplies?
Lab supplies are the everyday items scientists and researchers rely on to do their work. This includes:
- Reusable instruments and tools like scalpels, forceps, and microscopes
- Consumables like petri dishes, pipette tips, and cables
- Specialized lab equipment like micromanipulators, centrifuges, or spectrophotometers
These tools form the foundation for scientific discovery, whether you're working in cell biology, chemistry, or clinical diagnostics.
Common Lab Supplies (and Why They Matter)
Surgical Instruments
Even in non-clinical labs, you’ll find surgical instruments like forceps, scissors, scalpels, and needle holders used for tasks like dissections or sample prep. They need to be precision instruments that are well-maintained, especially when working under a microscope or with small biological samples.
Bioadhesives
Surgical adhesive like Kwik-Sil or Vetbond are used to bond tissues without sutures—super useful in tissue engineering or wound healing studies. They’re gentle on samples and often speed up healing in experimental models.
Microscopes
Whether it’s a simple light microscope or a high-powered confocal scope, microscopes are vital for visualizing cells, bacteria, and other microscopic structures.
Micromanipulators
Micromanipulators are tools which offer micrometer-level precision for tasks like injecting something into a single cell (microinjection) or recording the activity of individual neurons (patch clamping). They’re often paired with microscopes in cell and neuroscience labs.
Petri Dishes
A classic! Petri dishes are cell culture dished used for growing bacteria, culturing cells, and just about anything that needs a sterile, flat surface. WPI’s unique FluoroDish™ cell culture dishes have an optical grade glass bottom that is as thin as a microscope cover slip, ideal for live cell imaging.
Why Good Supplies Matter
High-quality lab tools help ensure:
- Reliable data
- Safe procedures
- Accurate, repeatable results
At the end of the day, industrial lab supplies and lab equipment aren’t just “stuff on shelves,” they’re the foundation of how science gets done. These tools might seem basic at first glance, but they’re what allow researchers to ask big questions and actually find the answers.
Whether you’re prepping tissue samples, culturing bacteria, or fine-tuning a microscope, lab supplies are the quiet heroes behind every experiment. Understanding the tools at your disposal is the first step to running a successful, efficient lab. Looking to upgrade the tools in your research laboratory? Browse our curated selection of high-quality laboratory supplies—from precision instruments to trusted petri dishes and be sure to sign up for WPI’s New Lab Program.
