What American Assay Laboratories does

American Assay Laboratories (AAL) is a privately held, full-service geochemical analytical testing laboratory headquartered in Sparks, Nevada. Founded in 1987 according to firmographic data (1991 per company history), the company operates from a single facility at 1506 Glendale Ave. that includes sample preparation areas, multiple instrument rooms, fire assay furnaces, and a dedicated cyanide laboratory. AAL serves the mining and geology industry, providing comprehensive analytical services including gold and silver fire assay, ICP-OES and ICP-MS multielement analysis, XRF, carbon/sulfur analysis, mercury analysis, and mineralogical/environmental testing. The company maintains ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation and NDEP approval, positioning it as a trusted third-party verification lab for mining companies, exploration programs, and geologists operating primarily in Nevada and globally.

The company's core technology stack includes Agilent 5110 ICP-OES (up to 70 elements), Agilent 7900 ICP-MS (for rare-earth and pathfinder elements at low detection limits), Panalytical Zetium WD-XRF, ELTRA C/S analyzers, Profiler-F CIC, and NIC MA-3000 DMA. AAL has developed its proprietary Olympus LIMS, a custom-built Laboratory Information Management System featuring instrumental integration, QC flagging, quality management dashboards, and a cloud-based client portal for real-time job tracking and signed PDF result delivery. The company operates its own Peterbilt and flatbed trucks for sample pickup throughout Nevada and maintains substantial warehouse capacity for long-term pulp and reject storage.

AAL generates revenue through a usage-based, high-volume transactional model, billing per job/order based on analytical methods requested. Revenue streams include geochemical analytical testing services, sample preparation, and administrative/logistics services including sample pickup and storage. The company serves hundreds of mining companies and exploration programs globally, with named enterprise customers including Ridgeline Minerals Corp., Nevada King Gold Corp., and Walker River Resources Corp. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is available via the secure client portal. The company employs 11-50 people and processes tens of thousands of samples and thousands of jobs per year.

Name

American Assay Laboratories

Legal name

American Assay Laboratories

Website

https://aallabs.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

American Assay Laboratories is a privately held, ISO 17025-accredited geochemical analytical testing laboratory in Sparks, Nevada, providing fire assay, ICP, XRF, and environmental analysis services to mining and exploration companies globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Geochemical Analytical Services

NAICS

Testing Laboratories and Services (541380)

SIC

Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Elemental Impurities & Trace Metals (ICP-MS) (HLAGADAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Process Analytical Instrumentation (Gas analyzers, spectroscopy, pH/ORP, conductivity) (IMAGAFAE)

Keywords

• Geochemical analysis
• Fire assay services
• Mining laboratory
• Mineral testing
• ICP-MS analysis

Headquarters

HQ city

Sparks

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Geochemical Analytical Testing Services: AAL generates revenue through providing comprehensive geochemical analytical testing services including sample preparation, fire assay, acid digestion, and instrumental analysis. Clients are billed per job/order based on the services requested. Fees are published in the Schedule of Services & Fees accessible via the client portal. The company handles tens of thousands of samples and reports thousands of jobs each year, indicating a high-volume transactional service model with per-sample and per-test pricing.
2. Sample Preparation Services: Revenue generated from preparation services including core cutting, crushing, pulverizing, soil/sediment preparation, volumetric compositing, and bulk density testing. These are typically bundled with analytical services or charged as standalone line items.
3. Administrative & Logistics Services: Includes sample pickup throughout Nevada via company trucks, job setting for gold and geochemical analysis, discrepancy communication, and sample storage (pulp and reject storage in large warehouse and yard). Storage and logistics services generate additional revenue.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

American Assay Laboratories is an independent geochemical analytical testing laboratory providing fire assay, ICP-OES, ICP-MS, XRF, C/S analysis, sample preparation, and mineralogical/environmental testing services. The company processes geological samples submitted by mining and mineral exploration companies to deliver certified analytical data for resource estimation and grade control.

