Lab Supplies

LAB SUPPLIES

“Lab Supplies” or to give it the full name “Laboratory Supplies” is a very complex industry in terms of number of laboratory suppliers and the huge variety of products available and the volume and diversity required to satisfy the needs of science and industry.

Lab supplies became a huge industry as the industrial revolution gathered momentum in the 19^th century and science delivered more answers that resulted in huge developments in medical and material science.

Lab supplies were originally based on the requirements of basic chemistry labs, where reactions could be monitored and affected by heat, movement and addition of other materials. The history of this goes back millennia and lab supplies were no doubt part of the dream of turning base metals into gold!

Since the turn of the last century however certain things have accelerated the advance of the labs supplies industry and some of these are well know to us all. Apart from developments in electricity generation, coal and gas power which allowed industry to advance, the discoveries in the fundamental nature of physics pushed the theoretical boundaries forward closely followed by major advances around which industries were born.

As an example are lab supplies in the pharmaceutical industry and in particular the early days of drug production with the need for glass with purity and strength.  Borosilicate glass was first developed by German glassmaker Otto Schott in the late 19th century and sold under the brand name "Duran" in 1893 and became a synonym for borosilicate glass in the English-speaking world. Pyrex may be a better known name to many workers, but both are borosilicate glass.

The industry has rapidly accelerated as major chemistry and biology advances were made. Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assays (ELISA) drove the miniaturisation of testing and equipment for processing. The advent of microprocessors and computing and the advances in design, machine molding, not to mention global distribution of information via the net, has resulted in Lab Supply being a vast multi-billion dollar industry with many different facets. At the heart of this however is a laboratory and whether they require electrophoresis equipment or an electron microscope, there is always a company willing to supply it!

From a biological position then came the major advances in DNA and the human genome and PCR (polymerase chain reaction -1983) applications and the rapid development of testing and analysis and the knock on effects of the Pharma lab supply industry.

We shouldn’t forget however those laboratories are global and cover a huge dynamic range of disciplines to which lab supply is needed. School labs, defence labs, geological labs, marine labs, the list is endless, but there is a common thread, they all need lab suppliers!

Lab supplies are not just about bench top equipment of consumables however, it is about the whole laboratory spectrum. This can stretch from largest sterile manufacturing facilities to the stock supply of the smallest virus.

Not only have lab supplies changed in volume and complexity, they have changed in marketing.  Catalogues are giving way to websites and downloadable files such as pdf’s and purchasing or ordering online. This easy access has however increased opportunity to shop elsewhere and is itself a very competitive industry.

Lab Supplies at Offers4Labs is a new method of providing good pricing on quality products, direct from the lab supplier. Please come and visit us often!