STAARS
Susquehanna Testing Analysis and Reporting Suite (STAARS)
05 February 2026
Background
When Steve and I started Susquehanna Labs this year, our main focus was purchasing the Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS) that would be the ‘heart’ of our business. Unfortunately, after searching it was clear that there was not going to be any commercial-off-the-shelve (COTS) systems which would meet both our needs and high standards. An effective LIMS system was a non-negotiable for our business. Our focus has always been, and will continue to be, building out a business foundation that will support growth and drive value for our customers (and not in the future, but from the moment of our first test). Delivering an accurate, repeatable, and timely independent testing process is mission-critical aspect of our highly impactful and competitive ballistic protection community. We are excited to announce that STAARS minimal viable product (MVP) will launch by the end of next week. MVP is not my favorite term, as minimal to me doesn’t exude the excitement and capability offering (or time and capital investment) that STAARS will debut with. I can promise the STAARS MVP will be anything but minimal.
What is STAARS?
STAARS is the ‘heart’ of Susquehanna Labs. It is our end-to-end software platform, capturing inputs starting at client information, moving to project & testing activities, and closing with reporting. STAARS is a module-based software platform built on relational database networking. What are some of the key features included in the STAARS MVP?
· Cloud-Based (No Need to Manage Onsite Servers, Managed by a Trusted IT Managed Service Provider, Redundancy & Backups)
· Calibrated Equipment Management & Database
· Project Module
· Ballistic Testing Module
· Automated Preliminary Reporting
· Automated Final Reporting
· Ability to Work Offline (No Internet, No Problem)
Is there Value to Clients?
We are certainly biased, but we believe the answer is a resounding ‘YES’. Mutual value to both Susquehanna Labs and Clients, alike. Below are a handful of areas we believe the Ballistic Community will find value.
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The area of STAARS that Susquehanna Labs is most excited and passionate about is advanced clay management. We are dedicated to gathering and aggregating clay block data, above and beyond, the requirements prescribed by leading industry test standards. STAARS is configured to capture ALL block drop records in a centralized database. This database will strictly contain drop records, and no client information – allowing Susquehanna Labs to leverage this information both internally and externally. Susquehanna Labs will be pursuing the following Advanced Clay Management Techniques:
o Process Control Charts for Block Calibration Drops – Trending Pre/Post Drop Data to better identify anomalies or trends, and block-to-block comparisons
o Characterization of Clay Block Repair – how much ‘new’ clay is required to be added to a block after use. Does this matter? Intuition and anecdotal stories make us believe, yes. We will track this data to see if any influence is uncovered through our process control charting, or ballistic verification of reference material testing.
o Ballistic Verification of Reference Material – Susquehanna Labs plans to test a known reference material (makeup TBD) against all blocks at a set time interval. This will be useful data in characterizing clay block performance in relation to actual BFD measurements vs. the required pre / post testing drops. This data will also be charted in a process control chart.
Susquehanna Labs is memorializing our Advanced Clay Management Process through an internal SOP: Advanced Clay Management (SOP-101)
We will continue to work with the ballistics community to push clay management forward, and hope building our database will help!
More To Come On This! This Topic is Deserving of a Stand-alone Article Once Finalized
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Are reporting turn-around times too long for your business? STAARS aims to drastically reduce this pain point. Preliminary reports can be generated in PDF form in the click of a button.
Final Reporting will also be automated, and an initial release can be generated within 15-minutes of project completion. STAARS is built to eliminate any manual edits outside of the STAARS platform.
What can be expected in Susquehanna Labs’ Automated Final Report?
o Formal Report Format
o Project Information (Test Date(s), Project #, Client, Point of Contact)
o Testing Type
o Detailed Testing Overview Section
o Test Configuration Section
o Test Summary Table (High-level summary of all tested samples and critical results)
o Signatures from applicable Susquehanna Labs’ personnel
o Revision History
o Test Data Sheets from each Testing Activity
o Associated Calibrated Equipment Table
If a more detailed formal report is required – we always offer that as an option; and have the expertise for authoring technical reports through a traditional process.
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Ever had an issue with what should be a constant footnote or remark changing slightly across a test series? This manual process can be plagued by small recording differences from person-to-person, or even the same person on different days. An easy and completely unintentional mistake, but one that can cause significant frustration and time loss through reporting revisions.
Clients and end-users expect consistency in both testing AND reporting. Leveraging the relational database design of STAARS, footnotes are ‘Chosen’ by Susquehanna Labs’ personnel from a set of approved footnotes. This ensures that footnotes are not manually created on the spot, eliminating small deviations in the look, feel, and text of the entry. Ultimately, reducing the need for reporting revisions.
This principle is carried through many aspects of STAARS and is not just limited to footnotes.
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STAARS was designed to ensure confidence across the entire testing process. All data, both created through testing, and required to perform testing, is standardized and captured in robust databases. Clients can be confident that related test data is captured in the same manner and with the same level of detail – regardless of test range, test personnel, or date of testing. The system is designed to have built-in features to prevent error (i.e. All selected equipment MUST be within calibration intervals). Furthermore, for projects with many samples, reports can quickly highlight non-conforming results for ease of review (i.e. High BFDs, V50s below Ballistic Limit Requirements, etc.)
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The ballistic testing process is a highly data-intensive endeavor. STAARS is built to collect a massive amount of information spanning: Client Details, Test Sample Characteristics, Test Setup, and Testing Data.
Our Preliminary Reports are entirely flexible. We have a default format, which we believe meets most needs. However, if there is an instance where you find two fields to be duplicative (i.e. Sample Size and Sample Dimensions), or maybe there is just a captured field that is not required for the specific end-user requirement. No problem – this field can be removed from the preliminary report, within STAARS. No manual edits of Word Docs or PDFs. No manual deletion of table columns or need to manually reorganize data – jeopardizing a human error. Most importantly – you can rest assured that all data captured is stored. You can always add back a removed field at any time and reproduce a preliminary report.
What to Expect Next?
Continuous improvement is a dedicated effort of Susquehanna Labs’ mission of delivering Trusted Testing for Trusted Products. We will continue to build on the foundation of STAARS to better support our ever-evolving industry. Planned STAARS updates include:
· Stab Testing Module – Expected to release by end of February 2026
· Advanced Ballistic Limit Metrics – V05, V50, V95, S-Curve Analysis
Is there something missing from your current ballistic testing data and / or reporting? Have an idea to improve your company’s testing experience? Please get in touch. Steve and I would welcome any feedback or discussions on how Susquehanna Labs can increase the value of your test data.
Interested in Learning More?
If this blog piqued your interest and you want to learn more, please reach out! We would love to give you a demo of STAARS and a preview of what you can expect if you decide to test with Susquehanna Labs.
Have an internal R&D Lab with a similar software need? Let’s talk – we may be able to help.
P: 443-347-6025
