What's New in the LIMS, Informatics, and Lab data Automation Industries... read about it in the LIMSource

• Neolytica Introduces IRIS, an Interactive Relationship Information System
• AstraZeneca Expands Use of InnaPhase Watson LIMS in the United Kingdom
• AJINOMOTO EUROLYSINE Improves Animal Diets with StarLIMS
• Galileo Genomics Selects LabVantage Solutions’ Sapphire Life Sciences LIMS for Gene Discovery Research
• BASF and CREON·LAB·CONTROL Cooperate in the Field of Combinatorial Material Research Data Management
• Agaram Introduces LogiLabPro Instrument Interfacing Solution
• Agilent Technologies and CSOLS to Develop Compliant Integration of Agilent Networked Data Systems with CSOLS' LIMS Instrument Interface Solution
• Labtronics Inc. and Varian, Inc. to Partner on Interfacing the Galaxie CDS with any LIMS
• Autoscribe Announces the Availability of the Varian Galaxie CDS with Matrix LIMS
• Labtronics Inc. Releases New Tools for Validating Instrument/LIMS Interfaces
• Rosetta Biosoftware and Agilent Technologies Announce Licensing Agreement with the Netherlands Bioinformatics Centre for the Rosetta Resolver System
• Autoscribe Announces Availability of Instrument Interfacing Software
• Ocimum Receives ISO 9001:2000 Certificate for Quality Management System from Det Norske Veritas
• TraxStar Releases QATrax v3.0 For Global Test Lab Management
• Thermo Electron Announces Major Enhancements to eRecordManager Data Archival Solution
• NuGenesis Technologies Launches New Data Management Tool that Locks Down Spreadsheets
• CyberLAB Desktop Provides a Secure and Compliant Environment for Microsoft Office and Adobe Acrobat
• ABS Labs Selects NuGenesis Scientific Data Management Solution
• SAP Extends Its Integration and Application Platform
• Savant Introduces Short-Term Licenses for Training Software
• Caliper Technologies Acquires Zymark
• Chemspeed Introduces New Workstation for Process Research and Development
• Kittiwake Acquires Analex International
• Invensys Sells Baan to Two US Equity Firms
• ARC Releases New ERP Market Study Indicating ERP Market Opportunities Change While Remaining Strong Overall at $8.9 Billion
• Ron Barnett Joins LEC as Director, Validation Services
• Thermo Appoints David Champagne to Director of Services for Informatics Business
• Europe Standardizing Drug Approval Process
• InnaPhase to Purchase Laboratory Automation Operations from Beckman Coulter
• InnaPhase Corporation Launches New Pharmaceutical LIMS at Pittcon 2003
• LabWare Unveils New LabWare Web LIMS
• Justice Laboratory Software and ICD GmbH Enter Joint Venture Agreement to Provide Integrated Informatics Solutions
• PerkinElmer LabWorks ES LIMS Now Offers Broad Local Language Capabilities
• PerkinElmer Launches New Business Offering Called OneSource To Reshape Laboratory Service
• Thermo LabSystems and Thermo Galactic Rename to Thermo Electron Corporation
• Autoscribe Announces Agreement to Distribute Varian CDS
• Sample Master Pro LIMS now Offered in Bundle with Toshiba Magnia Z310 Wireless Mobility Server
• LabVantage Solutions Introduces Vantage Care
• Thermo Electron Debuts New Web Client Interface of eRecordManager Solution at Pittcon 2003
• Neolytica Celebrates First Anniversary at PittCon 2003
• Neolytica Unveiled LIMS-ASP Solution at PittCon 2003
• NuGenesis Technologies Launches Next-Generation Platform for Managing Scientific Data
• ABB Announces Optimize Expert Optimizer Version 4
• InnaPhase Corporation Enters Strategic Partnership with NuGenesis Technologies to Enhance Data Archival and Retrieval within the Pharmaceutical Industry
• Latest Version of ChemSW Sample Tracking System Expands Functionality and Extends Application
• LabVantage Attains Advanced Member Status in IBM PartnerWorld for Developers Business Partner Program
• IBM Signs Up StarLIMS for its Emerging Life Sciences Solutions Base
• LabWare Joins IBM PartnerWorld to Enhance its LIMS Solution Offerings for the Life Sciences Market
• Taratec Announces Partnership with IBM
• NuGenesis Technologies Announces Expanded Collaboration and Co-Marketing Agreement with IBM
• Arena Pharmaceuticals Signs Agreement to Implement InnaPhase Technology Solution
• Rockwell Automation to Implement Global Manufacturing Solutions for Laboratoires ROCHE Nicholas S.A.
• Scientific Software and CambridgeSoft Announce CyberLAB and E-Notebook Integration
• Waters & Taratec to Host Series of Free Seminars
• Thermo LabSystems Awarded Certification to New ISO 9001:2000 Standard
• Siemens Named Number One LIMS Supplier to Food & Beverage Industry in ARC Study
• NuGenesis Technologies Record of Strong Double Digit Growth Continues in 2002
• Nestlé Selects NuGenesis Technologies to Deploy Scientific Data Archival Solution
• Labtronics Allows Review of Chromatograms from LIMS
• JEOL USA Receives Third Omega Award for Service
• New Pipette Calibration Solution from Labtronics Meets 21 CFR Part 11 Compliance Requirements
• Select Biosciences Releases Strategic Report on Protein Biochips
• Biotech Drugmakers Can Ask FDA for Independent Reviewers
• FDA and Lincoln Technologies to Collaborate on Developing Tools for Safety Data Mining

Neolytica Introduces IRIS, an Interactive Relationship Information System

Neolytica Inc. has announced a new product designed to fill the gap in the laboratory software market place. IRIS (Interactive Relationship Information System) is a product specifically designed to enable laboratories to fully service their customers on-line. A service delivered via the Internet, IRIS permits customers to place orders, review results and reports, and track samples 24-hours-a-day from any location across the world using an Internet browser. Well-defined security architecture ensures that only those with pre-defined privileges are allowed access. IRIS will facilitate the relationship between laboratories and their clients and it will enable more effective on-line project and client management. The range of services supplied by IRIS include on-line ordering, sample tracking, quote requests, secure instant messaging, on-line invoicing as well as the downloading of results and reports. For details, visit http://www.neolytica.com.

AstraZeneca Expands Use of InnaPhase Watson LIMS in the United Kingdom

InnaPhase Corporation has announced that AstraZeneca has implemented the Watson Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) in their Adlerley Park Research and Development Center based in the United Kingdom. AstraZeneca is also using the Watson LIMS product within their facilities in Charnwood, United Kingdom, Lund, Sweden and Wilmington, Delaware in the United States. AstraZeneca is a major international healthcare business engaged in the research, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription pharmaceuticals and the supply of healthcare services. Watson LIMS, a solution within the Pharma LIMS Suite, is specifically designed to support DMPK/Bioanalytical studies in drug development while ensuring regulatory compliance with the FDA's 21 CFR Part 11 guidance on electronic records and signatures. Watson has an established track record of accelerating bioanalysis, sample management and regulatory compliance in pharmaceutical drug development. For details, visit http://www.innaphase.com.

AJINOMOTO EUROLYSINE Improves Animal Diets with StarLIMS

A global market leader in amino acids for animal feed, AJINOMOTO EUROLYSINE S.A.S., located in Amiens France, produces high qualit amino acids, which help nutritionists and feed formulators to design balanced diets. StarLIMS has been selected for its QC and customer care labs at the French plant. The implementation covers many aspects of the operation including test management of by projects, raw material quality management and final product certification. For details, visit http://www.starlims.com/AJINOMOTO.htm.

Galileo Genomics Selects LabVantage Solutions’ Sapphire Life Sciences LIMS for Gene Discovery Research

LabVantage Solutions, Inc., a leading provider of Life Sciences and Enterprise LIMS solutions, and Galileo Genomics, Inc. have announcedthat Galileo has signed a software and services agreement for LabVantage Sapphire Life Sciences LIMS. Galileo's initial utilization of Sapphire will address the management information of its microsatellite and SNP genotyping. Implementation of Sapphire will allow Galileo to expand its laboratory operations to perform dense genome-wide scans on at least 40 diseases within the next three years, followed by fine mapping of small candidate regions and identification of disease-related sequence variations. This process includes over 3 billion genotypes on DNA samples from approximately 60,000 patients, relatives, and controls, generating terabytes of raw and derived data. LabVantage Sapphire Life Sciences LIMS is an important component of Galileo's compliance with GCP and GLP regulations (including the support for electronic signatures and compliance with 21 CFR Part 11), and of ensuring the integrity and quality of Galileo’s research data. For details, visit http://www.galileogenomics.com or http://www.labvantage.com.

