AIA (ALSSA)

AIA (today called ALSSA) is the abbreviation for Analytical Instrument Association (ALSSA = Analytical and Life Science Systems Association). The AIA is an association of manufacturing and sales companies for chemical analysis instruments and software. Their aim is to develop guidelines for a standardized chromatography file format and thus, facilitate exchanging data between laboratory systems produced by different manufacturers.

This especially refers to the independence from operating systems and the selected transfer type, but standardization efforts also involve operation, documentation, maintenance, and GLP requirements.

The generally valid AIA (ALSSA) export format for chromatography data is known as ANDI (ANalytical Data Interchange/Chromatography).

Since 1992, there are five data format categories (Category 1 through 5). However, only the categories 1 and 2 are widely accepted so far.

Data formats of category 1 comply with standard raw data, unit, and scaling guidelines, and include information about where original data and corresponding methods are stored. This allows you to exactly restore a chromatogram from its raw data.

In addition to amount values and names for substance identification, data formats of category 2 also transmit all calculated results; for example, based on a chromatogram. Thus, the data can be managed in a database or LIMS.

Using the AIA format (ANDI) in Chromeleon

To export data from Chromeleon, you can use the ANDI format. Select Export/Backup on the File menu of the Browser. Select ANDI/Chromatography (AIA) to open the Export ANDI/Chromatography (AIA) dialog box.

It is also possible to export and print data simultaneously. On the File menu in the Browser, select Batch Report. Under Export Options, select the Export check box. The Export Wizard: Common Options dialog box appears. Select the ANDI/Chromatography - AIA (*.cdf) check box, and then click Next>. In the Export Wizard: Options AIA Format (*.cdf) dialog box, define the AIA format. The Export Wizard corresponds to the Batch Setup command in the Printer Layout. Enable Layout Mode on the Edit menu, and then select Batch Report Setup on the File menu. On the AIA format (*.cdf) tab page, define the AIA format.

You can also import AIA files into Chromeleon. On the File menu of the Browser, select Import/Restore, and then select the ANDI/Chromatography (AIA). In the dialog box, select the file to be imported.