INDUSTRY NEWS
A microfluidic application centre has been established by Syrris Ltd. (Royston, Herts, UK) to design and build microfluidic devices and instrumentation. The Dolomite Centre (also in Royston) was established to analyze a range of microfluidic applications in fields such as environmental monitoring, clinical diagnostics, and pharmaceutical products. With engineers and biologists working solely on commercial development projects, the centre has obtained ISO approval and has completed refurbishment of its facilities. In addition, the centre has created an advisory group of specialists in fields such as pharmacology and medicine.
The Dolomite Centre received a £2-million grant from the UK Department of Trade Industry’s Micro and Nanotechnology Facilities Network. The organization intends to use the funding to improve the reproducibility, performance, and reagent consumption of microfluidic devices and instrumentation. The firm currently offers services such as scientific consulting, device design and rapid prototyping, and instrument design and development.
The organization will use specialist glass technologies for microfluidic measurement and manipulations. The inertness and biocompatibility of glass, together with its optical properties, make it suitable for a variety of applications, according to the firm. Dolomite aims to take advantage of this technology to offer high-performance alternatives to currently available macroscale technology. The firm hopes that this will help address some of the present demands and problems of the pharmaceutical and clinical diagnostic industries such as the need for improved reproducibility, reduced testing volumes, and equipment portability.
For more information, contact Dolomite UK, Syrris Ltd., 27 Jarman Way, Royston, Herts SG8 5HW, UK; phone: +44 1763 242555; fax: +44 1763 242992; Internet: www.dolomite-centre.com.
