Bluechiip Signs Co-Development Deal with Inpeco to Use Bluechiip(R)
Technology in Automation Systems
/PRNewswire/ -- Bluechiip Limited [ASX: BCT] today
announced it has signed a Term Sheet to execute a Collaborative
Co-Development Agreement with Swiss company Inpeco SA which allows
both parties to collaborate to develop Inpeco products which
integrate Bluechiip's technology.
Based in Lugano, Switzerland, Inpeco designs and manufactures
automation systems for the total automation of clinical
laboratories, so improving and simplifying biological sample
processing. Inpeco works closely with some of the world's largest
and most advanced healthcare and technology companies. Inpeco's
solutions operate in more than 500 clinical laboratories around the
world, making biological sample workflow an efficient and fast
automatic process.
"We are delighted that Inpeco, a leader in its field, is looking
at integrating Bluechiip's tracking technology in its products,"
said Bluechiip Limited CEO and Managing Director, Brett Schwarz. "Integrating the bluechiip®
technology into the robotics of automated laboratory equipment is a
critical step in the movement away from manual systems."
Dr Jason Chaffey, Bluechiip
Limited Chief Technical Officer (CTO), said, "We are confident that
our technology will be valuable in automated equipment used in life
sciences where samples are being stored in ultra-cold environments
like liquid nitrogen. Current tracking and labelling techniques of
labels and barcodes do not operate well in these ultra-low
temperature environments, especially when frost is prevalent. It is
also critical to be able to monitor the temperature of these
valuable samples, which only the bluechiip® tracking technology can
do."
Inpeco believes the incorporation of Bluechiip's tracking and
identification technology into Inpeco's products will address
several unmet needs of Inpeco customers.
Andrea Pedrazzini, President of
Inpeco, said, "We see a tremendous opportunity in the area of
automation for the storing and retrieving of huge quantities of
biological samples at very low temperatures for very long periods,
up to many years; a process which at the time being is still
performed manually with inefficiency and risk of errors. We are
working to develop automation solutions to fully automate this
process. After looking for a tracking and monitoring solution that
will survive in these challenging environments we came to the
conclusion that Bluechiip could assist us with that solution."
In May 2012, global business
research and consulting firm Frost & Sullivan, announced in
their report titled Global Biobanking Automation Market that
the global automation market for biobanking applications in 2011
was $818 million. By 2018 it is
estimated to reach $1.42 billion.
Each year, around 100 million samples are being added to
biobanks worldwide. Ms Divyaa Ravishankar, Senior Research Analyst
at Frost & Sullivan has been reported as saying "Adoption of
automation in biobanks has bestowed key benefits such as ease of
error handling, preserving sample integrity, labour maintenance,
and energy cost savings".
About Bluechiip Limited:
Bluechiip has developed a wireless tracking solution for the
healthcare and life science, security, defence and manufacturing
industries which represents a generational change from current
methods such as labels (hand-written and pre-printed), barcodes
(linear and 2D) and microelectronic integrated circuit (IC)-based
RFID (Radio Frequency Identification). The unique tag is based on
MEMS technology and contains no electronics. The tag can either be
embedded or manufactured into a storage product, such as vials or
bags. Easy identification, along with any associated information
from the tag such as temperature can be detected by a reader, which
can also sense the temperature of the tagged items. The traditional
identification technologies have significant limitations. Whereas a
barcode requires a visible tag or line-of-sight optical scan,
bluechiip® technology does not. Unlike labels, barcodes and RFID,
the bluechiip® technology can sense the temperature of each item a
tag is attached to, or embedded in. The bluechiip® technology has
initial applications in the healthcare industry particularly those
businesses which require cryogenic storage facilities (biobanks and
biorepositories). bluechiip® offers the only technology that
enables accurate and reliable tracking of products including stem
cells, cord blood, and other biospecimens. In addition to
functioning in extreme temperatures, the bluechiip® tracking
solution can survive autoclaving, gamma irradiation sterilization,
humidification, centrifuging, cryogenic storage and frosting. The
bluechiip® technology has other healthcare applications in
pathology, clinical trials and forensics. Several other key markets
outside of healthcare include cold-chain logistics/supply chain,
security/defence, industrial/manufacturing and
aerospace/aviation.
www.bluechiip.com
About Inpeco:
Inpeco is dedicated to design and manufacture automation systems
to improve and simplify biological sample processing in clinical
laboratories. Inpeco offers OEM solutions to its strategic,
international partners, and also acts as direct supplier, providing
end-users (i.e. public and private laboratories) with the Inpeco's
branded FlexLab automation system. Founded in 1980 by Andrea Pedrazzini, through thirty years of
international activity with strategic partners, Inpeco has acquired
the proper technological experience to develop quality automation
products, offering consultancy and support services for the total
satisfaction of its partners as well as end users. Today Inpeco's
solutions are present in more than 500 clinical laboratories around
the world, making biological sample workflow an efficient and fast
automatic process.
www.inpeco.com
For more information:
Brett Schwarz
Managing Director, Bluechiip Limited
Phone: +61-419-367-590
brett.schwarz@bluechiip.com
Richard Allen
Oxygen Financial Public Relations
Phone: +61 3 9915 6341
richard@oxygenpr.com.au
SOURCE Bluechiip Limited
