What Alpha Laboratories does

Alpha Laboratories is a UK-based, privately held distributor and manufacturer of laboratory supplies, founded in 1975 and now operating as a subsidiary of Diploma PLC. The company sells diagnostic and laboratory products online, serving clinical laboratories, research institutions, educational bodies, and pharmacy and healthcare providers across the UK, EMEA, North America, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. Its portfolio spans liquid handling (Pastette® transfer pipettes, alpha+ manual pipettes, pipette tips including APEX® filter tips), electrophoresis equipment under the Clarit-E brand (vertical and horizontal gel systems, tank sub and semi-dry electroblotters, capillary/tube gel units, and Mini 300/500 power supplies), molecular biology consumables (PCR plates, tubes, microplates in 96/384/1536-well formats), UN3373 compliant sample collection and transport packaging under the SpeciSafe® brand, and controlled drug denature kits for waste medicine compliance.

The business operates a hybrid model: proprietary own-brand products (Clarit-E, alpha+, Pastette®, APEX®, Fe-Col®, SpeciSafe®) manufactured or branded by Alpha, alongside distributed third-party brands such as Sartorius (Biohit) Optifit and SafetySpace tips, bottle top dispensers, Tacta and Proline® pipettes, and Picus® electronic pipettes. Products are sold quote-based with no public pricing, and the company holds ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001, Cyber Essentials Plus, and CE/UKCA certifications to support sales into regulated clinical and research environments. Go-to-market is primarily through a worldwide distributor network, with direct UK and selected international orders from the UK office for geographies without local partners.

The company is actively recruiting new distribution partners in France, the Middle East, the USA, India, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia, and has extended its product surface through the Clarit-E equipment family and the SpeciSafe® UN3373 packaging line. With 11-50 employees and no publicly disclosed revenue, Alpha is a sub-scale but established niche player whose strategic posture is incremental portfolio and geographic expansion within a parent group that itself pursues a roll-up strategy in value-added technical products.

Name

Alpha Laboratories

Legal name

Alpha Laboratories Ltd

Website

https://alphalabs.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1975

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Alpha Laboratories is a UK-based laboratory supplies distributor and own-brand manufacturer (Pastette®, Clarit-E, alpha+, SpeciSafe®) serving clinical, research, educational, and pharmacy customers globally, operating as a subsidiary of Diploma PLC.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Laboratory Equipment and Consumables

NAICS

Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing (334516)

SIC

Wholesale-Medical, Dental & Hospital Equipment & Supplies (5047), Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826)

akta.pro primary industry

Laboratory Consumables & Plasticware (Tips, Tubes, Plates, Filters) (HLAGAIAH)

Keywords

• Laboratory consumables
• Electrophoresis equipment
• Liquid handling supplies
• Biological sample transport
• Diagnostic lab products

Headquarters

HQ city

Eastleigh

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Laboratory Equipment Sales: Sale of electrophoresis equipment including gel tanks, power supplies, blotting systems, and accessories. Products sold as one-time purchases with standard warranty.
2. Laboratory Consumables: Sale of consumable laboratory products including pipette tips, Pastettes, microplates, PCR consumables, sample handling products, and electrophoresis reagents.
3. Sample Transport Solutions: Sale of UN3373 compliant packaging systems including primary containers, secondary packaging, outer packaging, and complete kits for biological sample transport.
4. Custom Designed Products: Custom designed consumables including custom Pastettes and custom made sample collection and transport kits through kit building services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Alpha Laboratories is a UK-based laboratory supplies company that manufactures and distributes a comprehensive portfolio of laboratory equipment, consumables, and regulatory-compliant packaging. Core offerings include the proprietary Clarit-E range of horizontal and vertical gel electrophoresis systems, Pastette® disposable transfer pipettes, alpha+ manual pipettes, UN3373 compliant biological sample transport packaging, PCR consumables, microplates, and a curated portfolio of third-party brands (e.g., Sartorius/Biohit). The company sells direct in the UK and through a global distributor network internationally.

