Hologic's new Tomcat pre-analytical sample processing instrument is featured at ASM conference

Hologic, Inc., developer, manufacturer, and supplier of diagnostic products with an emphasis on serving the healthcare needs of women, is showcasing its new Tomcat instrument at the 114th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology in Boston. The Tomcat instrument is a fully automated general purpose platform designed to ease the strain of pre-analytical sample processing by eliminating the inefficient and error-prone activities required to manually aliquot samples. The company expects to begin commercial shipments of the Tomcat instrument in June 2014.

The design of Hologic’s Tomcat instrument incorporates Lean principles to deliver increased value through automation. The instrument performs a full range of sample processing activities for liquid-based cytology samples, from de-capping and capping of sample tubes, to vortexing, aliquoting, incubating, and racking of each sample. It also provides positive barcode matching for each sample as well as reagent addition if desired. By eliminating repetitive manual steps, Hologic spokespersons say, it can reduce hands-on time and enhance workflow efficiency while improving the quality of each result.

Featuring a standardized aliquoting process, the Tomcat instrument accommodates multiple sample types concurrently, with the ability to continuously load and unload samples and consumables. It is designed to minimize the risk of cross-contamination, with limited hands-on interactions and an intuitive touchscreen interface.

The Tomcat instrument is the latest addition to Hologic’s family of automated molecular testing systems, which include the Panther system, a random and continuous access, fully automated molecular testing platform designed with the flexibility to handle a wide range of testing needs; and the Tigris system, a fully automated, high-throughput molecular testing system for large laboratories. Learn more about molecular solutions provided by Hologic.