Lab Automation Markets Worldwide (Next-Generation Systems, Key Companies, Forecasts and Trends)

The benefits of automation in the clinical laboratory are well documented. They involve replacing manual, potentially dangerous, error-prone steps with automated processes requiring minimal operator intervention. This approach can increase productivity, decrease turnaround time, improve staff safety, minimize errors, improve the handling of specimens, and allow labs to reallocate personnel to more important and productive tasks.

For drug discovery, automation also offers benefits. bringing a new drug to market has been both a very time-intensive, laborious and expensive undertaking.

This report analyzes the current and potential world markets for medical laboratory automation systems and equipment - both for clinical diagnostics and drug discovery research laboratories.

These are some of the recent developments that are assessed in the report and considered in market projections:

• Next-Generation vs. Traditional Systems

• Labcyte and Allegro Combine Operations

• Agilent Acquistion of Velocity

• New Closed-Loop Smart Gripper

• Tecan-VWR Alliance

• New Sample Processing Platforms

• High Throughput Flexibility

• Robotics Research Lab Established

• Hamilton Purchase of TekCel

• Low Temperature Sample Storage

• Automated Microplate Processing

Current Market and Forecasts to 2012 for the following segments are included:

• Sample Transport Systems

• Specimen Handling Systems

• Storage and Retrieval Systems

• Work stations

• Plate Readers

• Robotics

• Dissolution Testing

• Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS)

Revenues for clinical labs and drug discovery labs are broken out.

As a report with international focus, markets for North America, Europe and Asia are provided.

This report also reviews the nature and direction of research and trends, and gives insight into some issues facing the industry. The report profiles several companies involved in developing and marketing these systems. Market forecasts are based on an examination of current market conditions and on investigations into the development of new products by key companies.

The market data provide multiple year forecasts for different product segments covered in the report.

The information presented in this report is the result of data gathered from company product literature and other corporate brochures and documents, as well as information found in the scientific and trade press. In addition, interviews were conducted with company executives and researchers. Companies profiled in this report include:

• Abbott Diagnostics
• Agilent Technologies Inc.
• Ai Scientific
• Aurora Biotechnologies
• Beckman Coulter Inc.
• BioTrove Inc.
• Caliper Life Sciences
• Dynacon Inc.
• Eppendorf AG
• Hamilton Storage Technologies Inc.
• InnovaSystems Inc.
• Labotix Automation Inc.
• LabVantage Solutions Inc.
• Molecular Devices
• Motoman Inc.
• Olympus Corp.
• PerkinElmer Life and Analytical Sciences Inc.
• F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd.
• RTS Group
• Siemens Medical Solutions USA Inc.
• Sotax
• SSi Robotics
• PaR Systems Inc.
• The Automation Partnership
• Tecan Group Ltd.
• ThermoFischer Scientific Inc.
• Xiril AG