Product overview

Alpha Laboratories is a UK-based laboratory supplies company offering a comprehensive portfolio of laboratory equipment, consumables, and compliance packaging. The core product lines include the Clarit-E electrophoresis equipment family (vertical and horizontal gel systems, tank sub and semi-dry electroblotters, power supplies, and capillary tube gel units) and the Pastette® disposable transfer pipette brand. Supporting product categories span liquid handling (pipettes, tips), molecular biology consumables (PCR plates, tubes, microplates), sample collection and UN3373 compliant transport packaging, and health and safety products. The company operates as both a distributor of branded products (Sartorius/Biohit) and manufacturer of proprietary brands (Clarit-E, alpha+, APEX®). Products are sold internationally through distribution partners with direct ordering available for non-UK customers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pastette® Disposable Transfer Pipettes A proprietary brand of flexible disposable transfer pipettes offered in the widest range of sizes, lengths, and tip designs, made from one-piece polyethylene and available with custom design options. Targeted at laboratories needing reliable, single-use liquid transfer.
• Pipette Tips Range of pipette tips including standard, filter, low retention, gel loading, and robotic tips, including APEX® filter tips and distributed Sartorius (Biohit) Optifit and SafetySpace lines, with environmentally friendly packaging and refill systems. For laboratory liquid handling workflows.
• alpha+ Manual Pipettes Proprietary ergonomic, affordable, easy-to-use single- and multi-channel manual pipettes used for routine liquid handling in laboratories.
• Distributed Pipette Brands (Sartorius Tacta, Proline Plus, Picus) Curated portfolio of premium distributed pipette brands including Sartorius Tacta manual pipettes, Proline Plus manual pipettes, and Picus electronic pipettes, offered alongside the proprietary alpha+ line for varied price/performance tiers.
• Clarit-E Horizontal Gel Systems Proprietary DNA agarose gel electrophoresis systems available in multiple sizes from Mini to Screen format for varying throughput needs. For molecular biology and DNA analysis laboratories.
• Clarit-E Vertical Gel Systems Modular vertical electrophoresis tanks in Mini (10x10cm), Mini Wide (20x10cm), and Maxi Z (20x20cm) formats for SDS PAGE, native PAGE, gradient PAGE, Western blotting, and 2D electrophoresis. For protein and nucleic acid research.
• Clarit-E Tank Sub Electroblotters Wet electroblotting systems for Western blotting of proteins, available in Mini (10x10cm) and Maxi (20x20cm) formats with up to five gel blot cassette capacity and cooling packs for heat management.
• Clarit-E Semi-Dry Electroblotters Rapid transfer systems for DNA, RNA, and protein blotting with transfer times of 15-30 minutes, using platinum-coated anode and stainless steel cathode electrodes for Western, Southern, and Northern blots.
• Clarit-E Capillary/Tube Gel Electrophoresis Units Stand-alone first-dimension capillary/tube gel electrophoresis units available in three sizes, compatible with Clarit-E slab gel and electroblotting inserts for 2D electrophoresis workflows.
• Mini 500 Power Supply Ultra-compact electrophoresis power supply with 10-500V voltage range, 10-400mA current output, 120W max power, supporting constant voltage or constant current operation with timer up to 999 minutes.
• Mini 300 Power Supply Economical electrophoresis power supply with 10-300V voltage range and 400mA constant current output, capable of running all Clarit-E horizontal and Mini vertical gel systems.
• DNA Markers and Ladders Ready-to-use DNA electrophoresis markers including 100bp ladder (100-1500bp, 11 bands) and 1kb ladder (100-10kbp, 13 bands) with high intensity reference bands and loading dye for immediate use in gel electrophoresis workflows.
• UN3373 Sample Transport Packaging Complete range of sample collection and UN3373 compliant packaging solutions for biological sample transport by road or air, including primary containers, secondary packaging (SpeciSafe®), outer packaging, and complete kits meeting UN3373 / P650.
• PCR Consumables PCR plates, tubes, caps, sealing solutions, racks, and workstations for PCR applications. For molecular biology and diagnostic laboratories.
• Microplates 96-well, 384-well, and 1536-well microplates including deep well plates for high-throughput applications, with associated sealing, lids, cluster tubes, and caps.
• Controlled Drug Denature Kits Safer Options range of controlled drug denature kits for pharmacies, healthcare providers, dentists, and vets to safely manage waste medicines and comply with legislation.
• Sample Handling Consumables Range of sample handling products including centrifuge tubes (large volume), counting vials, culture tools, cryogenic vials, cuvettes, laboratory trays and liners.
• Dispensers and Pipetting Aids Range of dispensers including pipette controllers, Sartorius bottle top dispensers, Biotrate digital burette, positive displacement microdispensers, micro capillaries, and Nanoject autoinjectors, plus dispenser spare parts.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered regional and core.

