Automated Analysis with bilacon® and the TGA801

Running and maintaining a full analytical laboratory can be more cost than a company can afford, but what other options are there for a small business looking for quality control and regulatory compliance? Independent testing and consulting laboratories groups such as the Tentamus Group, can fill that gap. One of its laboratories, bilacon, specializes in the safety of food, feed, food supplements, and cosmetics. 

In a recent interview with eFOOD-Lab International, Benjamin Ende, a state-certified food chemist with bilacon, talked about the benefits of LECO's TGA801 thermogravimetric analyzer in his lab's day-to-day operations.

Though the official method the laboratory uses is the sea sand method, bilacon follows their customers' instructions and can perform any specific method requested. The TGA801 allows for the various methods to be selected and adapted individually to meet any sample or customer's demands. Although the reference method calls for manual analysis, the accuracy of the TGAs are checked daily against reference materials, and the instruments are re-validated annually. The results from the TGAs match the manual methods, with the benefit of handling 19 samples at a time, working largely autonomously.

Thanks to developments such as Cornerstone® Mobile, the chemists working at bilacon can monitor the TGAs remotely and turn their focus to other tasks while the samples are tested. As long as they are near their smartphone, tablet, or PC, they do not need to be present at the TGAs themselves.

Ende is very happy with the benefits the TGAs bring to his lab, stating that he wishes the TGAs could handle more samples, to increase his productivity even further.

To read the interview in its entirety, view it on eFOOD-Lab International.