BASF and CREON.LAB.CONTROL Cooperate in the Field of Combinatorial Material Research Data Management

CREON.LAB.CONTROL AG and BASF AG have announced a new data management system supporting combinatorial materials research. This is the outcome of a strategic cooperation agreement between the partners beginning March 2002. BASF expects from combinatorial materials research drastic cost and time savings in the development of novel or improved polymers and materials. This revolutionary automated technique offers parallel small-scale synthesis, formulation, application and testing of many materials. CREON.LAB.CONTROL's Q-DIS/DOLPHIN Combinatorial Material Research Management (CMR) will enable the control of complex combinatorial workflows, to handle and evaluate the enormous amounts of data produced, and finally to identify promising materials and to elucidate structure property relationships. Q-DIS/DOLPHIN assists not only in organizing and evaluating data; the software provides functions to cover the entire CMR cycle. Q-DIS/DOLPHIN modules automate the design of samples and experiments, control the experiment processing, collect and store results, allow data evaluation, and supports in the design of new experiments based on evaluated data. For details, visit http://www.basf.com or http://www.creonlabcontrol.com.

Agaram Introduces LogiLabPro Instrument Interfacing Solution

Agaram introduced its LogiLabPro during the Pittcon 2003 conference in Orlando, FL. LogiLabPro is an RDBMS based Client/Server, Data Acquisition, Parsing, Archiving, Document Management, Reporting and Instrument Interfacing package designed for any analytical laboratory. It collects data from lab instruments. A sophisticated parsing engine extracts data of interest as fields that can be used for designing spread-sheets for viewing and collecting data, performs calculation and seamlessly transfers data to LIMS/ERP, has all features to comply with GLP and 21 CFR Part 11. Key features include: Brings all RS-232 and PC-based instruments within the compliance area; Instrument generated flat files are automatically captured and parsed, which improves the authenticity of data; Stores raw-data, metadata and documents as BLOBs and provides efficient document management capabilities along with sample information; Provides single point viewing and reporting of any type of analytical data; Built-in Crystal reports viewer provides high class reporting capability; Integrated development environment like VBA provides opportunity to customize seamless connectivity with other database applications like LIMS / ERP. For details, visit http://www.agaramindia.com.

Agilent Technologies and CSOLS to Develop Compliant Integration of Agilent Networked Data Systems with CSOLS' LIMS Instrument Interface Solution

Agilent Technologies Inc. and CSOLS PLC have announced an agreement to develop and market the integration of CSOLS' Link for LIMS Instrument Interfacing software product and Agilent's networked data systems (NDS) series of products, which include the Agilent ChemStation Plus and Agilent Cerity NDS for Pharmaceutical Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC). The Link for LIMS software is expected to provide a seamless, bi-directional interface between Agilent networked data systems and any LIMS by using plug-in drivers for all major commercial LIMS. This would allow users of Agilent NDS to integrate their chromatography data with their enterprises' LIMS in accordance with common regulatory standards such as GLP, GMP or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's ruling on electronic records and signatures (21 CFR Part 11). For details, visit http://www.csols.com or http://www.agilent.com.

Labtronics Inc. and Varian, Inc. to Partner on Interfacing the Galaxie CDS with any LIMS

Varian, Inc. and Labtronics Inc. have announced that they are partnering to develop and market the integration of Labtronics' LimsLinkCDS with Varian, Inc.'s Galaxie Chromatography Data System (CDS). LimsLinkCDS provides two-way communication and data transfer between CDS and LIMS software. Work lists can be uploaded from the LIMS to the CDS. Sample results can be retrieved and delivered directly to the LIMS. Incorporating electronic signatures, 100 levels of password protection, and a full audit trail implementation, LimsLinkCDS provides the level of security and accountability to facilitate compliance with FDA 21 CFR Part 11. Varian, Inc.'s Galaxie CDS is a client/server solution that has the capability of controlling a wide range of liquid chromatographs and gas chromatographs, including other manufacturers' models, and allows analyses to be viewed from anywhere on the network through a common user interface. Varian, Inc.'s Galaxie CDS users can now take full advantage of the extensive interfacing capabilities of LimsLinkCDS, providing safe and secure integration of their chromatography data with any LIMS. For details, visit http://www.varianinc.com or http://www.labtronics.com.

Autoscribe Announces the Availability of the Varian Galaxie CDS with Matrix LIMS

Autoscribe has announced the availability of theVarian CDS. Galaxie is fully scalable from single chromatograph workstations to global implementations with an easy upgrade path. With a highly modular design Galaxie can be tailored for many different applications and industries. Galaxie provides unrivalled instrument control capability via a dedicated user screen and offers a further user screen for all data handling and reporting. Powerful, yet intuitively easy to use Galaxie provides central administration of users, instruments and methods and comprehensive tracking of file additions, deletions and changes. Galaxie complies with the most stringent regulatory requirements, such as 21 CFR part 11, and includes a highly flexible user profiler and access rights management system. Bi-directional links with the Autoscribe Matrix LIMS family allow the downloading of sequences from Matrix to Galaxie and the return of data from Galaxie to Matrix. For details, visit http://www.autoscribe.co.uk.

Labtronics Inc. Releases New Tools for Validating Instrument/LIMS Interfaces

Labtronics Inc. has announced the release of their new Validation Toolkit for their LIMS interfacing applications, LimsLink and LimsLinkCDS. The Validation Toolkit now includes two separate components, a software application and a full documentation package, that provide automated assistance and detailed guidance for both IQ and OQ. Together they reduce the amount of time and resources required for conducting a thorough validation of a LimsLink/LimsLinkCDS implementation. The documentation portion of the Validation Toolkit includes testing procedures, tables, lists and charts that guide and assist in the IQ and OQ validation of LimsLink/LimsLinkCDS installations and methods. IQ and OQ Checklists cover items such as hardware, software and file verification, installation protocol, validation of the security components and validation and versioning of the interfacin methods. Using the documentation package as their guide LimsLink/LimsLinkCDS, users are able to take a thorough and structured approach to validation of their application. For details, visit http://www.labtronics.com.

Rosetta Biosoftware and Agilent Technologies Announce Licensing Agreement with the Netherlands Bioinformatics Centre for the Rosetta Resolver System

Stichting Netherlands Bioinformatics Centre (NBIC), Rosetta Biosoftware and Agilent Technologies Inc. have announced an agreement to make the Rosetta Resolver system available to the Dutch research community. The Stichting NBIC has obtained a license to the Rosetta Resolver system in which access will be made available through NBIC's BioASP portal to a larger group of Dutch researchers. BioASP maintains a unique Application Service Provider (ASP) model for a wide group of researchers in the Netherlands and will provide the required infrastructure, support and expertise to users in at least 10 academic research labs, with this number expected to grow. The Rosetta Resolver system is an enterprise-wide gene expression data analysis system that is developed by Rosetta Biosoftware and distributed exclusively by Agilent, a leading gene expression solutions provider. Researchers use gene expression technologies to measure cellular gene activity under different conditions with the goal of understanding the molecular basis of disease and discovering new treatments. High-quality analytical software is critical for the interpretation of gene expression data. For details, visit http://www.rosettabio.com or http://www.bioasp.nl or http://www.agilent.com.

Autoscribe Announces Availability of Instrument Interfacing Software

Autoscribe has announced the availability of software for handling interfacing of laboratory instruments and systems to any LIMS or other database. The software has been designed to collect data from instruments via RS232 connections or via file transfer. The data may be displayed in user-designed spreadsheets allowing test driven calculations prior to transfer to the LIMS all in a secure environment. LIMS work-lists may also be transferred in the reverse direction. The system requires either MS SQL Server or Oracle as a database which allows management of raw data and documents. Access and task rights may be set for each user. The key benefits of automated acquisition are the elimination of data transcription and associated errors. For details, visit http://www.autoscribe.co.uk.

Ocimum Receives ISO 9001:2000 Certificate for Quality Management System from Det Norske Veritas

Ocimum Biosolutions has received an ISO 9001:2000 certificate for their Quality Management System from Det Norske Veritas. Ocimum Biosolutions (India) Ltd., has been certified to ISO 9001: 2000 under the RvA accreditation. The ISO 9001:2000 standard is an internationally recognized quality management system standard developed by the International Organization of Standardization. To be certified to this standard, Ocimum implemented a quality management system covering the analysis, design, coding, testing, installation and after sales support of software related to Laboratory Information Management System and Bio-Informatics. The process approach enshrined in 9001:2000 focuses on business management aspects of an organization while retaining emphasis on traditional software development life-cycle processes. Since the company's beginnings in 2001, Ocimum has been committed to providing world class Bioinformatics and LIMS software. Anuradha Acharya, CEO, Ocimum Biosolutions said that “The ISO 9001:2000 certification serves as an impartial and public appraisal of the Ocimum Software procedures and products, and provides us with guidelines to continue producing the highest-quality Bioinformatics and LIMS software”. For details, visit http://www.ocimumbio.com.