• Brennan & Co NIregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDesignated distributor for Northern Ireland handling all sales to customers in that region.
• Sartorius (Biohit)coreTechnology or IntegrationAlpha Laboratories distributes Sartorius (Biohit) products including Optifit Non-Filter Tips, SafetySpace Filter Tips, and bottle top dispensers as part of their comprehensive product portfolio.
• Worldwide DistributorscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational network of distribution partners supplying and supporting Alpha Laboratories products in local markets. The company is actively seeking to expand this network in France, Middle East, USA, India, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Sartorius: Manufactures premium liquid handling products (pipettes, Optifit/SafetySpace tips, bottle-top dispensers) that Alpha distributes. Comparable because Sartorius's products sit on Alpha's own shelves and compete in the same end-user purchase decision.
• Greiner Bio-One: Manufactures plastic laboratory consumables including microplates, PCR plates, and sample handling products. Directly comparable to Alpha's microplates, PCR consumables, and sample handling catalogue.
• Starlab International: A European-headquartered manufacturer and distributor of liquid handling consumables (pipette tips, filter tips) and lab plasticware. Closely comparable to Alpha's tip, Pastette, and consumables business in size and geography.
• Gilson: Specialises in manual and electronic pipettes, tips, and liquid handling instrumentation. Comparable to Alpha's alpha+ and Pastette lines and to its distributed third-party pipette brands.
• Eppendorf: A leading manufacturer of pipettes, pipette tips, and liquid handling consumables. Directly comparable to Alpha's liquid handling and consumables offering, particularly in the research and clinical laboratory customer segment.

Broad incumbents

• Fisher Scientific (Thermo Fisher Scientific): Operates one of the world's largest laboratory supplies catalogues, including pipette tips, electrophoresis reagents, and consumables, and competes head-on with Alpha's distributed and own-brand lines. It is a broad incumbent rather than a niche specialist.
• Avantor (VWR): A global distributor of laboratory products, chemicals, and equipment with deep procurement relationships in life sciences. It overlaps directly with Alpha's catalogue and distributor-led model, but at vastly larger scale.
• Corning Life Sciences: Supplies plastic laboratory consumables, microplates, and cell culture products. Comparable to Alpha's consumables portfolio and competes in the same research and clinical lab buyer conversations.

Regional players

• Camlab: A UK laboratory supplies distributor with a broad catalogue of consumables, equipment, and chemicals. Comparable to Alpha on product range, customer segments, and UK/European distribution model.
• Scientific Laboratory Supplies (SLS): A UK-based distributor of laboratory consumables, equipment, and chemicals. Directly comparable to Alpha in product range and customer base, with strong overlap in UK academic and clinical customers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/alpha-laboratories-ltd
• Xx.com/alphalabs

Compliance4 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 Alpha Laboratories