Why Organizations Choose ATEK Over Fluke
Fluke instruments are in virtually every calibration lab in North America — and for good reason. When you need to verify that a reference thermometer reads ±0.125°C at a specific moment in time, nothing matches a DewK 1620A. But when regulators ask for continuous, validated environmental monitoring records across your entire pharmaceutical facility, a precision instrument designed for metrology labs cannot do the job of a monitoring platform. That distinction — instruments versus outcomes — is why organizations add ATEK alongside their Fluke equipment.
Understanding Fluke
Fluke Corporation was founded in 1948 by John Fluke Sr. and is headquartered in Everett, Washington. A subsidiary of Fortive Corporation (NYSE: FTV), Fluke employs approximately 4,160 people and distributes through over 100 countries. In June 2025, Fortive completed the spin-off of its Precision Technologies segment into Ralliant Corporation (NYSE: RAL), creating questions about long-term product ownership for some Fluke Calibration products.
Fluke’s environmental monitoring products include the DewK 1620A thermo-hygrometer ($3,600-$4,500 per unit, monitoring 2 sensor points each), the 2456-LEM Laboratory Environment Monitor (designed for calibration labs with barometric pressure, temperature, humidity, and air density), and LogWare III data logging software. Their calibration management software ecosystem includes MET/TEAM (asset management with Part 11 support), MET/CAL (automated calibration procedures), and CalStudio (newer SaaS platform launched November 2025). In Canada, Fluke Electronics Canada LP operates from Mississauga, Ontario, with SCC-accredited calibration services.
Fluke’s recognized strengths include:
- World-Class Calibration Accreditation — NVLAP and A2LA-accredited labs in Everett WA, American Fork UT, Phoenix AZ, and Beaverton OR, recognized under the ILAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement. Their primary temperature and humidity lab in American Fork is among the most precise in North America.
- Unmatched Precision Instrumentation — The DewK 1620A delivers ±0.125°C accuracy (High model) with 400,000-point onboard storage (approximately 2 years at 10-minute intervals). Fluke metrology instruments serve as the reference standards that other manufacturers calibrate against.
- Comprehensive NA Service Network — Five service centers across North America including an SCC-accredited facility in Mississauga, Ontario. Gold Support contracts offer priority queue access, dedicated technical assistance, firmware updates, and accessory replacement.
Common Challenges with Fluke
Organizations in regulated industries that attempt to use Fluke instruments for environmental monitoring frequently encounter these limitations:
- DewK is a lab instrument, not a monitoring platform — Each DewK unit monitors only 2 sensor points via wired RS-232 or Ethernet connections, with a maximum cable run of 100 feet. Scaling to monitor 50+ locations across a pharmaceutical facility requires 25+ individual instruments, each requiring AC power, wired connectivity, and separate configuration.
- LogWare III lacks FDA 21 CFR Part 11 compliance — Fluke’s environmental data logging software is a client-server application without explicit Part 11 validation. Their Part 11-capable software (MET/TEAM, CalStudio) is designed for calibration asset management, not continuous environmental monitoring records. This creates a compliance gap for GxP-regulated facilities.
- No automated excursion alerting infrastructure — DewK provides basic visual and audible alarms on the device itself, plus a 0-12V alarm output. There is no built-in SMS, email, or phone tree escalation. If a temperature excursion occurs overnight and no one is standing near the instrument, the alarm goes unheard.
- Spot-check mentality in a continuous monitoring world — EU GMP Annex 1 (revised August 2022) and FDA guidance increasingly require continuous monitoring with validated electronic records. Interval-based logging from standalone instruments cannot capture transient events between readings and introduces manual-data-entry risk that regulators flag during inspections.
- Linear cost scaling — At $3,600-$4,500 per DewK unit (2 monitoring points each), a 100-point monitoring deployment would require ~$180,000-$225,000 in hardware alone, before adding LogWare III licenses, calibration services, and Gold Support contracts for each instrument.
