New automated tool to remove sample tube caps
device for the opening and closing of screw caps on sample tubes
that it claims is three times faster than the manual method.
The new device, called Alto-8, provides access to eight sample tubes at a time and also reduces the risk of strain injury caused by the manual removal and replacement of caps, said the company.
The firm also claims that an entire rack of screw-cap tubes can be processed, with pipetting, in less than ten minutes - a three-fold increase in productivity compared with human operation.
Sample tubes are basic and essential tools for researchers in the drug discovery market and the automation of certain repetitive procedures could save labs important amounts of time and money.
Therefore, laboratory automation is now a critical component of pharmaceutical drug discovery, biotechnology and clinical specimen processing.
The entire lab automation industry generated over $1.2bn (€933m) in 2000 worldwide and has been growing approximately 15 per cent per year since.
The main objectives for automating laboratory processes are accelerating research and discovery, reducing the risk of human errors, tracking a large number of samples at a time, and improving sterile conditions.
UK-based ABgene, which is part of the Fisher Biosciences group, is a specialist provider of lab instrumentation used in drug discovery, genomic research and biological archiving.
