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Published: 2011-03-31 08:58:54 CEST
Biohit Oyj
Company Announcement

Biohit enhances its liquid handling business with new solution

Biohit Oyj today announced the launch of its new tool for automated liquid handling, the Biohit Roboline, which is especially suitable for personal use in laboratories. The new device is largely based on the innovations and technology for electronic pipettes that Biohit has developed over the years. Biohit Roboline can be used in handling different samples and reagents and it offers a new solution to the growing number of safety and cost-effectiveness challenges in laboratories.

More efficient R&D and production processes are leading to increased liquid handling automation in many laboratories. Industrial laboratories in particular are seeking to move away from handheld pipettes towards computer-controlled analysis systems and liquid handling equipment that makes use of robotics.

The market for electronic pipettes is expected to rise by over 10 per cent per year, while sales of mechanical pipettes will increase by an average of 5 per cent. Electronic pipettes account for about 6 per cent of the total global market for pipettes. A significant portion of the electronic pipettes used worldwide have been developed by Biohit. The company expects the growth of the market for liquid handling tools to be based in the future on the growth of the electronic pipettes sector and the easy-to-use and reasonably priced automated liquid handling instrument sector in particular. According to Biohit’s estimates, the market for automated liquid handling devices is already larger than for pipettes.

“The new instrument, including its service concept, broadens Biohit’s product and service portfolio, and opens new segments, where there haven’t been similar solutions before. Thus, the new product launch strengthens Biohit’s foundation for growth in the liquid handling business,” says Jussi Heiniö, President  & CEO of Biohit.

A small and compact automated pipetting tool

The small Biohit Roboline is the most compact automatic liquid handling instrument on the market. It does not require much space and can be easily placed on the lab desk. The easily adopted software makes the tool easy to use and suitable for both research and in the routine operations of different types of laboratories. The inexpensive Roboline is marketed as a personal working tool for laboratory workers, for example. The Roboline can also be used in automating the test evaluations of diagnostics companies.

The Roboline enables the user to simply automate a single work stage or a whole application. The robotic dispensing module guarantees that results are accurate and precise without the risk of human error. The automated device is particularly suitable for low and medium-throughput laboratories. The Roboline can be equipped with technology that is based on the vertical photometry innovation made by the founder of Biohit, Professor Osmo Suovaniemi. Thus, the device is suitable for the automatic evaluation of various laboratory tests such as Biohit’s GastroPanel examination in laboratories and clinics.

For more information about Roboline go to www.biohit.com/roboline

See also www.biohit.com/about-us/history.

 

Further information:

Jussi Heiniö, President and CEO
Tel: +358 (0) 9 773 861
jussi.heinio@biohit.com

Distribution:

NASDAQ OMX Helsinki Oy
Central storage facility (www.oam.fi)
Press
www.biohit.com

 

 About Biohit Oyj:

Biohit Oyj is a globally operating Finnish biotechnology company that was established in 1988. The company’s mission is to improve human health and quality of life. The company follows a goal-directed and long-term innovation and patenting strategy.

Biohit works with scientific communities to produce new technologies, products and services based on research results and innovations that can be used to develop safe and cost-effective liquid handling solutions for laboratory work as well as diagnostic tests for the early detection and prevention of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.

Biohit has two business segments: liquid handling and diagnostics. Liquid handling products include electronic and mechanical pipettes, disposable tips as well as pipette maintenance and calibration services for research institutions, healthcare and industrial laboratories.

The diagnostics business comprises products and analysis systems for the early diagnosis and prevention of gastrointestinal diseases, such as the blood-sample based GastroPanel examinations for the diagnosis of stomach illnesses and associated risks, quick tests for the diagnosis of lactose intolerance and H. pylori infection in connection with gastroscopy, and the ColonView examination for the early detection of intestinal bleeding that indicates a risk of colorectal cancer. Acetium reduces the amount of carcinogenic acetaldehyde in an anacidic stomach.

The Biohit Group employs around 420 people. The company is headquartered in Helsinki, Finland, and has subsidiaries in France, Germany, the UK, Russia, India, China, Japan and the USA. The company also has a representative office in Singapore. Biohit's products are also sold through about 200 distributors in 70 countries.

Since 1999, Biohit's Series B share has been quoted on NASDAQ OMX Helsinki in the Small cap/Healthcare group and is traded under the code BIOBV.

Read more at www.biohit.com


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