How ATEK Addresses These Needs
Continuous 24/7 Monitoring with 30-Second Updates: Where Fluke’s DewK logs data at configurable intervals and stores it locally, ATEK’s wireless sensors transmit readings to the cloud every 30 seconds. This continuous data stream satisfies the monitoring requirements that regulators increasingly expect — no gaps between readings, no lost data during manual download cycles, and a complete environmental record for every monitored location. Explore ATEK’s pharmaceutical monitoring solutions to see how continuous monitoring replaces interval-based logging.
Native FDA 21 CFR Part 11 for Environmental Data: LogWare III was designed to log data from precision instruments, not to produce regulatory-grade environmental records. ATEK’s platform provides validated electronic signatures, immutable audit trails, ALCOA+ data integrity, and one-click compliance reports — all purpose-built for the FDA 21 CFR Part 11 requirements that pharmaceutical facilities must satisfy. No need to layer calibration management software on top of a data logging tool.
Enterprise-Wide Visibility from a Single Dashboard: Fluke’s DewK units are standalone instruments. Each one connects independently to LogWare III client-server software. ATEK’s cloud platform provides a single view across every monitoring point in every facility — with real-time dashboards, configurable alerts, and regulatory reporting accessible from any browser or mobile device. Your quality team sees the entire operation, not individual instrument readings.
All-Inclusive Pricing That Replaces Instrument Accumulation: Instead of purchasing individual DewK units, separate LogWare licenses, per-instrument calibration services, and Gold Support contracts for each device, ATEK provides a single per-monitoring-point price that includes wireless sensors, cloud platform, A2LA-accredited calibration, IQ/OQ/PQ validation documentation, training, and 24/7 support.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Factor | Fluke | ATEK | Advantage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Measurement precision | ±0.125°C (DewK-H) — reference grade | Pharma-grade compliance monitoring | Fluke |
| Calibration lab accreditation | NVLAP + A2LA (multiple labs) | A2LA accredited | Fluke |
| Calibration tool ecosystem | Industry-leading (MET/CAL, MET/TEAM) | Not offered (monitoring, not calibration) | Fluke |
| Continuous environmental monitoring | Not core capability | Purpose-built | ATEK |
| FDA 21 CFR Part 11 (monitoring data) | LogWare III: no Part 11 | Native compliance | ATEK |
| Multi-site monitoring | Not available | Cloud-native, unlimited sites | ATEK |
| Excursion alerting | Basic on-device alarm | SMS, email, phone, escalation protocols | ATEK |
| 24/7 support for monitoring | Not offered | 5-minute guaranteed response | ATEK |
| Deployment scalability | Linear (per-instrument cost) | Per-monitoring-point pricing | ATEK |
Who Benefits Most from Adding ATEK
- Pharmaceutical facilities using Fluke DewK for environmental monitoring that need to upgrade from interval-based data logging to continuous 24/7 monitoring with FDA 21 CFR Part 11-compliant records — keep Fluke for calibration, add ATEK for monitoring
- Quality teams preparing for regulatory inspections who cannot demonstrate continuous environmental monitoring or Part 11-compliant audit trails from their current Fluke-based setup
- Multi-site organizations that have outgrown the per-instrument approach and need enterprise-wide environmental visibility without purchasing and managing dozens of standalone DewK units
Making the Transition
Adding ATEK to a facility that uses Fluke instruments follows a complementary deployment model — ATEK does not replace your Fluke calibration equipment:
- Monitoring Gap Assessment — We identify which locations currently rely on Fluke instruments for environmental monitoring (as opposed to calibration verification). This mapping reveals where continuous monitoring sensors need to deploy and which Fluke instruments should remain for their intended calibration purpose.
- Sensor Deployment — ATEK wireless sensors install in minutes per location. No wiring, no AC power, no RS-232 cables. Sensors begin transmitting data to the cloud immediately, providing continuous monitoring alongside any existing Fluke instruments.
- Compliance Validation — Complete IQ/OQ/PQ documentation is included. Your quality team receives the validation package they need for the next regulatory inspection, covering electronic signatures, audit trails, and data integrity — the specific Part 11 compliance elements that LogWare III does not provide.
- Operational Cutover — Your facilities team retains Fluke instruments for calibration verification and spot-check measurements. ATEK handles continuous environmental monitoring, automated alerting, and regulatory reporting. Request a demo to see how the two systems complement each other in your specific environment.
