Suburban Testing Labs
Suburban Testing Labs (now SPL-Reading) is a NELAP-accredited environmental testing laboratory in Reading, Pennsylvania, serving Mid-Atlantic water utilities, municipalities, hospitality, and consumer markets with PFAS, microbiology, and dioxin analyses since 1963.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1963
- HeadquartersReading, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Suburban Testing Labs does
Suburban Testing Labs, now operating as SPL-Reading following its September 2025 rebrand, is a NELAP-accredited environmental testing laboratory headquartered in a 32,500-square-foot facility in Reading, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1963 and family-owned for over 60 years prior to its November 2024 acquisition by Scientific Process & Laboratories (SPL), the laboratory serves the Mid-Atlantic region (Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware) and provides regulated water, wastewater, soil, air, and consumer-product testing services — including PFAS, QAC, microbiology, and the only in-state Pennsylvania dioxin analysis offering. Its documented customer base spans municipal and investor-owned water utilities (Philadelphia Water Department, Aqua), higher education (Penn State), hospitality, community pools, small public water systems, and beverage companies, with recurring compliance testing volume covering more than 6 million Americans and over 400 pool tests per week.
The commercial model is B2B-led, monetized through per-sample/per-test pricing on accredited analyses under regulated sampling schedules, supplemented by a growing direct-to-consumer channel under the HealthGuard brand (kit pricing $60-$625). Operational delivery is supported by automated analytical instrumentation, a specialized laboratory information management system, and the SuburbanClientConnect client portal for results delivery and chain-of-custody management. The 2025 launch of a State College Service Center extends physical sample logistics into central Pennsylvania, indicating an intent to grow recurring compliance sample volume and shorten transit for time-sensitive analytes.
Post-acquisition, the business has been repositioned as SPL's Mid-Atlantic anchor lab within a 40+ lab, 11-state national platform — supporting cross-state compliance work, larger multi-state bids, and shared accreditation management. The strategic emphasis going forward appears to be expanding regulated testing categories (notably dioxin), deepening utility and municipal relationships, and scaling the consumer-facing HealthGuard kit channel as a higher-margin adjacency to the core compliance testing book.
Suburban Testing Labs firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Suburban Testing Labs
- Legal name
- Suburban Testing Laboratories, Inc.
- Website
- https://suburbantestinglabs.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1963
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Suburban Testing Labs (now SPL-Reading) is a NELAP-accredited environmental testing laboratory in Reading, Pennsylvania, serving Mid-Atlantic water utilities, municipalities, hospitality, and consumer markets with PFAS, microbiology, and dioxin analyses since 1963.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Suburban Testing Labs industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Environmental Testing Services
- NAICS
- Testing Laboratories and Services (54138), Testing Laboratories and Services (541380)
- SIC
- Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Laboratory Testing & Analytical Services (in-house/contract labs; microbiology, metals, organics) (EUANAJAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Potable Water Testing for Food Facilities (Drinking Water Compliance) (AFALAJAA)
Keywords
Where Suburban Testing Labs is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Reading
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Suburban Testing Labs business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Environmental Laboratory Testing Services: One-time and recurring analytical testing services for environmental compliance including drinking water, wastewater, groundwater, soil, and solid materials. Services billed per sample/test with standard turnaround times and rush analysis options available at additional cost.
- HealthGuard Water Testing Kits: Direct-to-consumer and SMB water testing kits sold online and by phone for private well owners and homeowners. Kits range from $60 (introductory) to $625 (advanced) with shipping charges. Additional fees for replacement kits and rush processing.