TraxStar Releases QATrax v3.0 For Global Test Lab Management

Global Test lab operations for discrete manufacturers just got significantly easier to manage with the latest release of QATrax version 3.0. Manufacturer's can manage labs anywhere in the world. Managers can now effectively manage global projects where testing is spread across several labs. High visibility is provided for resource usage, in a single lab and across groups of labs. Scheduling and re-scheduling tests across global operations benefit from the consistent application of workflow process and procedures. Using one database, users experience quick browser-like performance with native, full-featured Window functionality. QATrax 3.0 establishes the fundamental architecture for exceptional global performance. TraxStar develops custom and off-the-shelf workflow automation solutions. For details, visit http://www.traxstar.com.

Thermo Electron Announces Major Enhancements to eRecordManager Data Archival Solution

Thermo Electron Corporation has announced the release of a host of significant extensions to one of its flagship laboratory informatics solutions, eRecordManager. The new version, eRecordManager 2002 Release 2, provides customers with a wide range of new features focused on enhancing security of electronic records and further improving ease of use of the system. Adding to an extensive library of XML converters, eRecordManager now offers new converters for file formats including Applied Biosystems/MDS SCIEX Analyst, Dionex Chromeleon CDS (Chromatography Data System), and Thermo’s Multichrom CDS. Enhancements to existing file converters in the new eRecordManager release include those for Micromass Masslynx, Bruker XWIN-NMR, and Perkin Elmer’s AccessChrom, Turbochrom, and Totalchrom instruments. Through these converted XML files, eRecordManager is unique in providing the life science community with the ability to share, compare, query and visualize analytical data, with or without the original instrument hardware/software. Another highlight of eRecordManager 2002 R2’s new features is an Application-Type Wizard that offers easy system setup for data capture and conversion of file formats from a large number of common applications. The new Application Wizard function is complemented by enhanced set of documentation on the XML converters and the conversion process. eRecordManager allows scientists to archive electronic records and collaborate with colleagues via information sharing. It translates instrument data into a platform-neutral format called GAML (Generalized Analytical Markup Language), based on XML, which frees the data from reliance on the original instrument software for its retrieval. For details, visit http://www.thermolabsystems.com.

NuGenesis Technologies Launches New Data Management Tool that Locks Down Spreadsheets

NuGenesis Technologies, a market leader in scientific data management, has announced the launch of the Application Control Module (ACM), a new tool to lock down and securely manage Microsoft Excel, Word and PowerPoint files. The ACM provides Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology companies conducting research and product development with a strategy for system-wide management of new & existing spreadsheets, documents and presentations. The ACM can create a controlled, compliant environment for the use and reuse of spreadsheet, document and presentation files during the product research, development and production processes. ACM features include: No manual check-in; Users authenticated through secure user name and password login; Files are locked down with a complete audit trail of cell and configuration changes; Files can be electronically reviewed and signed; Spreadsheets & template files, documents and presentations are easily updated and accessible; File content can be viewed and "published" in report summaries or project reports and distributed for collaboration by colleagues. The Application Control Module is used in conjunction with the NuGenesis Scientific Data Management System (SDMS). For etails, visit http://www.nugenesis.com.

CyberLAB Desktop Provides a Secure and Compliant Environment for Microsoft Office and Adobe Acrobat

Scientific Software, Inc, a leader in providing software solutions to the scientific community, has announced the availability of CyberLAB Desktop, the only available system for managing Microsoft Office and Adobe PDF files in one secure environment that enables compliance with US 21 CFR Part 11 regulations. Organizations now have a secure, enterprise-wide architecture to manage and archive intellectual property and knowledge contained in documents, spreadsheets and presentations. Users can open and save files from the secure repository directly from Microsoft Excel, Word and PowerPoint as well as Abode Acrobat. These applications, now seamlessly integrated with CyberLAB Knowledge Engineering System, allow users to collaborate and share files across the laboratory or across the globe, maintaining complete version control over any changes. In Adobe Acrobat or Microsoft Word, users can compare differences between documents or document versions and changes are clearly identified visually. For details, visit http://www.scisw.com.

ABS Labs Selects NuGenesis Scientific Data Management Solution

ABS Labs Ltd., a CRO in pharmaceutical development and occupational testing based in London, UK, has chosen the NuGenesis Scientific Data Management System (SDMS) for company-wide operations. ABS Labs processes highly sensitive chromatographic-mass spectrometric assays for a variety of compounds in biological samples. NuGenesis SDMS accurately and automatically captures, catalogs and stores lab instrument data and information from business applications and facilitates the seamless integration of information within the organization. ABS Labs plans to leverage the NuGenesis SDMS platform to increase analyst productivity. The system will also provide ABS Labs with excellent data archival and easy access to data and documentation to facilitate the creation of consistent and comprehensive documents for regulatory submissions. For details, visit http://www.nugenesis.com.

SAP Extends Its Integration and Application Platform

SAP has extended its Integration and Application Platform. First, it has introduced an enhanced Java development infrastructure and support for J2EE V 1.3 in its SAP Web Application Server. Second, it has unveiled a new integrated development environment, SAP NetWeaver Developer Studio. SAP NetWeaver is a flexible, open integration and application platform that addresses today's adaptive business needs, including the unique needs of supporting enterprise-class Java applications. SAP NetWeaver Developer Studio enables the construction of applications that easily extend SAP solutions without the need for additional products. This is a highly productive developer environment with solution life cycle management capabilities that support the needs of large development teams, can manage business-class implementations of Java applications, and can help to maintain a low total cost of ownership (TCO). The J2EE-compliant SAP Web Application Server includes Web services and open standards support across portal, knowledge management, business intelligence, and exchange infrastructure technologies. Its support for Java includes mobile Web services (through J2ME), business process integration and management through Java messaging. It also includes a portal development kit for Java, data integration for business intelligence through Java Metadata Interface (JMI and XMI), distributed transactions JCA-compliant connectors, J2EE persistence, Java supportability, and virtual machine management. For details, visit http://www.sap.com.

Savant Introduces Short-Term Licenses for Training Software

Autoscribe is pleased to announce that Savant Audiovisuals has introduced new shorter-term lease licenses for its computer-based training (CBT) software on GC, LC, GC/MS, LC/MS and CE. While traditional “permanent” or indefinite-term licenses are still available, the new one- or 12-month terms allow users full programme access at greatly reduced cost. This is particularly appealing to those who may have only short-term training needs or who want to evaluate the software more thoroughly before committing to longer-term licenses. Licenses may be upgraded at any time to longer term or to multi-user status which is useful to those who want to install them on a network for access from multiple PCs. All SAVANT training software runs under Windows and may be installed from SAVANT’s newly-released free CD-ROM. Among the titles currently available with short-term licenses are Fundamentals of GC/MS, Introduction to LC/MS, and Introduccion a la Cromatografia de Gases, a Spanish/English bilingual version of SAVANT’s Introductory GC programme. For details, visit http://www.autoscribe.co.uk.

Caliper Technologies Acquires Zymark

Caliper Technologies, a creator of microfluidic lab-on-a-chip technologies, has entered into an agreement to acquire Zymark, a provider of laboratory automation, liquid handling and robotics solutions, for $57 million. Zymark will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Caliper and will continue to sell products under its own name. For details, visit http://www.zymark.com.

Chemspeed Introduces New Workstation for Process Research and Development

Chemspeed Ltd has announced the introduction of their Accelerator PXT100 at ACHEMA. The robotic workstation will help researchers involved in process development increase productivity by automating process optimisation in up to 20 scaled down "miniplants" consisting of 40 reactors simultaneously. The workstation was developed in close cooperation with one of the world leaders in the chemical industry and has the ability to closely mimic the versatile tank reactor technology used in the pharmaceutical, agrochemical, specialty chemical, polymer and basic chemical industries. The modular, scalable Accelerator PXT100 workstation was developed for high throughput and can hold as many as 20 miniplants. Each miniplant consists of two 100 mL stainless steel or glass reactors, one 50 mL simple feed reactor and two pumps with variable syringe volumes. The reactors have independent heating, cooling and agitation and are capable of operating in batch, semi-batch, continuous and/or cascade mode. The workstation has a robotic arm with exchangeable tools for solid dispensing and liquid handling to efficiently feed the reactors or transfer their content to an external analytical system. For details, visit http://www.chemspeed.com.

Kittiwake Acquires Analex International

Kittiwake, the UK based international test and analysis company, has acquired Analex International, the joint developers with the University of Wales at Swansea of the PQ Ferrous Debris Monitor Technology. Kittiwake has been involved in an extensive research programme over the last four years developing innovative on-line solutions for measuring wear metals in machinery. By acquiring Analex, Kittiwake is now able to extend this core capability into the laboratory market creating a comprehensive centre of excellence for magnetic detection of ferrous wear debris based on experience and advanced technology. Regular test analysis of ferrous debris rapidly informs the operator of the condition of the machine, enabling immediate remedial action. PQ technology is unique in detecting ferrous wear particles above 5-10 microns that are not identified in a typical laboratory analysis programme using Atomic Absorbtion (AA) or Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) test methods. PQ technology is a sensitive magnetometer that measures the mass of ferrous wear- debris in oil samples and displays this a PQ index. Used regularly, it can produce a trend showing acceptable levels of wear metals in the oil and will thus instantly alert the operator of changes that will signal an impending breakdown, unless remedial action is taken. For details, visit http://www.kittiwake.com.

