SCHOTT MINIFAB

What SCHOTT MINIFAB does

SCHOTT MINIFAB is a contract design, development, and manufacturing organization (CDMO) and a business unit of SCHOTT AG, specializing in microfluidic devices, microarrays, and consumables for the in vitro diagnostics (IVD) and life science research markets. The company serves IVD manufacturers developing tools for infectious disease detection, point-of-care diagnostics, molecular diagnostics, immunological diagnostics, and lab-on-a-chip applications, as well as life science research institutions working on next-generation research tools including NGS, protein, and DNA microarrays. It is based in Melbourne, Australia with production facilities in Phoenix (USA), Jena (Germany), and Melbourne, and operates with 101-250 employees.

The company's product platform rests on three proprietary technology brands. SCHOTT® Microarrays is a microarray printing platform pioneered over two decades ago in response to the Human Genome Project and refined continuously since. NEXTERION® is the registered glass substrate family, offered in coated variants for DNA and protein microarrays, bonded variants for microfluidic and NGS applications, and structured variants for customized biochip sizes. SCHOTT® Reagent Blister is a high gas-barrier, chemically compatible reagent storage technology that integrates dry/wet assay reagents directly onto consumables.

SCHOTT MINIFAB makes money through two primary service streams: contract product development (a Stage Gate Process from concept to commercialization covering R&D support, prototype feasibility, and manufacturing infrastructure development) and contract manufacturing (pilot lines through fully automated high-volume production), complemented by pilot line services, precision injection molding, and microfluidics solutions. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed, with all customer relationships established through direct B2B enterprise engagement via a quote request form on the company website. In September 2021, SCHOTT AG acquired Applied Microarrays Inc. (AMI) in Arizona to expand US bioscience capacity, and SCHOTT MINIFAB is wholly owned through SCHOTT AG, which is itself owned by the Carl Zeiss Foundation.

Name

SCHOTT MINIFAB

Legal name

SCHOTT MINIFAB

Website

https://schott-minifab.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

SCHOTT MINIFAB is a SCHOTT AG business unit that designs, develops, and manufactures microfluidic devices, microarrays, and diagnostic consumables as a CDMO for IVD manufacturers and life science research institutions, operating production facilities in the USA, Germany, and Australia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Diagnostic and Life Science Consumables Manufacturing

NAICS

Medical Equipment and Supplies Manufacturing (3391)

SIC

Plastics Products, Nec (3089)

akta.pro primary industry

Sterile Fill-Finish & Aseptic Manufacturing CDMO (HLAGABAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

GMP Scale-Up, Tech Transfer & Process Validation (PPQ) (HLAGAHAL)

Keywords

• Microfluidic device manufacturing
• Diagnostic consumables production
• Microarray printing services
• Glass substrate fabrication
• Contract development manufacturing

Headquarters

HQ city

Melbourne

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Contract Product Development: Stage-gate development services supporting customers from concept through commercialization, including R&D phase support, prototype development for feasibility studies, and scalable manufacturing infrastructure development.
2. Contract Manufacturing: Manufacturing services ranging from low-volume pilot lines using purpose-built infrastructure to fully automated high-volume production for diagnostic and life science research consumables.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

SCHOTT MINIFAB is a contract design, development, and manufacturing organization (CDMO) that produces microfluidic devices and consumables for in vitro diagnostics and life science research. It manufactures physical products including SCHOTT® Microarrays, NEXTERION® glass substrates, and SCHOTT® Reagent Blisters, and provides contract product development, contract manufacturing, pilot line, precision injection molding, and microfluidics services from facilities in Phoenix (USA), Jena (Germany), and Melbourne (Australia).

Product overview

SCHOTT MINIFAB is a contract design, development, and manufacturing company specializing in in vitro diagnostics and life science research consumables. The company operates a platform of physical products including SCHOTT® Microarrays (pioneered over 20 years ago for the Human Genome Project), NEXTERION® glass substrates (available in bonded, coated, and structured variants for biochip, microfluidic, and lab-on-chip applications), and SCHOTT® Reagent Blister technology for reagent containment. These products are complemented by comprehensive services including contract product development (Concept to Commercialization stage gate process), contract manufacturing (from pilot lines to high-volume automated production), pilot line services, precision injection molding, and microfluidics solutions. The company maintains production facilities in Phoenix (USA), Jena (Germany), and Melbourne (Australia).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SCHOTT® Microarrays: Pioneered over two decades ago in response to the Human Genome Project, SCHOTT® Microarrays have been refined into a comprehensive microarray printing platform for biosensor and diagnostic applications.
• NEXTERION®
• SCHOTT® Reagent Blister