- Field Services: Sample collection, field analysis, and field technician services. Sample pickup must be scheduled prior to 12:00PM on business day before service. Additional costs apply for services outside standard hours.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | HealthGuard Intro - Basic bacteria testing |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | HealthGuard 1 - Basic health screening |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | HealthGuard 2 - Lead testing add-on |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | HealthGuard 3 - Most popular comprehensive health panel |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | HealthGuard PFAS - PFAS compounds testing |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | HealthGuard Advanced - Most comprehensive testing |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | HealthGuard Corrosion & Pretreatment - Water quality add-on |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | HealthGuard Trace Metals - Heavy metals testing |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Suburban Testing Labs product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Suburban Testing Labs is a NELAP-accredited environmental testing laboratory providing analytical services for drinking water, wastewater, groundwater, soil, biosolids, and solid materials using EPA-approved methods. The lab serves public water suppliers, wastewater treatment facilities, engineering firms, industrial clients, and municipal accounts with compliance and remediation testing, including specialized PFAS (UCMR5), Dioxin (EPA Method 1613), and QAC analysis. It also sells a consumer line of HealthGuard private-well water testing kits via its own e-commerce storefront and direct phone sales.
Product overview
Suburban Testing Labs operates as a NELAP-accredited independent environmental testing laboratory offering a comprehensive portfolio of water and environmental testing services. The company provides consumer-oriented HealthGuard water testing kits for private well owners (ranging from $60 to $625) and professional environmental testing services for commercial and municipal clients. Professional services include drinking water analysis, groundwater and wastewater testing, soil/solid materials analysis, PFAS testing (including UCMR5 compliance testing), Dioxin analysis, and QAC testing for wastewater treatment. The company also offers a web-based SuburbanClientConnect portal for online report access and custom Electronic Data Deliverables. Field sciences services provide sample collection and field analysis support. The portfolio serves clients across Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, and Delaware from facilities in Reading, PA and a State College Service Center.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- HealthGuard: Private well water testing kits for homeowners, including packages for bacteria, lead, nitrates, PFAS, VOCs, trace metals, and corrosion testing.
Products and services
- Environmental Testing Services Full-service NELAP-accredited environmental laboratory offering analysis of drinking water, groundwater, wastewater, soil, biosolids, and solid materials for compliance and monitoring. Serves public water suppliers, wastewater treatment facilities, engineering firms, and industrial clients with EPA-approved methods.
- HealthGuard Water Testing Kits Consumer-facing water testing kits for private well and home drinking water testing, with tiered packages ranging from $60 (introductory bacteria testing) to $625 (advanced full-contaminant screening), plus add-on modules for lead, PFAS, trace metals, and corrosion. Sold via e-commerce and phone.
- UCMR5 PFAS and Lithium Testing Testing for 29 Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) and Lithium under the EPA's Fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule using EPA Methods 533 and 537.1, supporting public water supplier compliance with UCMR5 requirements.
- QAC Testing Panel High-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) testing for Quaternary Ammonium Compounds (QACs) at low µg/L concentrations with compound-specific detection. Helps wastewater treatment plants diagnose QAC interference from disinfectants and manufacturing that disrupts biological treatment processes.
- Dioxin Testing EPA Method 1613 dioxin analysis using high-resolution gas chromatography/high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRGC/HRMS) for drinking water. Suburban Testing Labs is the only environmental laboratory performing this analysis in-state in Pennsylvania, eliminating the need for out-of-state shipping.
- Field Sciences Services Sample collection and field analysis services for environmental testing projects, including field technician services, scheduled sample pickup (prior to 12:00PM on business days before service), and on-site field measurements across the Mid-Atlantic region.
Quantifiable outcome
- Serves over 6 million Americans across Mid-Atlantic region
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Suburban Testing Labs
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Suburban Testing Labs technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
Suburban Testing Labs partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators8 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Suburban Testing Labs competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Microbac Laboratories: Microbac is a US-based NELAP-accredited environmental testing network with multi-state coverage for drinking water, wastewater, PFAS, and dioxin analysis—closely comparable to STL's core service portfolio and customer mix.
