Buying from factory surplus is often a great way to save money on supplies for your workplace. While this is a relatively common practice with office supplies and other common items, if you work in a lab, you may be surprised to know that you can get lab equipment at surplus prices. If you contact the maker of your laboratory supplies, you can probably find a surplus outlet where you can get great deals on your laboratory supply.

Getting Yesterday's Models for Less

Most often, laboratory equipment that is for sale at surplus is equipment that has been replaced by newer products. Most times, this is just an upgrade to a newer model, leaving the older models to sit in surplus. While new models will be found in "top of the line" labs, most times the older model is still perfectly serviceable.

Read up on the product specifications before buying machinery from surplus. If a product has been updated for safety reasons, or for better quality of results, you might want to get the new model. However, if the new model just gives results faster or with less supervision, you can get the same job done on a smaller equipment budget.

Along these same lines, if you already have lab equipment that is being upgraded, look into buying accessories from surplus. Many times, accessories are not compatible between models, and you can significantly upgrade your older machines for a comparatively tiny cost. Also, any slide covers, vials, cuvets, or other disposables used by your devices will probably be put on clearance--a great opportunity for you to stock up.