Liquid-handling robots are widely used in the life sciences where high-throughput workflows, precision, and reproducibility are essential. But the high costs of such automation systems and the complexity of setup and programming have left smaller labs still laboring with the mundane, error-prone routines of manual pipetting and plate handling.
The latest offering from lab-automation leader Opentrons Labworks, Inc, called Opentrons Flex Prep, aims to bring automated pipetting within reach of labs still looking for a cost-effective point of entry. The instrument is thoughtfully designed with one simple principle in mind: robotic liquid handling doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive.
What sets Opentrons Flex Prep apart is its “no-code” software that allows users to quickly develop and visualize a pipetting task and execute that workflow, all through a simple touchscreen. Users simply set their tips and labware up in the three central deck slots and then choose a source, destination, and volume to be transferred.
Instead of forcing all protocols to be input by a handful or even just one specially trained researcher on staff, pipetting tasks can be delegated to Opentrons Flex Prep by any lab worker, in as little as a minute or two. Even bench scientists with no prior laboratory robotics experience can incorporate automated pipetting into their workflows with Opentrons Flex Prep. The results are faster and more accurate than a manual pipette, all while allowing your team to spend more time on value-added tasks.
Opentrons Flex Prep is also broadly applicable and scales along with your lab’s needs. It will simplify and accelerate all your liquid handling needs, be it sample preparation, aliquoting, plate stamping, cherry picking, normalization, or serial dilutions. As needs evolve, users can increase throughout using outer deck slots, or tackle more complex workflows with additional pipettes and modular hardware add-ons. Users can even use magnetic bead-based clean-ups and end-to-end NGS library prep.
With Opentrons Flex Prep, labs of all sizes can now access the benefits of automated liquid handling without the complexity or high costs that have traditionally been barriers to entry. By empowering any lab worker to automate pipetting tasks in minutes, Flex Prep is set to transform routine workflows, allowing scientists to focus on what truly matters—advancing their research.