Products and services

• SCHOTT® Microarrays A microarray printing platform offering comprehensive DNA and protein microarray solutions for diagnostics and life science applications; targeted at IVD manufacturers and life science research organizations.
• NEXTERION® Glass Substrates Glass substrate product line (bonded, coated, and structured variants) for biochip, microfluidic, lab-on-chip, molecular diagnostics, immunological diagnostics, and life science research applications; targeted at diagnostics manufacturers and research tool developers.
• SCHOTT® Reagent Blister Blister-based reagent storage technology that integrates assay reagents onto IVD and life science consumables using high gas barrier, chemically and biologically compatible materials; targeted at IVD manufacturers and diagnostics developers.
• Contract Product Development Stage gate (Concept to Commercialization) development services spanning R&D support, prototype feasibility studies, and scalable manufacturing infrastructure development for diagnostic and life science consumables; targeted at product developers and IVD manufacturers.
• Contract Manufacturing Manufacturing services ranging from low-volume pilot line production to fully automated high-volume production for diagnostic and life science research consumables; targeted at IVD manufacturers and life science research organizations.
• Pilot Line Services Pilot line services supporting small-scale production and process validation for diagnostic and life science consumables prior to full-scale manufacturing; targeted at IVD product developers.
• Precision Injection Molding Solutions Precision injection molding services for high-volume manufacturing of diagnostic and life science consumables; targeted at IVD manufacturers and life science research consumables producers.
• Microfluidics Solutions Microfluidics design, development, and manufacturing solutions including lab-on-a-chip technology for diagnostic and life science applications; targeted at IVD manufacturers and point-of-care diagnostics developers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Seamless transition from concept to commercialization through Stage Gate Process

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Applied Microarrays Inc. (AMI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 September 2021SCHOTT signed an agreement to acquire Applied Microarrays Inc. (AMI), a microarray solutions company based in Arizona, to expand bioscience capabilities and manufacturing presence in the United States. The acquisition enhances SCHOTT's microarray printing and biosensor capabilities, especially for point-of-care diagnostics such as infectious disease detection.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bio-Rad Laboratories: Bio-Rad manufactures life science research and clinical diagnostics consumables, including digital PCR, qPCR, microarray, and flow cytometry products. Directly comparable to SCHOTT MINIFAB as a developer and manufacturer of IVD and life science research consumables serving overlapping customer segments.
• Standard BioTools (formerly Fluidigm): Standard BioTools designs and manufactures microfluidic-based consumables and instruments for proteomics, genomics, and single-cell analysis. Highly comparable to SCHOTT MINIFAB's microarray/microfluidic consumables business with similar customer base in life science research.
• Bio-Techne: Bio-Techne develops and manufactures reagents, assay kits, and proprietary platforms for life science research and diagnostics. Comparable to SCHOTT MINIFAB in serving IVD and life sciences with specialized consumables, microarrays, and contract capabilities.
• STRATEC Biomedical: STRATEC is a leading contract development and manufacturing partner for IVD and life science instrumentation and consumables. Direct CDMO peer to SCHOTT MINIFAB serving in vitro diagnostics manufacturers with development and manufacturing services.

Broad incumbents

• Agilent Technologies: Agilent is a broad analytical instruments and life sciences consumables provider with microarray, genomics, and diagnostics offerings. Comparable to SCHOTT MINIFAB as a larger incumbent with microarray and life science tools capabilities, though much broader in scope.
• Thermo Fisher Scientific: Thermo Fisher is the largest life sciences tools and services provider with a comprehensive microarray, IVD, and CDMO portfolio. Comparable to SCHOTT MINIFAB as a dominant incumbent offering microarray/IVD consumables and contract manufacturing at much greater scale.
• Danaher: Danaher owns multiple diagnostics and life sciences businesses (Beckman Coulter, Cepheid, Leica, Cytiva). Comparable to SCHOTT MINIFAB as a diversified diagnostics and life sciences consumables parent with significant CDMO exposure via Cytiva.
• Sartorius AG: Sartorius provides bioprocessing and lab consumables, including CDMO and contract manufacturing services for life sciences. Comparable to SCHOTT MINIFAB as a broader life science tools/CDMO player serving IVD and life sciences customers.
• PerkinElmer: PerkinElmer (now split into Revvity and the applied sciences business) provides life sciences, diagnostics, and analytical instruments including microarray and microfluidic products. Comparable to SCHOTT MINIFAB as an incumbent with overlapping microarray and diagnostics consumables capabilities.

Emerging players

• 10x Genomics: 10x Genomics develops single-cell and spatial genomics consumables and instruments using proprietary microfluidic barcode technology. Comparable to SCHOTT MINIFAB's microfluidic consumables capabilities, though specialized to single-cell and spatial genomics workflows.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@SCHOTTAG
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/schott-ag

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A1 record

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about SCHOTT MINIFAB