BATTLE: New technology will help fleets
Environmental Scientifics Group (ESG) are now offering hair toxicology analysis in their battle against fleet driver drug use.
The company have invested more than £200,000 in the drug and alcohol detection technology, which uses the Shimadza Ultra High Performance Liquid Chromatograph with Triple Quadruple Mass Spectrometer.
This, ESG claim, puts the service at the ‘forefront of technological advances in the industry’.
The Shimadzu machine, boasts the fastest multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) transition times on the market, together with novel hair extraction technology developed at ESG.
It will, claim ESG, significantly improve turnaround times of results – a key factor during pre-employment assessment or random in-house screenings.
Fiona Coope, Business Manager for Laboratories and Analytical Services, said: “There are a number of benefits to using hair samples for drug abuse analysis.
“With this new technology we’ll be able to screen for substances and confirm what they are at the same time, speeding up the process significantly.
“We’ll also be able to detect if an employee has been taking drugs over a prolonged period of time.
“By combining hair toxicology with urine testing, which uses gas chromatography and mass spectrometry to provide both unambiguous and quantifiable data, our clients can identify drug use much quicker and build up a more accurate picture of short-term and historic abuse.”
ESG are already in talks with a number of contractors about providing hair toxicology testing services this year.
