BioMerieux and Copan announce laboratory automation alliance

BioMerieux has entered into a new laboratory automation-oriented strategic alliance with Copan, a leading manufacturer of pre-analytical solutions.

The deal will see BioMerieux receive distribution rights to Copan's automated platforms, including the Wasp Walk-Away Specimen Processor and the WaspLab solutions, which automate microbiology laboratory tasks and support digital imaging and analysis.

Additionally, the agreement will allow BioMerieux to speed up deployment of its FMLA – Lab Efficiency vision for clinical microbiology labs. The two companies will collaborate to develop innovative clinical microbiology diagnostic solutions.

By working together, the partners will be able to leverage Copan's pre-analytics expertise and BioMerieux's cutting-edge understanding of microbiological diagnostics.

Alexandre Merieux, chief executive officer of BioMerieux, said: "With highly complementary knowhow, BioMerieux and Copan will meet the growing needs of microbiology laboratories in terms of efficiency, standardisation, traceability and reduced turnaround times."

This comes after the firm recently announced a collaboration with Illumina to co-develop a next-generation sequencing solution for the epidemiological monitoring of bacterial infections.