Product overview

American Assay Laboratories (AAL) is a full-service geochemical analytical testing laboratory offering a comprehensive suite of services for the mining and geology industry. The portfolio includes core analytical services (Gold Analysis via Fire Assay and Cyanide Digestion, Geochemical Analysis by ICP-OES and ICP-MS, Carbon & Sulfur Analysis, XRF, and Mineralogical & Environmental Testing), supported by Preparation Services and Administrative Services. The company operates the Client Portal platform for real-time job monitoring and result delivery, and is developing the proprietary Olympus LIMS system for workflow automation and QC management. All services are ISO 17025 accredited and NDEP approved.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fire Assay Analysis Classical gravimetric fire assay for gold and precious metal determination in geological samples, including ore-grade and trace-level protocols. Targeted at mining and mineral exploration companies needing certified precious metal data for resource estimation.
• ICP-OES Multi-Element Analysis Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy analysis delivering multi-element geochemical data at trace and ore-grade levels. Used by mining and exploration clients for resource definition and drill program characterization.
• ICP-MS Trace Element Analysis Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry for ultra-low detection limits on trace elements in geological samples. Targeted at exploration companies requiring high-sensitivity multi-element data for pathfinder and indicator element work.
• XRF Analysis X-ray Fluorescence analysis for major and minor element determination in geological samples. Used for rapid screening and whole-rock characterization by mining clients.
• Carbon/Sulfur (C/S) Analysis Carbon and sulfur determination via combustion analyzer for geological and metallurgical samples. Used by mining clients for carbonaceous ore characterization and metallurgical testing.
• Sample Preparation Sample preparation services including drying, crushing, splitting, and pulverizing of geological drill core, RC chips, and soil samples. Performed prior to analytical determination for mining and exploration clients.
• Mineralogical and Environmental Testing Specialized mineralogical characterization (including SEM-based work) and environmental geochemistry testing for exploration and mining clients requiring advanced sample characterization beyond routine assay.

Quantifiable outcome

• 72-sample batch size with 2 blanks, 3 CRMs, and 6 duplicates per batch, ensuring rigorous quality control on every run.
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature10 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• ALS Limited: Global commercial testing giant with a major Geochemistry division offering fire assay, ICP-MS, ICP-OES, and XRF services to the mining industry. Direct competitor on the analytical methodology side, though much larger and broader in scope than AAL.
• Bureau Veritas: International TIC (testing, inspection, certification) company with a Mineral Services segment providing geochemical analysis for mining clients. Overlaps with AAL on fire assay, multi-element, and mineral testing for resource companies.
• SGS: Global inspection, verification, testing and certification company with natural resources and minerals laboratories offering geochemical and assaying services to mining and exploration clients worldwide.
• Intertek: Global quality assurance provider with a minerals testing business offering geochemical analysis and assaying services to mining companies — directly overlapping with AAL's core service lines.
• Inspectorate (a Bureau Veritas company): Commodities inspection and testing arm of Bureau Veritas, offering mineral and geochemical analysis for exploration and mining clients — overlaps directly with AAL's service portfolio.

Direct peers

• Activation Laboratories (Actlabs): Canadian-based commercial geochemical laboratory offering ICP-MS, ICP-OES, fire assay, neutron activation, and rare-earth analysis to the mineral exploration industry. Closest comparable in scale, methodology, and customer mix to AAL.
• MS Analytical: Specialized geochemical laboratory (formerly Mineral Exploration Geochemistry / MEG) providing ICP-MS, fire assay, and multi-element analysis to mineral exploration clients. Very similar niche focus and customer profile to AAL.
• Skyline Assayers & Laboratories: U.S.-based commercial assaying and geochemical testing laboratory serving mining and exploration clients with fire assay, ICP, and XRF services. Comparable scale and service mix to AAL.
• ALS Geochemistry (Vancouver lab): Specific ALS Geochemistry hub performing fire assay, ICP-MS, and multi-element analysis for North American mining clients. Closest service-line overlap with AAL within the ALS network.

Regional players

• Pace Analytical: U.S.-based analytical laboratory network offering environmental and geochemical testing; adjacent in instrumentation and quality systems though broader in environmental focus rather than mining-exclusive.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about American Assay Laboratories