ABB Robotics and Mettler Toledo agreed Feb. 5 to offer a solution that integrates ABB’s robots with Mettler Toledo’s LabX laboratory instrument management software. This combined solution is expected to enable more efficient and better-quality automated laboratory workflows across a range of industries, making research, testing and quality control more flexible, while accelerating time-to-market and addressing critical labor shortages.
“By combining Mettler Toledo’s laboratory equipment with ABB’s collaborative robots (cobots), communicated through the LabX platform, we’ll support operations and enable the greatest traceability, productivity and data management.” says Jose Manuel Collados, manager of ABB Service Robotics. “By unlocking new possibilities in lab automation, our collaboration with Mettler Toledo will create efficiencies, and unlock resources in pharmaceuticals, chemicals, food and beverage, semiconductors, and battery industries.”
Working alongside lab technicians, laboratory automation can perform increasingly sophisticated tasks faster, more consistently, and with fewer errors than humans. However, adoption of automation in laboratories is challenged by a gap in the skills needed to handle automation technology and the complexity in setting up highly sensitive workflows.
The partners report that Mettler Toledo’s LabX software will seamlessly integrate into ABB’s OmniCore robot controllers, enabling LabX to orchestrate robotic lab workflows. By combining the flexibility, ease-of-use and precision of ABB robots with the secure data capture, method control and instrument management of LabX, users can increase lab productivity, reduce system complexity, fulfill data quality, and meet safety and regulatory requirements. This solution is also expected to relieve scientists and lab technicians of mundane, repetitive tasks, eliminate common errors, optimize productivity, and give lab professionals more time to pursue higher-value activities such as data analytics.
"Great innovation starts at the bench, especially when you can minimize process times and human error, while also supporting generation of high-quality data," says Stefan Heiniger, laboratory division head for Mettler Toledo. "Mettler Toledo and ABB will provide a toolset that meets the need of laboratories of all sizes and types, and will deliver new levels of automation, speed and insights, while also reducing costs."
