We supported PerkinElmer, now Revvity, a life sciences and diagnostics company, in redesigning its automated liquid handling platform, which was delivered to market as the Fontus Workstation.
PerkinElmer needed to replace an outdated liquid handler platform without disrupting the reagent business built around it. Together, we redesigned the system around openness, repairability, and approachability, while integrating new technologies and addressing production constraints. The Fontus Workstation reached a production-ready design in just two iterations and launched exactly as designed.
The Challenge
PerkinElmer’s existing liquid handler line had become outdated. New internal technologies and capabilities needed to be integrated into a single machine, while addressing cost and production challenges in the existing range.
This mattered strategically: liquid handlers anchor an ecosystem, and reagent sales, the company’s core revenue driver, depend on placing machines in labs.
The core technology was already defined. The challenge was to integrate it into a more compact, manufacturable, sustainable, and approachable system while establishing a new design direction for the platform.
Existing handlers were also large, complex, and difficult to program, discouraging many lab staff from using them at all. Precision requirements added another layer of difficulty: tight tolerances, stiffness, and thermal stability were essential to accurate dosing.
Our Approach
- Customer workshops
Identified complexity and intimidation as key barriers to using existing handlers. - Concept design
Explored multiple system layouts and user-experience concepts before selecting one direction for development. - Physical mockup
Built to test ergonomics and interaction with real users. - Compact redesign
Ergonomic testing showed the mockup was too large for standard labs, prompting optimization of the internal architecture and space. - Final design for manufacture
Developed initial prototypes, production tooling, and the final design with minimal changes between stages. - Production support
Supported initial production through to launch.
Results & Impact
A liquid handler designed for every lab worker, not just specialists
Workshops showed that the complexity of previous handlers had excluded roughly half of potential users. The redesign introduced a radically more open, transparent, and approachable machine, removing a barrier that had limited who felt able to operate the equipment.
Designed for repair, with zero glued or welded parts
The Fontus Workstation can be fully disassembled down to the last screw, with no glued or welded components. This improves access for servicing and repair throughout the product’s life and facilitates material separation at end of life.
Production-ready in two iterations, with no late-stage rework
The team reached the final design after just two iteration loops and one physical mockup. The product launched exactly as designed, requiring minimal changes before production, reducing risk and avoiding costly late-stage rework.
Built to integrate into larger systems
A compact internal architecture and accessible construction allow the workstation to integrate with robotic arms and larger automated systems, while creating space for additional internal components. This extends its role beyond a standalone instrument.
The Fontus Workstation launched and entered production at PerkinElmer, now Revvity.