When Fluke May Be the Right Fit
Fluke is the right choice when your primary need is precision measurement and calibration — verifying that your monitoring sensors read accurately, qualifying clean rooms during validation events, or maintaining reference standards for your metrology lab. No cloud monitoring platform replaces a DewK for primary temperature calibration or a Fluke 5730A for electrical standards. Organizations that only need occasional environmental readings (not continuous GxP monitoring) and have no FDA 21 CFR Part 11 reporting requirements may find Fluke instruments sufficient for their scope.
When ATEK Is the Better Choice
Choose ATEK when you need:
- Continuous 24/7 environmental monitoring with 30-second data intervals — not periodic readings from standalone instruments
- FDA 21 CFR Part 11-compliant monitoring records with electronic signatures and immutable audit trails, which LogWare III does not provide
- Enterprise-wide visibility across every monitoring point in every facility from a single cloud dashboard
- Automated excursion alerting via SMS, email, and phone with 5-minute guaranteed live support response — not an audible alarm on an instrument in an empty lab
- All-inclusive pricing that replaces the accumulating cost of individual DewK units, LogWare licenses, per-instrument calibration services, and Gold Support contracts
Keep your Fluke equipment for what it does best — calibration. Add ATEK for what regulated facilities actually need — continuous compliance monitoring.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does ATEK replace Fluke instruments?
No. Fluke and ATEK serve different purposes. Fluke instruments verify measurement accuracy through calibration — a DewK confirms that a temperature sensor reads correctly at a specific point in time. ATEK provides continuous environmental monitoring that tracks conditions 24/7 and generates the compliance records regulators require. Most ATEK customers continue using Fluke calibration tools alongside ATEK’s monitoring platform.
Is ATEK FDA 21 CFR Part 11 compliant where Fluke is not?
For environmental monitoring data, yes. Fluke’s data logging software (LogWare III) does not claim FDA 21 CFR Part 11 compliance. Fluke’s Part 11-capable software — MET/TEAM and CalStudio — is designed for calibration asset management, not environmental monitoring records. ATEK’s platform provides native Part 11 compliance specifically for the continuous environmental monitoring data that pharmaceutical regulators audit.
Can ATEK match Fluke’s measurement accuracy?
Fluke’s DewK 1620A achieves ±0.125°C (High model), which is reference-grade precision designed for calibration laboratories. ATEK’s sensors are designed for pharmaceutical compliance monitoring accuracy requirements, which are different from metrology-grade calibration. For the specific task of continuous GxP environmental monitoring, ATEK’s accuracy exceeds regulatory requirements. For primary calibration reference work, Fluke remains the standard.
How does ATEK’s pricing compare to building a Fluke-based monitoring system?
A Fluke-based monitoring approach using DewK units would cost approximately $3,600-$4,500 per unit (2 monitoring points each), plus LogWare III licenses, per-instrument calibration services, and Gold Support contracts. A 50-point monitoring deployment could exceed $100,000 in hardware alone. ATEK’s all-inclusive per-monitoring-point pricing bundles sensors, cloud platform, calibration, validation, and 24/7 support into a predictable cost that typically results in lower total ownership for multi-point deployments.
What about Fluke’s CalStudio — doesn’t that provide cloud monitoring?
CalStudio, launched in November 2025, is a SaaS calibration management platform. It manages calibration assets, schedules, and certificates — not continuous environmental monitoring. CalStudio complements MET/TEAM and MET/CAL in Fluke’s calibration workflow. ATEK’s cloud platform serves a fundamentally different purpose: continuous environmental monitoring with automated alerting and compliance reporting for regulated facilities.
Will the Fortive/Ralliant separation affect Fluke products?
In June 2025, Fortive completed the spin-off of Ralliant Corporation (NYSE: RAL), which includes parts of the Precision Technologies segment. Fluke’s core test and measurement brand remained with Fortive, but some calibration products may fall under Ralliant. This corporate restructuring could create confusion about which entity owns specific products, support contracts, and roadmaps. ATEK, as a focused environmental monitoring company, has no comparable corporate complexity.