Japan-based Hitachi High-Tech and Switzerland-based Roche have extended their IVD development support partnership for another 10 years, the companies announced.
Since 1978, the Roche Hitachi High-Tech partnership has advanced clinical laboratory technology and automation, according to the companies that in a statement recalled collaborative developments of multichannel analyzers and immunology automation solutions throughout the years. Roche reported an installed base of more than 84,000 diagnostic platforms globally with more than 21 billion tests performed on Roche systems covered under the collaboration with Hitachi High-Tech.
"Together Roche and Hitachi High-Tech have brought numerous innovations to the field of in-vitro diagnostics including the pioneering 'serum work area' concept that integrates clinical chemistry, [ion-selective electrodes] ISE, and immunochemistry into one system," Roche said in a statement.
"In addition to innovation in testing, the long-standing partnership is also highly focused on improving sustainability within diagnostics, with new generation systems being able to reduce plastic waste by up to 80 percent," the companies said.
This year, Hitachi High-Tech and Roche said they plan to:
- Introduce the new analytical units cobas c 703 and cobas ISE neo for cobas pro integrated solutions, to increase potential testing capacity for labs.
- Introduce the new cobas mass dpec solution for integrating fully automated mass spectrometry into the routine lab.
In another announcement from March, Roche and Switzerland-based Lonza announced that Lonza will acquire Roche Group's Genentech pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Vacaville, CA, for $1.2 billion in conjunction with a manufacturing agreement and related quality services and warehousing.