Invensys Sells Baan to Two US Equity Firms

Invensys Plc has sold its Enterprise Resourse Planning software unit Baan to two U.S. private equity firms for $135 million cash. Cerberus Capital Management and General Atlantic, plan to merge Baan with rival manufacturing software firm SSA Global Technologies. The resulting company will have 16,500 customers. "With the sale of Baan, we have made a rapid and positive start to our disposal programme," Invensys Chief Executive Rick Haythornthwaite said in a statement. Invensys Chairman Colin Marshall has said the company overpaid for Baan when buying it at the top of the cycle for some $700 million in August 2000. Industry pundits state that the sale basically closes the book on Invensys's vision to provide sensor to boardroom solutions. It is anticipated that Invensys will hang on to the process ERP solution, formerly known as Marcam, which it had acquired previous to the Baan acquisition, but Baan was certainly the more significant player of the two with a broader, more sophisticated solution set. Baan is expected to fare better in the arms of these equity firms who are better known for buying distressed companies and nursing them back to health and - most importantly - profitability. The equity firms pick up a company with a respectable product, (even if Baan did have trouble with its go to market strategy), broad customer base, and a potentially very good future product in Baan's Gemini, (scheduled for release in October), for roughly half of the most recent year's revenue and no assumption of debt. Concluding this sale quickly certainly seemed more important than extracting the highest value for Invensys' shareholders. For details, visit http://www.baan.com.

ARC Releases New ERP Market Study Indicating ERP Market Opportunities Change While Remaining Strong Overall at $8.9 Billion

The Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) market within the manufacturing sector is forecasted to rebound over the next five years and grow from $8.9 billion in 2002 to $11.9 billion by 2007 for a CAGR of 5.8 percent, according to a newly updated study by ARC Advisory Group. General market uncertainty and persistently weak global economic trends had a negative impact on the ERP applications market in 2002 as annual revenues declined -0.6 percent from 2001. Despite the slow, challenging market, many manufacturers regard the current business climate as a good opportunity to take decisive steps aimed at revamping their operations and making them more cost effective. "The world economy remains difficult and the geopolitical environment is still unpredictable. The biggest difference between the situation a couple of years ago and now is that companies are investing almost exclusively in order to generate greater cost effectiveness. In late 1999, there was a huge surge in ERP implementations as businesses around the world prepared for the Y2K situation. Now, four years later, the motivation is for the manufacturers to be replacing or upgrading their ERP solutions,” according to ARC Analyst Steve Clouther, co-author of the ERP Software & Services Worldwide Outlook market study. For details, visit http://www.arcweb.com.

Ron Barnett Joins LEC as Director, Validation Services

Laboratory Expertise Center, Inc (LEC) has announced the appointment of Ronald Barnett, PhD as Director of Validation Services. Dr. Barnett comes to LEC with a wide breadth of experience and knowledge of project management and validation for LIMS and other laboratory related information technologies. Dr. Barnett was previously Validation Services Manager for Thermo Informatics. He also held numerous other management positions within Thermo’s LIMS group, and previously held technical management positions of increasing responsibility with Campbell Soup, Borden and other industry leaders within the food industry. He has been a member the GAMP SIG committee for the past two years and is a co-author of the upcoming guidance document from that group which will accompany the main GAMP4 guidance. He has also been a speaker at a number of international conferences on laboratory compliance over the past several years. Dr. Barnett earned a BS in Chemistry from University of Colorado, a PhD in Biochemistry from Brandeis University, and completed Postdoctoral work at Stanford University. For detials, visit http://www.labexpertise.com.

Thermo Appoints David Champagne to Director of Services for Informatics Business

Thermo Electron Corporation has announced the appointment of David Champagne to the position of Director of Services, Informatics and Services. Champagne will lead worldwide implementation, training, validation and support service for the company’s broad suite of leading laboratory informatics solutions. Best known for its market leading LIMS products (SampleManager and Nautilus), chromatography data system client/server solution (Atlas) and data archival and knowledge management solution (eRecordManager), Thermo’s informatics business was formerly known as Thermo LabSystems and Thermo Galactic. Champagne has considerable experience delivering high-quality services and support for mission-critical software applications to global customers. His career includes a 13-year term at Lotus Development Corporation (later acquired by IBM), serving most recently as Senior Vice President of World-wide Services. While at Lotus/IBM, he led a global support and service organization of over 1,200 service professionals that addressed the needs of customers in over 80 countries. More recently, Champagne was President and CEO of ProActivity Software, an early-stage venture that provides business process analysis solutions, and President and CEO of UPSPRING Software, a development tools vendor, before it was acquired by MKS. Champagne holds a BS in Industrial Engineering from the University of Massachusetts and an MBA from Bryant College, North Smithfield, RI. He will be based out of Thermo’s offices in Beverly, MA, USA.For details, visit http://www.thermolabsystems.com.

Europe Standardizing Drug Approval Process

Manufacturers seeking drug approval in Europe would face a single, standardized, FDA-like process under a groundbreaking European Union (E.U.) proposal that appears to be a done deal. Currently, drugmakers can either submit new products for approval to individual nations or to the European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products (EMEA). The new proposal, which E.U. health ministers will consider in early June, would
make EMEA submission mandatory in all 15 member nations. For details, visit http://www.fda.gov.

InnaPhase to Purchase Laboratory Automation Operations from Beckman Coulter

Beckman Coulter, Inc. and InnaPhase Corporation have announced they have signed an agreement for InnaPhase to acquire the domestic assets of Beckman Coulter's Laboratory Automation Operation (LAO). Subject to standard closing conditions, the acquisition is expected to close in June 2003. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Additionally, both parties have entered into negotiations for InnaPhase to acquire the foreign assets of LAO. Beckman Coulter's Laboratory Automation Operation designs, sells and services laboratory information management systems (LIMS) primarily for pharmaceutical quality control environments. LAO's product portfolio is a complement to InnaPhase's existing suite of LIMS solutions. Beckman made the announcement to their customers during their European User Meeting in Madrid, Spain on May 12, 2003. For details, visit http://www.beckmancoulterlims.com or http://www.innaphase.com.

InnaPhase Corporation Launches New Pharmaceutical LIMS at Pittcon 2003

InnaPhase Corporation, a leading provider of LIMS solutions for the life sciences, introduceed the Pharma LIMS Suite at the 2003 Pittsburgh Conference in March. The Pharma LIMS Suite is a series of purpose-built LIMS solutions for the pharmaceutical industry and was designed to operate in a 21 CFR Part 11 compliant environment. The solutions within the Suite include: Newton LIMS for batch release, quality control, formulation, stability and analytical development; Watson LIMS for pre-clinical and clinical bioanalysis; and Galileo LIMS for In Vitro testing. "We are very excited to be the first and only LIMS organization to provide the pharmaceutical industry with this type of technology solution," said Jo Webber, Ph.D, President and Chief Executive Officer of InnaPhase Corporation. "The feedback from the customers in our early adopter program has been overwhelmingly positive. Since 100% of our customers are from the pharmaceutical industry, we focus all of our development efforts on that industry which gives us the ability to provide purpose-built LIMS solutions that can be implemented and validated in half to one-third of the time of generic LIMS solutions." InnaPhase Corporation provides 18 of the world's top 20 pharmaceutical organizations with its products and services. In addition to the Pharma LIMS Suite, InnaPhase markets the Enterprise Pharmacology Series, a technology solution that centralizes the analysis and management of PK/PD data. For details, visit http://www.innaphase.com.

LabWare Unveils New LabWare Web LIMS

LabWare, Inc. has introduced LabWare Web LIMS, a new solutions that fully embraces the Web paradigm without requiring customers, using the existing Client/Server LIMS product, to make any configuration changes. Through the use of novel technology from LabWare, users are afforded the choice of interacting with the LIMS either via the Web LIMS, or the Client/Server LIMS, or a combination of both using exactly the same LIMS configuration. Labware Web LIMS is designed to run on any J2EE-based Web Application Server without requiring the deployment of applets. The new Web user interface runs on the existing LIMS configuration and therefore honors all business rules, template configurations, and security settings the customer has established. One of the time consuming challenges facing Information Technology departments today is managing change control on the desktop. LabWare Web LIMS requires zero footprint on the desktop, enabling a company to efficiently deploy and maintain LIMS across the enterprise while eliminating the need to install software on the desktop. For details, visit http://www.labware.com.

