LabAutomation 2006 - SLAS

TP15
Ken Hunt
Amphora Discovery Corp
Durham, North Carolina
ken.hunt@amphoracorp.com
Where Laboratory Technologies Emerge and Merge
Co-Author(s)
Clint Walker
Larry Acquesta
Matt Orcutt
Bill Janzen.
Sean Blake
Amphora Discovery Corp.
Improving Data Quality and Productivity through Industrialized Preventative
Maintenance and In-House Engineering Support
Drug discovery scientists are voracious consumers of new technology. However, with the need to produce more drug leads while reducing
cost and increasing data quality, companies are turning to platform technologies. In these cases, the Original Equipment Manufacture
(OEM) is usually the sole maintenance support for new instrument technologies but they can be slow to respond to equipment failure,
unwilling to make recommended technology changes and extremely costly.
In order to address this issue, Amphora Discovery developed on-site engineering and maintenance systems to support platform
technologies and scientific innovation. With a small staff of knowledgeable engineers, we have been able to adapt our lab structure as
project requirements change. Also, without OEM restrictions, custom instrument design changes can be made on a much shorter timescale.
Using a maintenance management system, we collect critical data necessary to develop preventive maintenance procedures, parts
inventories, issue work orders and create reports. Utilizing the reports section to track failures, problems become readily apparent
and adjustments are made to prevent repeat occurrences. Creating a maintenance infrastructure has allowed immediate response to
equipment issues preventing lost effort, time and money. Knowledge gained through troubleshooting and repair has also aided with design
changes and made upgrades more easily managed. With equipment reliability we were able to concentrate on processes and instrument
standardization. A well-trained staff, quality documentation and the ability to respond quickly to change, has created superior data quality,
achieved 95% equipment uptime and drastically reduced equipment support costs.
TP16
Stephen Hurt
Perkinelmer Life and Analytical Sciences
Boston, Massachusetts
steve.hurt@perkinelmer.com
Co-Author(s)
Hao Xie
Hanh Le
Harry Harney
Robert Stanaker
Rajesh Manchanda
Use of the Cellular Workstation System for the Automation of GPCR Cell-Based
Functional Assays Using LANCE cAMP Technology
The Cellular Workstation is a fully integrated and automated workstation for performing cell-based assays. The system is comprised of the
Evolution P3 Precision Pipetting Platform for reagent dispensing, the EnVision multilabel plate reader for detection, a CataLyst Express
robotic arm, and POLARA scheduling software. In addition to these core components, options such as a microplate incubator, plate
washer, and filtration unit can also be incorporated. This workstation is a walk-away, easy-to-use solution for cellular applications in the
areas of target identification and validation, assay development, secondary screening and early ADME/Tox profiling. We present here the
automation of a GPCR functional assay using the LANCE cAMP technology with mammalian cell lines expressing both Gs- and Gi-coupled
GPCRs. Results will be presented to demonstrate the key performance and pharmacological parameters of the assay, and the sample
throughput capabilities of the automated system.
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