ANALYTICAL & LABORATORY EQUIPMENT
the scale of their experimentation changes – they can test more variables, increase reps to power statistics, and ultimately accomplish more with smaller volumes in less time. Second, Beam wanted FAIR data capture without putting the burden on its scientists. With a fully automated system, scientists have a complete data capture of every single step in the process. Tird, the company is rapidly growing its teams and wants its new employees to focus on scientific discovery and innovation, not spinning plates and moving liquids.
THE CHALLENGES OF AUTOMATION
Although the benefits of automation are vast, many labs are intimidated by the costs and technical complexity. Fully automated systems have a multitude of instruments but each has its own software, which needs to be tied together to run smoothly. Tere’s also the challenge of building a data infrastructure so all the data is easily retrievable. Finally, automating assays isn’t a trivial task as translating a manual protocol into an automated equivalent can be challenging. However, the lab automation market is changing – more vendors and integrators are working together to seamlessly integrate instruments, system prices are going down and the implementation process is getting easier. As well, many of the technical challenges can be easily addressed through software such as Artificial’s aLab Suite, HighRes Bio’s Cellario and Benchling. Instead, Bob Gantzer, director of Lab Automation
Beam scientist using the aLab suite Bob Gantzer (left) believes that more intuitive user interfaces are key to success
at Beam Terapeutics, views the real challenge as accessibility. Te complexity of these systems drives people away so most research is still being manually performed. To fully realise the benefits of automation, Gantzer believes the solution is through a non-intimidating user interface that is fully connected and as intuitive as using a smartphone. Beam’s first fully automated system, affectionately named Ursula, is a next- generation sequencing (NGS) platform comprised of equipment from 11 different vendors including robots, liquid handlers, dispensers, heater/shakers and much more. To run jobs, Ursula is connected to a cloud-based LIMS (Benchling), a local scheduler (Cellario) and the cloud (AWS). Working with an integrator (HighRes Bio), Beam’s automation team overcame the early challenges of adopting and the company quickly saw the ROI of automation and started to empower ita scientists. However, the firm realised that running
Ursula was still intimidating as it required a high level of familiarity with the system. To run a request, a scientist needed to navigate multiple software interfaces and have a deep understanding of the local scheduler’s methods. Before the request can run, Ursula’s devices need to be set up appropriately, which can be very daunting given the number of instruments. Tis meant the scientists needed to have intimate knowledge on complex storage devices, liquid handlers with changing deck layouts, a multitude of plate types, and several other instruments they didn’t typically use. All of this combined
together made it difficult for teams outside of the automation group at Beam to simply walk up and use Ursula.
MAKING AUTOMATION ACCESSIBLE TO ALL To make Ursula accessible to all of its scientists, Beam’s automation team decided to implement Artificial’s aLab Suite. With full connectivity into Benchling, Cellario and AWS, aLab Suite provides one place to control, run and track Ursula so scientists only need to use one interface. Tey also don’t need to be familiar with each Cellario method as aLab Suite automatically selects the appropriate protocol. Scientists have customised guidance for the set-up of Ursula using aLab Assistants, eliminating the need to know every single detail of each instrument, plate and consumable. With aLab Suite, Beam’s scientists can easily operate Ursula to accomplish more with fewer resources in less time. Te automation landscape is changing.
With decreasing costs, automation teams like those at Beam, and partnerships with integrators, the more traditional barriers to automation are easily addressed. Now, the question is no longer whether labs should adopt automation, but how to ensure the benefits of automation reach all parts of an organisation.
Nikhita Singh is co-founder and chief product officer at Artificial.
www.artificial.com
www.scientistlive.com 9
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60
