Selling Texol generators in the laboratory market

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Selling Texol generators in the laboratory market

• Sue Kennerley
• KR Analytical

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Who we are

• Pete Ryan Sue Kennerley
• Based in the NW of the UK
• 60 years experience of laboratory instrument
  market
• Previous companies include
• Kratos Analytical Mass spec
• LECO elemental analysers
• Mettler Toledo thermal, chemical and weighing
  equipment
• Shimadzu Chromatography, spectroscopy
  elemental analysers

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What do we sell?

• Gas generators (Texol )
• Quadrupole mass spectrometers accessories - (
  Extrel USA)
• Mass spec ion sources (Masstech USA)
• Elemental analysers (Eltra Germany)
• Syringe Pumps (KD Scientific USA)
• Products associated with our core knowledge base
  of mass spectrometry

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How do we sell ?

• Network of contacts built up over the years
• Internet web adverts and links to site
• Attendance at Mass Spectrometry meetings
• Instrumentation companies in local territory
• Mailshots specific targets
• Lab managers
• Mass spec users
• Other users where sales have been sucessful
• Telephone campaigns

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The easiest sales

• LC-MS where customer has bad experience of
  membrane units i.e Peak Scientific or old
  Whatman units
• Our price is lower than most other PSA nitrogen
  units
• Local laboratory instrumentation companies
• Repeat business

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What are the opportunities?

• LC-MS - Nitrogen
• Gas Chromatography H2,N2,Zero air
• Total Organic Carbon(TOC) N2, CO2 free and
  hydrocarbon free air
• Purging/blanketing/evaporation N2 99 UHP
• Circular Dichroism UHP N2
• HPLC - N2

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LC-MS Nitrogen

• Only needs to be 99 despite what manufacturers
  have on their spec sheets
• Used as a nebulizing/drying gas for the eluent of
  an HPLC going into a mass spectrometer at
  atmosphere most of the eluent/gas is sent to
  waste
• Flow rates vary depending on manufacturer ( see
  handout)
• use LCMS15H,20M or 30L

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LC-MS Nitrogen contd

• Which ms manufacturers ? most have an OEM with
  one of the existing Gas gen companies.
• Local conditions vary some users buy their own
  for new or as replacements
• Agilent , Thermo, ABI,/Sciex, Waters (
  MicroMass), Bruker, Shimadzu

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Where are the prospects?

• Pharmaceutical cos,
• University Chemistry/ Biochemistry departments
• Hospital pathology/clinical chemistry labs
• Chemical cos
• Contract laboratories
• Q. Do you have an electrospray or APCI mass
  spectrometer?

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Gas Chromatography

• Detectors on GCs need a combination of H2, Zero
  air and/or N2 ( see handout)
• Some users have H2 as the carrier gas ( as
  opposed to Helium), less common is N2 as a
  carrier gas
• Fast GC becoming more accepted, uses higher flow
  rates ( 10 x) therefore H2 generator more
  economical

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GC instruments

• Most common is Agilent ( formerly HP), Perkin
  Elmer,Varian, Shimadzu, Thermo, Carlo Erba
• FID (Flame Ionisation Detector) requires H2 to
  fuel the flame, zero air to burn it in, N2 or He
  as the make up gas
• http//www.shsu.edu/chemistry/primers/FID.html
• HYG 300 becomes economical for 2 or more GCs

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Where are the prospects for H2 ?

• Pharmaceutical cos
• Univ Chemistry, Food science , agricultural
  research departments
• Petrochemical cos
• Contract labs
• QA RD groups in chemical related companies
• Flavours/fragrance groups

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Advantages vs cylinders

• Health safety of storing H2 cylinders
• Very small size
• If multiple GCs in lab, you can connect HYG300
  to existing pipe work.
• No desiccant required for drying the gas.
• V. low running costs
• 2 years warranty

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Total Organic Carbon analysis

• TOC used to verify the carbon content of either
  liquids or solids
• Typically works by oxidising or combusting sample
  to change C into CO2 and measuring using IR cell
• Used by pharmas to verify purity of waters,
  cleanliness of vessels etc.
• Also used by earth/ecology scientists to look at
  carbon content of soils, vegetation and water
  supplies

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TOC contd

• Two type of analysis
• Chemical Oxidation for high sensitivity uses
  UHP N2 as carrier/purge
• Combustion uses CO2 and hydrocarbon free air
  or Zero air
• Flow rates typically 500c/min UHP N2
• NG1 with JA302 has been sold in UK for chemical
  oxidation systems
• TOC for combustion units

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Where to find prospects

• All chemical cos or manufacturing companies have
  to monitor their effluent discharge, some will
  use TOC
• Univ Research Groups Earth Sciences, Ecology
  Hydrology
• Pharmaceutical some use HPLC
• Petrochemical
• Water companies

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Purging/Blanketing/Evaporation

• Nitrogen is a low cost inert gas ideal for
  removing residual gases from chambers within
  sensitive analytical equipment
• Many chemical reactions need to be performed
  within an inert atmosphere
• Nitrogen evaporation can be a cheap way of
  extracting test compounds from solution in a
  solvent

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Instruments using N2 as a purge gas

• DSC thermal properties, need to purge chamber (
  oven) to prevent sample oxidising, also
  intracooler is purged with UHP N2 to cool oven
  prevent ice formation e.g MicroGeN2
• FTIR sensitive spectroscopy technique purge
  optics with UHP N
• Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) purge with N2
  or v. dry air e.g LCMS15H

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Where to find prospects

• DSC
• plastic/polymer companies
• New materials companies aero space
• Materials research departments in Univ.
• FTIR
• Univ Chemistry departments
• Chemical companies
• Glass manufacturers
• Pharmaceutical QA

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Nitrogen for blanketing/purging/evaporation

• Typically 99
• Low pressures used 10-20 psi
• LCMS15H through LCMS 60 L are ideal for supplying
  an entire laboratory
• All university chemistry, pharmacology,
  biomaterials research departments
• Can be competing with membrane systems

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Circular Dichroism (CD)

• Technique used for looking at protein/peptides in
  solution gives structural information
• Uses highly sensitive optics with mirrors which
  can fog.
• Need UHP N2 - at least 5 L/min e.g NG5 or NG10
• Look for Biochemistry groups in Univ,
  biotechnology start ups, protein groups within
  pharmaceutical companies

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HPLC - ELSD

• Evaporative light scattering detector
• Universal detector detects compounds with
  weak/no chromophores eg. Sugars
• Uses N2 as nebulising gas to produce a fine mist
  typically 2-5 L/min 99
• Look for food companies, beverage manufacturers,
  pharmaceutical RD groups

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Conclusions

• Texol generators are extremely competitive for
  price/performance
• Reliability is good
• Admin and technical support is v. good
• Most requirements of market place can be addressed

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Acknowledgement Thanks

• In alphabetical order
• Paul Docherty
• Carol Herd
• Graham Kerr
• Ian Macdonald
• Andrew McKechnie
• Stuart Reddiex