Laboratory work made easier

The entrance to the Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering is closely monitored. No one is allowed on the site without an access badge or visitor's pass. ETH Zurich also has a site at Rosental-Areal in Kleinbasel – until it moves to a new building on the other side of the Rhine in 2022. Oskari Vinko's office is there too. The tall Finn founded the ETH spin-off UniteLabs in October 2017 together with Maximilian Schulz.

The company provides software to automate and simplify time-consuming laboratory processes. “A bioscientist’s daily routine can be very boring and tiring”, explains Vinko, who did his Master's in biotechnology at ETH Zurich. “A lot of time is wasted on repetitive work: for example researchers have to fill pipettes with liquid, take measurements and record the results.” Were the processes to be automated, scientists would have extra time for the more demanding parts of their job, such as planning experiments, analysing data and testing new ideas.

These automated solutions already exist. The robotic arm market is booming and costs are falling. “However, it takes days to develop these systems and the software is often incompatible or too complicated”, says Vinko. That’s where his partner comes in: Maximilian Schulz studied mechanical engineering specialising in robotics at ETH. After completing his studies, Vinko looked for someone with whom he could work to advance automation in laboratories. Schulz happened to be on the lookout for a new challenge. “I knew nothing about life science”, says the German who grew up in Zurich. “But I was looking for something that would be good for society. This project fits the bill and it just felt right to work with Oskari.”

The two scientists come from totally different disciplines. “We complement each other amazingly well”, says Vinko. In August 2017, they were awarded a Pioneer Fellowship by ETH Zurich and ETH Zurich Foundation for their joint venture. The CHF 150,000 grant is for young researchers who plan to develop a highly innovative product or service that is either commercially viable or of benefit to society. “It was a big step for us to place all our eggs in one basket”, says Vinko. “But the Pioneer Fellowship confirmed to us that the idea can work. It is a tremendous motivator to see ETH give us such a vote of confidence.”

All you have to do is look at your mobile

UniteLabs programmes the software together with the client so it is designed specifically for their experiments. The robotic arms and tools take care of the details, which the researchers would otherwise have to do by hand. They can control the devices remotely through a secure network on a computer or smartphone. This also improves the quality of life: “It means researchers don't have to spend the night or weekend in the lab”, says Vinko. It is important for the automatic processes to have a low error count – and for any errors to be easily rectified. It also makes it easier to reproduce results and manage dangerous substances. “The software can also be reprogrammed to cover different experiments”, says Schulz.

The aim is for researchers to be able to programme their work processes without requiring assistance. “We are aiming to offer software next year that will allow our clients to automate simple processes themselves”, says Schulz. It should only take a few minutes and would reset the daily automation threshold for bioscientists.

One problem in the life sciences sector is that the automation systems are still too heterogeneous. SiLA (Standardization in Lab Automation) has been working for some years to define standards for devices and data interfaces. This facilitates the improved integration of investments in lab automation plus data optimisation for analysis, processing and archiving. UniteLabs is also working to that end. Schulz: “A uniform standard is important for our software to work and be applied broadly.”