Justice Laboratory Software and ICD GmbH Enter Joint Venture Agreement to Provide Integrated Informatics Solutions

Justice Laboratory Software and iCD. GmbH announced today they have entered into a joint venture agreement to provide integrated Informatics solutions to the laboratory market. Justice Laboratory Software is a leading developer of Chromatography Data System software for science based industries and markets Chrom Perfect Spirit, a premier CDS system. iCD GmbH is the provider of the LABS/Q LIMS product. Justice Laboratory Software and iCD GmbH have established a joint venture partnership to market iCD’s LIMS product integrated with the Chrom Perfect Spirit application. The Joint Venture company will provide complete installation, product sales, training, and support for both the Chrom Perfect Spirit and LABS/Q product lines in the United States. For details, visit http://www.justiceinnovations.com or http://www.icd-gmbh.de.

PerkinElmer LabWorks ES LIMS Now Offers Broad Local Language Capabilities

PerkinElmer Life and Analytical Sciences, a leading provider of drug discovery, life science research, and analytical solutions, has announced a new version of its LabWorks LIMS that can be easily modified to provide a native language interface in nearly any language. The LabWorks ES (Enhanced Security) system now provides one of the most comprehensive language capabilities in the LIMS market, including native versions in French, German, Italian, Spanish, Japanese and Chinese. The new LabWorks ES software is one of the first on the market to support double-byte characters for true Asian language support. Users will have the flexibility to select their language when they load the software. For even greater flexibility, users within a networked installation can each run different languages. In addition, the localization capabilities of the software have been improved so the language can even be customized during the implementation process. For example, the interface terminology could be changed to reflect an individual organization’s laboratory workflow and business practices. A key advantage of the way LabWorks handles localization is that the software is backwards compatible with previous versions and optional modules that have not been localized. These modules will continue to operate in their original design alongside localized modules. Localization of LIMS software has been a challenge in the past because converting a program to a new language usually meant modifying the source code. PerkinElmer has taken a new approach of removing the text from the source code and putting it into a database. LabWorks developers have gone a step further by creating a new localization tool that drastically shortens the time required to implement a new language. The result is that PerkinElmer has dramatically increased the number of languages that it supports in a very short period of time. PerkinElmer also plans to make the new localization tools available to other development groups within the company to easily create local language versions of other PerkinElmer software that controls operation of the Company’s analytical instruments. For details, visit http://www.perkinelmer.com/instruments.

PerkinElmer Launches New Business Offering Called OneSource To Reshape Laboratory Service

PerkinElmer, Inc., a leading provider of drug discovery, life science research, and analytical solutions, has launched OneSource, a new business that will provide comprehensive service and support for laboratories worldwide. "Within the life and analytical sciences marketplace, customers are seeking to streamline their supply chain through fewer, more value-added partnerships, enabling them to focus on their core competencies," said Peter Coggins, president of PerkinElmer Life and Analytical Sciences. "We have launched our OneSource Laboratory Services business in response to this emerging trend, providing our customers with the means to improve productivity and reduce costs within their laboratories." OneSource customers can choose from a variety of service-level agreements, with offerings including preventative maintenance, 24-hour response times, or daily on-site support. OneSource service engineers are currently engaged in numerous large-scale service partnerships, in some cases with PerkinElmer engineers residing full-time on-site with customers, performing repair, maintenance and validation of instruments provided by PerkinElmer and other suppliers. PerkinElmer is unique among instrument vendors in its broad product scope, which ranges from basic research instruments to high-throughput drug discovery tools to environmental testing and general analytical instrumentation. The OneSource business is comprised of more than 1,000 factory-trained service professionals operating in 120 countries to service the PerkinElmer installed base of hundreds of thousands of instruments. PerkinElmer OneSource anticipates launching new service offerings throughout the year to fully enable these comprehensive service partnerships. For details, visit http://www.perkinelmer.com/onesource.

Thermo LabSystems and Thermo Galactic Rename to Thermo Electron Corporation

Thermo LabSystems and Thermo Galactic, Thermo Electron businesses and market leaders in laboratory informatics solutions, have announced that, with immediate effect and in line with the current Thermo Electron integration strategy, the LabSystems and Galactic names will cease to exist and the informatics business of Thermo Electron will trade simply as Thermo Electron Corporation. The combined informatics organization made its public debut under its new identity at 2003. This change brings together the skills and resources of two leading vendors in the global laboratory informatics marketplace. Expertise in the development and support of desktop spectroscopy systems is combining with an impressive track record in LIMS (Laboratory Information Management Systems), CDS (Chromatography Data Systems) and solutions for long term data archival. Development, support and marketing of Thermo’s leading informatics products brands, including SampleManager LIMS, Nautilus LIMS, Atlas CDS (Chromatography Data System), eRecordManager data archival and knowledge management solution, and GRAMS A/I spectral data processing product will continue to be managed from the Altrincham, UK and Salem, New Hampshire facilities. For details, visit http://www.thermo.com/informatics.

Autoscribe Announces Agreement to Distribute Varian CDS

Autoscribe Ltd., specialists in laboratory software solutions, has announced the availability of the Varian Galaxie chromatography data system (CDS). Galaxie is fully scalable from single chromatograph workstations to global impleme ntations with an easy upgrade path. With a highly modular design, Galaxie can be tailored for many different appl ications and industries. Galaxie provides unrivalled instrument control capability via a dedicated user screen and offers a further user screen for all data handling and reporting. Powerful yet easy to use, Galaxie provides central administration of users, instruments and methods and comprehensive tracking of file additions, deletions and changes. Galaxie complies with the most stringent regulatory requirements, such as 21 CFR part 11, and includes a highly flexible user profiler and access rights management system. Bi-directional links with the Autoscribe Matrix LIMS family allow the downloading of sequences from Matrix to Galaxie and the return of data from Galaxie to Matrix. Matrix L IMS products are installed in over 250 companies around the world. For details, visit http://www.autoscribe.co.uk.

Sample Master Pro LIMS now offered in Bundle with Toshiba Magnia Z310 Wireless Mobility Server

ATL Inc. hasannounced that its Sample Master Pro LIMS is now available bundled on the Toshiba Magnia Z310 Wireless Mobility Server. Toshiba's Magnia Z310 is designed to provide users with an affordable, easy to deploy wireless network solution while the addition of ATL's software also allows time critical access to laboratory data. Wireless Tablet PCs, such as the Toshiba Portégé 3500 convertible Tablet PC, are ideal client companions to this solution. ATL offers this complete wireless data management solution for clients that require mobility. For instance, the tablet PC and turnkey server solution allow those in the laboratory extra mobility from the workbench to the office or meeting room, with instant access to their data. The server is cost effective, portable, and wireless which allows secure access from various locations in the building, along with the ability of those in the laboratory to share faxes, a printer and the Internet. TFor details, visit http://www.atlab.com.

LabVantage Solutions Introduces Vantage Care

LabVantage Solutions, Inc., a leading provider of Enterprise QC LIMS and Life Sciences LIMS solutions, announced the introduction of VantageCare at the PIittcon 2003 conference. VantageCare is a new, secure, intranet/extranet, browser-based customer care solution. LabVantage’s customers and the global LabVantage organization are using VantageCare as a resource for the latest product information and future software enhancements, as well as for issue submission and tracking. VantageCare adds a new dimension to the customer service currently provided by LabVantage’s dedicated customer service professionals. It is a secure customer area of the LabVantage website, which provides a valuable self-service resource for customers, business partners and internal LabVantage staff around the globe. VantageCare is a 24-hour gateway to product and service solutions as well as the latest LabVantage news. Customers can submit new issues, track open issues, review closed issues, and view current enhancement requests. VantageCare has been constructed in LabVantage Sapphire and utilizes the product’s browser/server configuration capabilities. LabVantage Sapphire offers a scalable, flexible environment to rapidly configure secure solutions to meet unique business requirements. Itis available now for all LabVanatge customers with active support contracts. For details, visit http://www.labvantage.com.

Thermo Electron Debuts New Web Client Interface of eRecordManager Solution at Pittcon 2003

Thermo Electron presented the latest features of eRecordManager, its solution for analytical data archival and knowledcge menagement, during Pittcon 2003. The most significant advance is a completely web-based client interface which allows users to search, view and download archived data without the requirement to install eRecordManager at their workstation. Thermo claims eRecordManager offers unique functionality for preserving the ability to access the information content of electronic records addressing the long-term record-keeping requirements of all science-based industries. eRecordmanager captures, stores and indexes large volumes of original raw instrument data, reports and docujments, while also converting the content of these records for storage as technology-neutral format based on XML, called GAML or Generalized Analytical Markup Language. For details, visit http://www.thermolabsystems.com.

