Flowbot One, a pipetting robot from Flow Robotics, Copenhagen, Denmark, is automating covid-19 testing processes in hospitals around Europe, significantly reducing the time it takes for laboratories to produce results and tell patients whether they are infected with the novel coronavirus. Robotic technology minimizes the risk of human error and contagion in the process, and it reduces the physically demanding pipetting tasks for laboratory personnel.
“Although people’s eyes have been opened to the potential of our technology by the sad sight of a world ravaged by the pandemic, we are pleased to be able to make a difference for both patients and staff,” says Annika Isaksson, chief executive officer of Flow Robotics. The company is scaling up robot production and recruiting new employees.
So far, eight Danish hospitals are using the Flowbot One, along with labs in Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, and Sweden.
“The robot pipettes the live virus, and it can pipette several samples at once, so we are now saving a lot of repetitive work and reducing the risk of accidents,” says molecular biologist Martin Friis of Herlev Hospital in Denmark. “We already keep ourselves safe, but it is still good for us to have less contact with the live virus thanks to the robot. The risk of pipetting errors is also eliminated as a result of automation because the robot follows a pattern and avoids mistakes. All in all, this lowers the stress level for us on many fronts, so we have less hassle in our work and minimize potential errors.”
For more information, visit Flow Robotics.
