Fluent® Laboratory Automation Workstation for compound management by Tecan
Status:
Reviewer
Member since: 2023
Organization: Church & Dwight Co.
-
- Ease of use
- After sales service
- Value for money
Inconsistent operation, very poor technical support, very expensive to service
Application Area: Genomic DNA analyses
"There are very few places to review this instrument online. So, I'm writing this to make our experience known. Overall, we've had terrible experience with the devices. We currently have two Fluents, a 780 sized and a 480 sized. Cons: - Technical services is horribly understaffed, and so takes way too long to respond with a resolution. - Often, the U.S. based technical services team will have to reach out to the European support group extending response time by a couple days. - Average downtime has been 2-3 weeks, but as long as 2 months (in 2022). - The quoted repair often doesn't solve the issue and another repair is required, extending instrument downtime. - Service contracts are way over-priced Contract is $25K per year per instrument and requires separate annual PM which costs anywhere from $30K - $99K per year per instrument (in our most expensive year, total service costs were little more than $18K) - Even without service contract, expect to spend at least $10K/ year on service. - Touts 3rd party instrument integration, but often with lots of bugs and problems. - New equipment or labware requires hours of tweaking and testing to make operational, not a simple plug-and-play. - Very user-unfriendly programming, especially for setting up custom liquid pipetting (ie. lysis buffers, low conductivity liquids, etc), and expensive to train ($4,700 per person). - Exceptionally valuable training only offered in Europe. Pro: - The only redeeming quality is their offered warranty on repair. Without that we would have certainly spent far more than we already have on service."
Review date: 03 Jan 2023 | Fluent® Laboratory Automation Workstation for compound management
Status:
Advanced Reviewer Member since: 2016
Organization: Purdue University
-
- Ease of use
- After sales service
- Value for money
The new "Zero-G" function is fantastic!
Application Area:High throughput screening
"The new "Zero-G" function is very helpful, make "teaching plates" really easy; pausing the program and resuming has become very convenient too."
Review date: 11 Nov 2016 | Fluent® Laboratory Automation Workstation for compound management
The Fluent Laboratory Automation Workstation for compound management has been developed to simplify and improve the productivity of compound management and assay plate generation activities, and is ideally suited to drug discovery laboratories and centralized compound library facilities.
It offers a host of features to help streamline day-to-day activities, including daughter plate generation, plate reformatting, hit picking and serial dilutions. For maximum liquid handling versatility, the Flexible Channel Arm can accommodate a range of disposable tip options, complemented by washable fixed tips that provide cost-effective reagent and compound distribution, as well as cap piercing capabilities. The fixed tips are also available in a low volume option, offering reliable pipetting below 0.5 µl to help minimize compound consumption and enable effective serial dilutions. This increased flexibility is complemented by the ability to use DMSO – the solvent of choice for most compound libraries – as the system liquid, allowing fast, efficient plate filling without the need for a bulk dispenser module.
Fluent is a unique automation concept built around the application-specific needs of laboratories, delivering more capacity and increased speed. Available in three deck sizes offering capacities from 30 to 72 microplates, it features a modular Dynamic Deck™ with a multilevel design that allows flexible integration of complementary devices, and task-specific arms that can be operated simultaneously to ensure timely completion of assays. High definition pipetting using predefined liquid classes ensures optimal accuracy and reproducibility, and the patented Path Finder™ technology automatically programs the fastest, most efficient route for every arm movement, avoiding the need for laborious manual programming. For ease of use, Fluent’s intuitive touchscreen operation includes graphical instructions and embedded SOPs.
Enhanced labware logistics include a tube handling option for the Robotic Gripper Arm (RGA), and a Stacker module. Compatible with a wide range of common tube formats, the unique Finger Exchange System head automatically changes between tubes or plates and vertical or excentric plate handling, allowing efficient transfer of tubes and simplifying barcode scanning. The Stacker – which is compatible with SLAS-format consumables – is ideally suited to high capacity tip storage, allowing up to 40 racks of nested LiHa disposable tips per stack for increased walkaway times. Both hardware options are fully supported by the platform’s updated FluentControl™ software, which also includes a range of applications and pre-programmed Smart Commands for common activities such as plate replication and reformatting. To streamline integration with upstream and downstream processes, the software also supports both worklisting and 2D barcode scanning, ensuring the Fluent Laboratory Automation Workstation for compound management fits seamlessly into even the most demanding of workflows.