- Pace Analytical Services: Pace is one of the largest privately held environmental and life sciences testing laboratories in the US, providing NELAP-accredited water, wastewater, soil, and PFAS testing with national footprint and dedicated project managers—directly competing with STL across Mid-Atlantic utilities and industrial clients.
- Eurofins Lancaster Laboratories: Eurofins Lancaster Laboratories is a Pennsylvania-based NELAP-accredited environmental and pharmaceutical testing lab operating the same central-PA region as STL; it competes directly for PFAS, dioxin, and routine drinking water compliance work.
- EMSL Analytical: EMSL is a US-wide network of NELAP-accredited environmental, water, and microbiology testing laboratories serving municipalities, public water systems, and private well owners with a comparable kit-based and B2B testing offering.
- RTI Laboratories: RTI Laboratories is an independent NELAP-accredited environmental testing lab providing drinking water, wastewater, soil, and PFAS analysis to municipalities and industrial clients in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions.
- Galson Laboratories: Galson Labs (now part of SGS) is a NELAP-accredited environmental and industrial hygiene testing laboratory providing drinking water and wastewater analysis for municipalities, schools, and industrial clients—directly comparable to STL on scope and clientele.
Broad incumbents
- Eurofins Environment Testing (US): Eurofins is the world's largest environmental testing network; its US operation offers full-service water/wastewater/PFAS/dioxin testing that competes with STL on large multi-state utilities and federal contracts.
- Bureau Veritas North America: Bureau Veritas is a global TIC player with environmental laboratory services covering water, wastewater, and soil testing; it competes with STL for industrial remediation and municipal compliance work across the eastern US.
- ALS Environmental: ALS is a global testing services provider with substantial US environmental lab coverage in water, wastewater, soil, and PFAS, directly overlapping STL's core regulatory testing service lines for municipal and industrial clients.
- SGS North America: SGS is a global testing, inspection, and certification company with environmental laboratory services for water, soil, and air, competing for the same large industrial, municipal, and remediation clients as STL.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Suburban Testing Labs social profiles
Digital presenceSuburban Testing Labs compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Suburban Testing Labs financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Suburban Testing Labs leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Suburban Testing Labs funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Suburban Testing Labs M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Suburban Testing Labs
What does Suburban Testing Labs do?
Suburban Testing Labs is a NELAP-accredited environmental testing laboratory providing analytical services for drinking water, wastewater, groundwater, soil, biosolids, and solid materials using EPA-approved methods. The lab serves public water suppliers, wastewater treatment facilities, engineering firms, industrial clients, and municipal accounts with compliance and remediation testing, including specialized PFAS (UCMR5), Dioxin (EPA Method 1613), and QAC analysis. It also sells a consumer line of HealthGuard private-well water testing kits via its own e-commerce storefront and direct phone sales.
Is Suburban Testing Labs a public or private company?
Suburban Testing Labs is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Suburban Testing Labs founded?
Suburban Testing Labs was founded in 1963. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Suburban Testing Labs based?
Suburban Testing Labs is headquartered in Reading, United States, in the North America region.
How does Suburban Testing Labs make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Environmental Laboratory Testing Services are the primary driver. The others are healthGuard Water Testing Kits and field Services.
Who are Suburban Testing Labs's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Microbac Laboratories, Pace Analytical Services, Eurofins Lancaster Laboratories, EMSL Analytical, RTI Laboratories and Galson Laboratories. Broad incumbents are Eurofins Environment Testing (US), Bureau Veritas North America, ALS Environmental and SGS North America.
Does Suburban Testing Labs have an API?
No public API is recorded for Suburban Testing Labs.
What industry is Suburban Testing Labs in?
Suburban Testing Labs's product category is Environmental Testing Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EUANAJAB, Laboratory Testing & Analytical Services (in-house/contract labs; microbiology, metals, organics), with a secondary code of AFALAJAA, Potable Water Testing for Food Facilities (Drinking Water Compliance). Its NAICS code is 54138 and its SIC code is 8734.