The robotics platform carries out laboratory work fully automatically - from the preparation and execution to the analysis of an experiment . It can perform a large number of steps or even several experiments simultaneously .
In the future , the new robotics platform set up at the HKI Biotech Center should be able to perform experiments faster and more accurately , as repetitive steps are always carried out in exactly the same way . “ The combination of automation , data analysis and innovative research approaches increases the chances of success in identifying new antibiotics ,” explains Luzia Gyr , head of the facility .
The technology platform was designed in close development cooperation with Analytik Jena . The most important requirement of the future users was that the system should be as flexible as possible . “ Industrial plants are normally characterized by a fixed process sequence . Here we have a platform that is equipped for the future and can respond to the high variability of the research topics of the institute and its partners ,” explains Matthias Fischer , team leader of automation at Analytik Jena . And Lars Böttcher , Vice President of Technology at Analytik Jena , adds : “ The project was technically very demanding , but due to the short distances and the very intensive coordination of all participants directly on site , it could be realized in a relatively short time .”
The construction of the modern facility
The combination of automation , data analysis and innovative research approaches increases the chances of success in identifying new antibiotics .
was only made possible by extensive public funding . It was largely funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research as part of the Zwanzig20 consortium InfectControl and its follow-up projects . Additional funding was provided by the German Research Foundation as part of the Balance of the Microverse cluster of excellence and by the state of Thuringia with money from the European Regional Development Fund ( ERDF ). The total volume of the investment is three million euros . In addition , the Free State of Thuringia is funding the RoboThür research group , which has applied jointly with
Luzia Gyr ( right ), head of the robotics platform , shows State Secretary Katja Böhler the various elements of the system and how it works .
Source : Anna Schroll / Leibniz-HKI
the Friedrich Schiller University of Jena , with one million euros , thus enabling the recruitment of highly qualified personnel for the platform .
The new robotics platform will not only be available to the Leibniz-HKI research groups , but also to the University of Jena and other research institutions and industrial partners with which the institute cooperates . The commissioning of the system , which has just taken place , will now be followed by a phase of setting up the first test series and validating the results , which will take several months .
For further information , please visit www . leibniz-hki . de / or www . analytik-jena . com /
Issue 63 PECM 7