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>There is a small group of investigators here at the U that would like to
>purchase a flow cytometer, mainly for sorting. They would like to have
>technicians from each lab run the experiments from that lab.
>.....
>any instruments that are set up to be run by individuals
>and not by one main operator.
>......
As an ex- field service engineer, I say DON'T EVEN CONSIDER IT!
My field ranged from multimeters to electron microscopes, and my
service career over about 15 years;
For instruments from spectrophotometers upwards I found that
the frequency of service calls, the downtime, and the variability
of results were directly proportional to the number of people
running the instrument.
As manager of a flow facility, I say DON'T EVEN CONSIDER IT!
An operation like tuning a sorter requires experience and constant
practice to even approach consistency.
After 12+ years of running sorters, if I don't go through the
instrument tuning and sort setup AT LEAST every week, my results
are not up to scratch.
Now that I have a regular assistant, I'm often in trouble!
My advice is to have someone responsible for the setting up and
maintaining of a sorter on a daily basis; other lab people can
change tubes & monitor sorts, but THE OPERATOR must be available
to handle the little things that mess up sorting and confuse
measurements.
Best of Luck!
Joseph Webster (O.I.C. Flow Cytometry & Computing) ===
Centenary Institute of cancer Medicine & Cell Biology / \
Locked Bag No.6 || o o ||
Newtown, NSW 2042 || | ||
AUSTRALIA. | \___/ |
Ph: 61-2-565-6110 \ /
Fax: 61-2-565-6101 |||||
E-Mail: J.Webster@centenary.usyd.edu.au
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