Neolytica Unveiled LIMS-ASP Solution at PittCon 2003

Neolytica introduced its LIMS-ASP (Laboratory Information Management System delivered as a service) solution to customers at Pittcon 2003. Neolytica’s LIMS-ASP will provide customers with access to world-class software without the need to secure costly licenses, purchase hardware or employ expensive support resources.
Neolytica, a single point of contact for outsourcing and contracting analytical testing services, teamed with Thermo Electron in October 2002 to offer the Nautilus LIMS solution to customers using the ASP model. Neolytica began piloting its LIMS-ASP service during the 1st quarter of 2003 and will follow with a full commercial launch during the 3rd quarter of 2003. The Neolytica LIMS-ASP infrastructure allows data access via the Internet, permitting customers to review their data 24 hours-a-day from any location using an Internet browser. Well-defined security architecture protects Neolytica’s LIMS and data reporting infrastructure, ensuring that only those with pre-defined privileges are allowed access. Neolytica combines the leading conventional systems and Internet-enabling technologies to deliver a return on investment to customers in industries such as chemicals, plastics, R&D, industrial gases, petrochemical and consumer packaged goods. Customers who utilize Neolytica LIMS-ASP will experience faster, easier and more convenient service. A monthly rental fee replaces initial information services capital expenditures, spreading cash flow over a manageable period and eliminating upfront software and hardware costs. Hosting LIMS on a network of centrally managed servers maintained by highly trained specialists also provides users with the highest level of availability, scalability and performance as well as removing the significant costs associated with updates. Neolytica’s primary goals for LIMS are to improve laboratory productivity and reduce the total cost of ownership to customers in small or large laboratories. The key benefits to successfully meeting these goals include faster and more competitive business operations, better managed IT costs and speeding validation efforts in regulated environments. For details, visit http://www.neolytica.com.

Neolytica Celebrates First Anniversary at PittCon 2003

Neolytica, a Web-enabled, single point of contact for outsourcing and contracting analytical testing services, marked its first anniversary at PittCon 2003. Built on a customer-centric business model, Neolytica provides comprehensive analytical testing services, enabling customers to better leverage capital, equipment and personnel. Consequently, customers are able to more efficiently allocate time and resources to concentrate on core competencies. Since its introduction at PittCon 2002, Neolytica has enhanced its service offering in a variety of ways, developing technology that better enables companies to realize the full range of benefits derived from outsourcing. An arrangement with Thermo Electron was signed in October 2002 to deploy its Nautilus LIMS solution via the application service provision (ASP) model and by mid 2003, Neolytica LIMS-ASP will be fully operational. This innovative solution eases the accessibility and management of analytical data for Neolytica customers, providing access to world-class software without the need to secure costly licenses, purchase hardware or employ expensive support resources. To better meet the needs of its growing customer and supplier base, Neolytica has developed a number of new services and enhancements to its commerce site. It has also established relationships with numerous organizations in the analytical industry to enhance its resource offering; MSDSOnline, ASTM International and the NIST Chemistry WebBook are among the latest additions. By integrating MSDSOnline, Neolytica provides customers with a continually updated collection of approximately 600,000 Material Safety Data Sheets. The NIST Chemistry WebBook is also available through Neolytica, providing customers with easy access to chemical and physical property data for chemical species through the Internet. Furthermore, customers and suppliers can benefit from Neolytica’s relationship with ASTM International, a global forum for the development and publication of voluntary consensus for standards for materials, products, systems, and services. For details, visit http://www.neolytica.com.

NuGenesis Technologies Launches Next-Generation Platform for Managing Scientific Data

NuGenesis Technologies Corporation has launched the next generation of its industry-leading NuGenesis Scientific Data Management System (SDMS). The platform technology of NuGenesis SDMS captures all analytical and related lab data, including the printed reports generated by the instruments for scientist review (the actual content of the report, not just an image). During recent performance and scalability testing 9.75TB (terabytes) of data – or 2,022,712 files of 5MB (megabytes) each – were successfully captured in one week (equivalent in size to the entire printed collection of the U.S. Library of Congress). Extrapolated to one year, NuGenesis SDMS is capable of capturing at least 527TB of data, or 110 million files. Data can be quickly located and viewed through NuGenesis SDMS without the instrument software that created it, facilitating collaboration by research members and managers, anywhere in the enterprise. NuGenesis SDMS seamlessly integrates all data sources within the existing IT infrastructure, exchanging data with other common systems and software tools such as statistics and visualization programs. Building on experience with previous versions, NuGenesis SDMS 6 offers significant new features, including a single, intuitive new user interface; an optional Compliance Module for Microsoft Office; a Web-based platform; Automated archival and audit trail capabilities for security and compliance; and scalable architecture. For details, visit http://www.nugenesis.com.

ABB Announces Optimize Expert Optimizer Version 4

ABB, a leading power and automation technology group, has announced the successful release of the ABB Optimize Expert Optimizer Version 4 advanced control system. This system builds on years of experience in providing advanced control for the cement industry. It draws on the knowledge accumulated in controlling more than 170 kilns and 70 mills worldwide to deliver a new standard in cement advanced control systems. A new set of process control modules has been developed for this solution and the existing optimizing tools and Neuro-Fuzzy module have been enhanced to produce even more benefits to our customers. Interfacing for both engineers and operators has been enhanced, with a common user interface offering seamless interoperability with other ABB Industrial products and systems. This results in enhanced user value for the cement industry. ABB Optimize Expert Optimizer minimizes the risk associated with implementing an advanced control system in cement manufacturing, providing the right process control and management tool for optimum performance and maximized returns. For details, visit http://www.ch.abb.com.

InnaPhase Corporation Enters Strategic Partnership with NuGenesis Technologies to Enhance Data Archival and Retrieval within the Pharmaceutical Industry

InnaPhase Corporation, a leading provider of LIMS for the life sciences industry, have announced a partnership agreement and technology alliance with NuGenesis Technologies, developers of scientific data management systems. This partnership will assist pharmaceutical and biotechnology professionals in the development of more effective drugs by integrating the NuGenesis' Scientific Data Management System (SDMS) with each of the software solutions within the InnaPhase Pharma LIMS Suite. The Pharma LIMS Suite is a LIMS solution for the pharmaceutical industry and includes: Newton LIMS for batch release, quality control, formulation, stability and analytical development; Watson LIMS for pre-clinical and clinical bioanalysis; and Galileo LIMS for In Vitro testing. The NuGenesis SDMS is an application-independent, web-enabled platform for the automated collection, storage and management of scientific information direct from the data sources (instruments and office applications). For details, visit http://www.nugenesis.com or http://www.innaphase.com.

Latest Version of ChemSW Sample Tracking System Expands Functionality and Extends Application

ChemSW, Inc. demonstrated a series of enhancements to its STIS Sample Tracking and Inventory System, enterprise version, at Pittcon 2003. The system can now accurately track samples that are sent for off-site testing, providing complete management of all samples, regardless of their location. ChemSW also now offers a non-21 CFR Part 11 version, for users beyond the pharmaceutical industry who don’t require the electronic signature functionality. STIS is ideal for a wide range of applications including environmental, analytical chemistry, chemical processing and petrochemical. The system may also be tightly integrated with ChemSW’s CISPro CIS Chemical Inventory System for the tracking of samples taken from inventory for testing. With enhanced test definitions, users can precisely track samples undergoing multiparameter tests. Multiple documents, such as SOPs or certificates of analysis, are now linked to each sample so that all information on a particular sample is tracked, updated, and kept together. New total volume calculation functions report on all volumes of each sample on site, regardless of location. For details, visit http://www.chemsw.com.

LabVantage Attains Advanced Member Status in IBM PartnerWorld for Developers Business Partner Program

LabVantage Solutions, Inc., a leading provider of Enterprise QC LIMS and Life Sciences LIMS solutions, announced at the Pittcon 2003 Conference, that it has attained Advanced Member status in IBM’s PartnerWorld for Developers Business Partner Program. As an Advanced Member of PartnerWorld for Developers, LabVantage gains further access to a more comprehensive assortment of technical, informational, general business, and marketing services. The expanded relationship positions LabVantage moving forward to fully leverage IBM platforms, middleware, and computing infrastructure capabilities. For details, visit http://www.ibm.com/lifesciences or http://www.labvantage.com.

