SmartBead establish valuable supplier relationships for UltraPlex

29 January 2003. SmartBead Technologies today announced it has entered into key supplier relationships that provide the company with access to cutting edge and established technologies and enable rapid product development cycles for its UltraPlex multiplexed assay solutions.

"Our goal is to deliver cost-effective productivity solutions for the drug development and diagnostics markets", said Robert Booth, CEO of SmartBead. "Establishing relationships with key world class suppliers allows SmartBead to deliver those solutions."

The suppliers include established life science instrumentation companies, Olympus, Nikon, and Prior Scientific, and MEMs manufacturer, SMC. These companies provide a wide range of complementing technology, resources and networks making SmartBead even more competitive in producing products offering the highest level of innovation, quality and efficiency improvement for end users.

The power of the UltraPlex system lies in its flexibility to allow researchers to easily produce customised, barcoded multiplexed assays, speeding up drug development and diagnostics as well as in broader research areas in proteomics. The first customer shipments of the UltraPlex solution are expected in 2003.

For more information, please see www.smartbead.com  or contact Christian Bunke at christianbunke@smartbead.com .


About SmartBead Technologies Ltd 
SmartBead has developed a microparticle array technology, UltraPlex, based on barcoded microparticles, which, in effect barcodes molecules. SmartBead will be a preferred solution provider of these multiplexing technologies for the drug development and diagnostics industries and will lead the way in new approaches to analysing multiple parameters through barcoded bioassays. The Company was founded to exploit technology originally developed by Sentec Ltd, a Cambridge, UK company, and the Cavendish Laboratories, University of Cambridge.

About Prior Scientific
Prior Scientific is a manufacturer of microscopes, fiber optic inspection instruments, microscopy accessories, precision motorized stages, motorized filter wheels, and custom optical systems. Prior was established in 1919 and is a leader in the field of microscopy accessories, supplying to microscope manufacturers worldwide, as well as developing many innovative and custom OEM products for industry partners.

About Olympus
Olympus manufactures and markets a broad range of microscopes, cameras and accessories for science, medicine and industry. In addition to supplying direct to end users, Olympus works closely with specialist companies in the field to offer customers fully integrated solutions. Based in Tokyo, Olympus operates throughout the world, with major business centres in Europe and America, and can provide ample local support to customers and business partners in most countries.

About Nikon
Our outstanding range of microscopy, measuring & semiconductor equipment, and our digital imaging systems, mean you need look no further for the very best in technology. The Eclipse range and our Stereoscopic Microscopes simply stand out from the rest with their superlative design and cost effectiveness. Nikon microscopes have revolutionised the results experienced in advanced research applications with the combined forces of our superior CFI60 optics, next-generation ergonomics and versatility.

About SMC
The Scottish Microelectronics Research Centre is a joint venture between the University of Edinburgh, Scottish Enterprise, and Lothian and Edinburgh Enterprise Ltd. SMC has extensive MEMS fabrication and post-processing capabilities.