Interview with Erik Vaessen about Oceo Rover (Biotech Week 2024)

Summary

Eric Fon, Chief Business Officer at Fuji Verifi Scientific, discusses the Yoso Rover, an innovative solution aimed at improving the time- and resource-intensive process of media and buffer preparation in the biopharma industry. The Yoso Rover automates the entire process of hydrating powdered media and buffers, similar to a coffee machine, eliminating manual weighing, improving speed, and ensuring precise results. Fon highlights how customer feedback confirmed the device’s value in addressing operational bottlenecks and enhancing efficiency in pharmaceutical manufacturing.

Takeaways

• 😀 Manufacturers in the biopharma industry are seeking ways to reduce the cost of goods, especially in drug substance production.
• 😀 One common approach in biopharma is to increase titers or improve drug recovery during purification processes.
• 😀 An area that has been overlooked in cost-reduction efforts is the media and buffer preparation process, which is resource-heavy and time-consuming.
• 😀 The Yos Rover was developed to address inefficiencies in cell culture media and buffer preparation, which have remained largely unchanged for decades.
• 😀 Traditionally, operators have to manually gather materials, weigh ingredients, and document the entire process, which is time-consuming and prone to errors.
• 😀 The Yos Rover streamlines this by automating the entire media and buffer preparation in a single unit operation, reducing time and labor involved.
• 😀 The technology works similarly to a coffee machine, where operators load powdered media or buffers into a cartridge, program the machine, and the Yos Rover does the rest.
• 😀 The Yos Rover ensures the final hydrated product meets all specifications, eliminating the need for manual weighing and ensuring complete containment of powders.
• 😀 The Yos Rover's closed system offers speed and efficiency, allowing operators to move on to the next batch more quickly.
• 😀 By partnering with multiple customers, the Yos Rover was developed based on real-world feedback, ensuring its ability to solve key bottlenecks in the biopharma industry.
• 😀 The Yos Rover’s automation and precision offer significant improvements for operators and facilities, optimizing resources and boosting overall productivity.

Q & A

What is the main challenge manufacturers face in the biopharma industry, as mentioned in the script?

Manufacturers in the biopharma industry are trying to reduce the cost of goods, particularly by improving drug substance yield or recovery during purification.

Why has media and buffer preparation been overlooked in the industry?

Media and buffer preparation has been overlooked because it is a time-consuming and resource-heavy process that has not seen much innovation for decades.

What specific problem does the Yoso Rover aim to solve in the biopharma industry?

The Yoso Rover aims to streamline the process of cell culture media and buffer preparation by automating the entire process in a single unit operation, reducing time and resource usage.

How does the process of media and buffer preparation typically work without the Yoso Rover?

Without the Yoso Rover, operators must manually go to the warehouse, gather the materials, weigh the components, charge the formulation vessel, and document the entire process.

How does the Yoso Rover improve the media and buffer preparation process?

The Yoso Rover automates the entire process, from weighing and charging the formulation vessel to documentation, making the process more efficient and reducing human error.

What analogy does the speaker use to describe the functionality of the Yoso Rover?

The Yoso Rover is compared to a coffee machine, where users load a capsule with powdered media or buffer, program the machine, and the Rover automatically completes the hydration process.

What are some of the key features of the Yoso Rover?

Key features of the Yoso Rover include automated hydration of powdered media and buffers, complete containment of powder, and the ability to meet specific product specifications without manual weighing.

How does the Yoso Rover contribute to the speed of the manufacturing process?

The Yoso Rover speeds up the process by automating media and buffer hydration, allowing operators to move on to the next batch much quicker and enhancing overall facility productivity.

What benefits did customers express about the Yoso Rover during its development?

Customers immediately understood the value the Yoso Rover would bring, providing feedback on how it could solve bottlenecks and constraints in their facilities, which gave the developers confidence in its usefulness.

Why is there a focus on improving media and buffer preparation specifically, according to the speaker?

There is a focus on improving media and buffer preparation because it is an area that has not seen significant innovation in decades, and it is a resource-intensive step that can be optimized for better efficiency.