IBM Signs Up StarLIMS for its Emerging Life Sciences Solutions Base

L.i.M.S. Ltd., the developers of StarLIMS, and IBM have announced that they have entered into a collaboration agreement to deliver a set of integrated applications and services for analyzing, managing and storing laboratory data. The role of a LIMS in these regulated environments is to automate the task of compiling documentation for successful internal and external audits. StarLIMS is delivered with extensive features to aid in this process and provide labs with the ability to produce a fully traceable result. These features include maintaining versions of test methods, training certifications for analysts, logbooks for instrument maintenance, instrument standards and control charts, dynamic monitoring of chain-of-custody, raw data files, and general material management and tracking. StarLIMS monitors compliance throughout the workflow. For instance when assigning a test to a selected analyst, the certifications of the analyst are checked to correspond with the certifications required.
Additional compliance elements included in StarLIMS’ are facilities for implementing strict user access rules, document and data change control; transactional or silent audit trails and electronic signature security. A major catalyst for this partnership announced today is the burgeoning IT requirements in the life sciences industry as a result of the amount and complexity of the analytical data that needs to be archived, sorted, analyzed and retrieved by both internal and external data clients. StarLIMS implementations are already utilizing IBM hardware and software platforms and with this relationship the companies are planning tighter cooperation in joint offering development and co-marketing activities. IBM offerings include high-performance computing and storage management systems; global consulting and implementation services; knowledge management and collaborative technologies; as well as e-business solutions to connect between the labs and their information clients worldwide. For details, visit http://www.ibm.com or http://www.starlims.com.

LabWare Joins IBM PartnerWorld to Enhance its LIMS Solution Offerings for the Life Sciences Market

LabWare, Inc. announced at Pittcon that it has signed an agreement with IBM Life Sciences Business Unit to participate in IBM's prestigious PartnerWorld Program. Joining the PartnerWorld Program enables LabWare to combine its expertise in the LIMS marketplace with IBM's marketing, technical and development support. LabWare's flagship product, LabWare LIMS Version 5.0, forms the basis for this partnership, and is already positioned for deployment with a broad array of IBM products and technologies including DB2, Linux, WebSphere, and Tivoli. Under the PartnerWorld agreement LabWare and IBM will work closely together, and in conjunction with common partners, to deliver comprehensive point-to-point solutions. The IBM Life Sciences Solutions Business Unit will be the focal point for initial activities. Combined with IBM's core strength in providing robust technology and global services, the IBM Life Sciences business unit delivers scalable infrastructure solutions that are unique to the life sciences industry. A key part of the IBM initiative involves creation of the Global Life Sciences Consulting and Solutions practice, which enables IBM to focus its professional service capabilities. This organization is also available as a resource through the partnership program, and provides an extensive resource for integration services and customer-specific development activities For details, visit http://www.ibm.com or http://www.labware.com.

Taratec Announces Partnership with IBM

Taratec, a leading life science consultancy that provides integrated business, information technology, and regulatory compliance services and products, announced that it has entered into an agreement with IBM, the world's largest information technology company. Together, the two companies will provide a full suite of information technology services to the global life sciences industry, including complete regulatory compliance solutions encompassing hardware, software, and services. The Taratec and IBM collaboration represents a powerful value proposition for both companies and will deliver an unequaled solution set for life sciences companies who must comply with both U.S. and international regulations and standards across their enterprises. Taratec’s expertise in regulatory compliance, including 21 CFR Part 11, computer systems validation, and process control systems validation, will supplement IBM’s core competencies in hardware, software, business process and IT consulting. Together, the two companies bring an understanding of the business and operational environments that will enable life science companies to use technology within a regulated framework to improve and expedite their current processes and bring products to market faster. For details, visit http://www.ibm.com or http://www.taratec.com.

NuGenesis Technologies Announces Expanded Collaboration and Co-Marketing Agreement with IBM

NuGenesis Technologies Corporation has announced an agreement with IBM to co-market the NuGenesis Scientific Data Management System (SDMS) with IBM eServer and TotalStorage solutions. The combined offering is designed to help life sciences companies, including drug makers, access and utilize research data more effectively within their global life sciences enterprises and throughout the drug discovery, development and manufacturing cycles. NuGenesis SDMS is an application-independent, Web-based platform that captures and securely stores all the raw analytical and report data from existing instruments, as well as other software applications, using IBM storage and server solutions. NuGenesis SDMS integrates with IBM's Tivoli Storage Manager to offer data protection from hardware failures and other errors, so that customers can achieve long-term data preservation, intellectual property protection, and overall cost management in compliance with the Food & Drug Administration's 21 CFR Part 11 requirements for electronic recordkeeping. NuGenesis' SDMS, working with IBM hardware and software infrastructure, is designed to provide a comprehensive, enterprise-wide data management and storage solution that minimizes the cost of long-term storage, while making analytical data highly searchable and accessible. For details, visit http://www.nugenesis.com.

Arena Pharmaceuticals Signs Agreement to Implement InnaPhase Technology Solution

InnaPhase Corporation hasannounced that Arena Pharmaceuticals, a California-based biopharmaceutical organization, has signed a license agreement to implement InnaPhase's Watson LIMS for their San Diego, California facility in the United States. Watson LIMS, a solution within the Pharma LIMS Suite, is specifically designed to support DMPK/Bioanalytical studies in drug development while ensuring regulatory compliance with the FDA's 21 CFR Part 11 guidance on electronic records and signatures. Watson has an established track record of accelerating bioanalysis, sample management and regulatory compliance in pharmaceutical drug development. Arena's CART and Melanophore technologies allow for the direct identification of modulators of GPCRs in a ligand-independent manner, making the technologies particularly useful with respect to the many GPCRs of therapeutic interest in the human genome. Arena has established collaborations with Merck & Co., Ferring Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Taisho Pharmaceutical Co., TaiGen Biotechnology Co., and other companies. Arena is also pursuing internal research and development programs aimed at the following four areas: (i) metabolism; (ii) cardiovascular; (iii) central nervous system; and (iv) inflammation. For details, visit http://www.arenapharm.com or http://www.innaphase.com.

Rockwell Automation to Implement Global Manufacturing Solutions for Laboratoires ROCHE Nicholas S.A.

Rockwell Automation, a market leader in the life sciences software solutions industry, has been selected by Laboratoires ROCHE Nicholas S.A. to implement global manufacturing solutions at the company's planned manufacturing locations in Turkey, Spain, and Switzerland. The decision by ROCHE was made as a result of an initial system evaluation Rockwell Automation recently completed for the company. As a result of the evaluation, ROCHE has decided that the upgrade will include the Propack Data PMX MES from Rockwell Automation.
As a global company, ROCHE is faced with the daily challenge of plant modernization. At the same time, the company must also guarantee collaboration of the existing enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. ROCHE looked at the upgrade and collaboration effort as a two-step process. The first stage was aimed at developing an online interface to SAP R/3, version-controlled recipe and master data management, and finite scheduling from weighing through packaging. The second stage in the process dealt with material and warehouse management, weigh and dispense support, order processing and line monitoring, GMP-compliant material flow control (MFC), and the evaluation of all production data, as well as the preparation of batch documents. For details, visit http://www.propack-data.com.

Scientific Software and CambridgeSoft Announce CyberLAB and E-Notebook Integration

Scientific Software, Inc. and CambridgeSoft Corporation have announced that they will integrate Scientific Software's CyberLAB Knowledge Engineering System and CambridgeSoft's E-Notebook. This integration will permit researchers to have an electronic notebook application that can access all laboratory and enterprise electronic records. CyberLAB Knowledge Engineering System is a secure, web-based system designed to capture and warehouse all the electronic records across the enterprise. Users can search, retrieve, data mine and archive any type of an electronic record such as instrumentation raw data, laboratory reports, procedures and image files. Designed with U.S. 21 CFR Part 11 in mind, CyberLAB assists organizations to become compliant. Built using standard web technology, CyberLAB is expandable from single user system to global multi-site implementations enabling global research collaboration and data sharing. CambridgeSoft's E-Notebook organizes electronic laboratory record keeping under multiple projects and experiments, as designed by the user. Notebook pages consist of ChemDraw structure and reaction diagrams, Microsoft Word documents, and Microsoft Excel spreadsheets. Word documents can include graphics and other insertions, and spreadsheets can take advantage of the facilities of ChemOffice to display chemical structures and filter results based on structural features. At the group and enterprise levels, with Oracle as the common data repository, E-Notebook promotes lab productivity
and information sharing with detailed page-level security. For details, visit http://www.cambridgesoft.com or http://www.scisw.com.

Waters & Taratec to Host Series of Free Seminars

Waters Corporation and Taratec have announced a series of complimentary half-day seminars entitled “Productivity Improvements and Compliance for the Automated Laboratory” to be held between February and May 2003. The nine seminars will focus on achieving compliance with the FDA’s 21 CFR Part 11 regulation while increasing laboratory productivity through the implementation of a compliance-ready software solution. This is particularly critical given the recent increase in the frequency, breadth, and depth of FDA inspections coupled with the need for life science laboratories to integrate and analyze instrument data across enterprise-wide computing environments. Key issues to be addressed at the seminars include: How to structure an effective approach to 21 CFR Part 11 compliance; How a vendor’s software quality development plan, coupled with industry-leading software applications can reduce manual data manipulation, minimize data transfer needs, and decrease your compliance risk; An in-depth look at the purpose and structure of key phases of the computer systems compliance process, including the development of user requirements specifications as well as how to conduct effective user acceptance testing, network qualification activities, and vendor audits; and, How to survive an FDA inspection of your laboratory through a hands-on simulation that provides important training in responding to real-world audit questions. To register for any of the seminars, visit http://www.waters.com/part11.

Thermo LabSystems Awarded Certification to New ISO 9001:2000 Standard

Thermo LabSystems received ISO 9001:2000 certification on 10th February 2003, following an assessment conducted by BSI (British Standards Institution) in November 2002. ISO 9001:2000 supercedes ISO 9001:1994 in December 2003, when informatics vendors such as Thermo serving regulated industries will be obliged to move to the newer standard, in order to retain ISO 9001 registration. Thermo's certification to the new standard has been awarded for Business Management Processes at its product development headquarters at Altrincham, UK. Thermo LabSystems develops and supports LIMS (Laboratory Information Management Systems), CDS (Chromatography Data Systems) and solutions for analytical data archival. Computer system vendors that serve industries in which their systems operate in a GLP, GMP or GAMP regulated environment are increasingly expected by industry to hold ISO 9001 certification from recognized accredited certification bodies. Thermo has received certification from BSI, Quality Assurance, which itself is accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS). Thermo's certification also includes the highly acclaimed TickIT scheme for software development organizations. Certification of vendors to internationally recognized standards provides confidence to customers in regulated industries that the vendor has formal mechanisms and systems in place to consistently improve its products and processes. For details, visit http://www.thermolabsystems.com.

Siemens Named Number One LIMS Supplier to Food & Beverage Industry in ARC Study

Siemens is the leading supplier of LIMS to the Food & Beverage market according to a recent ARC Advisory Group study entitled "Laboratory Information Management (LIMS) Worldwide Outlook." Of the 25 LIMS suppliers included in the sudy, which provides a market analysis and forecast through 2007, Siemens holds the largest market share for LIMS in the Food & Beverage industry. Founded in 1986, the ARC Advisory Group provides strategic planning and technology assessment services to leading manufacutirng companies, utilities and global logistics providers. For details, visit http://www.sea.siemens.com or http://www.arcnet.com.

NuGenesis Technologies Record of Strong Double Digit Growth Continues in 2002

NuGenesis Technologies has announced a strong double digit revenue increase in 2002 and that the company met its goal of turning cash flow positive. Leading pharmaceutical, biotechnology and chemical companies have invested $60 million to date in the NuGenesis Scientific Data Management System (SDMS), with nine customers spending over $1.5 million each on NuGenesis SDMS technology. The company reports that 65% of total sales are to existing customers looking to expand current installations – many view NuGenesis SDMS as their corporate standard. More than 30,000 users in over 500 laboratories around the world now use NuGenesis SDMS, making it clearly the preferred solution and market leader for scientific data management. Web-based NuGenesis SDMS captures all the data generated by instruments and software applications, and provides collaborators with instant access to the information so that it can be viewed, analyzed and used to make faster, better decisions – shortening the time it takes to bring products to market. For details, visit http://www.nugenesis.com.

Nestlé Selects NuGenesis Technologies to Deploy Scientific Data Archival Solution

After a successful pilot, Nestlé will implement the NuGenesis Scientific Data Management System (SDMS) as its scientific archiving and back-up solution for their Research Centre in Lausanne, Switzerland. The NuGenesis SDMS will provide a centrally managed archiving system for raw data from the many diverse scientific instruments in the lab. The solution will be further evaluated for other Nestlé R&D centers in 2003. For details, visit http://www.nugenesis.com.

Labtronics Allows Review of Chromatograms from LIMS

Labtronics Inc. has announced a new version of LimsLinkCDS that gives analysts the ability to display Waters Millennium32 or Empower chromatograms from inside their LIMS. This new LimsLinkCDS/Waters interface speeds up the sample review process, allowing for faster more efficient approval of sample results. Using this new LimsLinkCDS feature, analysts no longer have to leave their LIMS to lookup the chromatogram for a sample result that they are reviewing. They can now stay in their application while LimsLinkCDS establishes a transparent connection with the Millennium32 or Empower review client, which performs the lookup and display for them. Laboratories that use LimsLinkCDS to review and approve their chromatography data, before committing the data to LIMS, can also use this new feature to display chromatograms from within the LimsLinkCDS interface. For details, visit http://www.labtronics.com.

JEOL USA Receives Third Omega Award for Service

For the third consecutive year, JEOL USA, Inc., a leader in the manufacture, sales, and service of electron microscopes and analytical instruments, has received the Omega Northface Award in recognition for its commitment to providing exemplary service and exceeding customer expectations. Through quarterly surveys of 150 JEOL customers, Omega Management Group computed JEOL’s customer satisfaction score to be 4.0 or above out of a possible 5.0 in the categories of technical support, field service, account management, and training. JEOL was rated on product reliability, service response time, call center assistance, and service expertise. JEOL was one of five companies to receive the Omega Northface Scoreboard Award three years in a row. This year, Omega judged 75 companies and over 275 projects throughout the United States. The Omega Management Group Corp. specializes in implementing customer satisfaction and retention programs. Criteria for the Omega award includes senior management commitment to exceeding customer expectations and a customer satisfaction program which identifies and corrects customer problems. For details, visit http://www.jeol.com.

New Pipette Calibration Solution from Labtronics Meets 21 CFR Part 11 Compliance Requirements

Labtronics Inc. has introduced Pipette Tracker Pro, new pipette calibration software that provides laboratories operating in a regulated environment with the tools to comply with regulatory requirements such as 21 CFR Part 11. The security implementation in Pipette Tracker Pro includes: User ID and Password control, Electronic Signatures and an audit trail function that logs all system activity and changes. A workstation can be automatically locked out if left inactive for a specified period of time, preventing undocumented access to an unattended workstation. Pipette Tracker Pro methods and test plans can be validated and versioned with users only being allowed to use the current validated version. Pipette Tracker Pro fully supports Oracle and SQL Server databases allowing companies using these platforms to implement Pipette Tracker Pro in a manner that fully meets the requirements and standards of their IT structure. The scheduling component in Pipette Tracker Pro automatically schedules calibration testing for all pipettes. Pipettes can be setup to appear on a work-list ahead of the testing date to ensure that the pipette is available for testing at the appropriate time or Pipette Tracker Pro can automatically email the user advising
them that calibration is due. For details, visit http://www.labtronics.com.

Select Biosciences Releases Strategic Report on Protein Biochips

Select Biosciences has released their Strategic Report on Protein Biochips 2003, published in April 2003. According to the company, the protein biochip market is underserved, despite growing from $70 million in 2001 to $100 million in 2002. The market is projected to grow to more than $400 million in 2007, a compound annual growth rate of more than 35%. This report presents a detailed market model and thorough analysis of the technologies and business strategies of nearly 40 leading protein biochip companies. The report is available as a Single User Print Version for $2,950 or as an Electronic Site License (supplied as pdf + one print copy) for $3,650. For details, visit http://www.selectbiosciences.com.

Biotech Drugmakers Can Ask FDA for Independent Reviewers

Biotech manufacturers can request independent reviewers if they doubt the FDA has the internal expertise to evaluate clinical study protocols, the agency said Tuesday. If a company has designed a clinical trial using a novel or unorthodox approach to the study or its analysis, the company may seek external help, the FDA said. However, consultants will only review studies that serve as the primary basis of an efficacy claim. For details, visit http://www.fda.gov.

FDA and Lincoln Technologies to Collaborate on Developing Tools for Safety Data Mining

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has established a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with Lincoln Technologies, Inc. The purpose of this partnership is to use data mining to enhance FDA’s ability to monitor the safety of drugs, biologics, and vaccines after they have been approved for use. Data mining is a technique for extracting meaningful, organized information from large complex databases. The CRADA involves data that FDA already collects about adverse events involving approved drugs, biologics, and vaccines. The specific data set used for data mining purposes does not include patient names, addresses, social security numbers or similar information. Data collected from suspected drug-related adverse event reports and other electronic medical information could aid the FDA in identifying "signals" of adverse events and the patterns in which they occur. The more effective the tools FDA can use to detect such patterns, the faster it can act to evaluate and act on these reports as appropriate. For example, more effective data mining might allow the agency to identify a pattern of adverse events in a specific population of patients taking a drug, or in patients who take a certain combination of drugs, and the agency could then communicate this knowledge sooner to medical professionals and patients – preventing more adverse events. FDA will continue to monitor the marketplace to ensure that products purporting to be dietary supplements are labeled properly and that claims being made for these types of products are not false or misleading. The CRADA is expected to improve the utility of safety data mining technology. The FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) and Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) will work with Lincoln Technologies to develop new and innovative ways for extracting information related to drug safety and risk assessment. For details, visit http://www.fda.gov

What's New - May to June 2003 The following is a wrap-up of news of interest during the months of May to June 2003

What's New - May to June 2003
The following is a wrap-up of news of interest during the months of May to June 2003