Synbiosis

Laboratory Microbiology Equipmentsynbiosis.com

Synbiosis, a Cambridge-based division of Synoptics Ltd. founded in 1985, manufactures automated colony counters and inhibition zone measurement systems for microbiology laboratories worldwide. It serves food safety, pharmaceutical QC, antimicrobial research, and toxicology customers via direct UK sales and a global distributor network.

Company typePrivate
Founded1985
HeadquartersCambridge, United Kingdom
Headcount11–50
GTM typeB2B
OfferingHardware or Manufacturing

What Synbiosis does

Synbiosis is a Cambridge, UK-based manufacturer of automated microbiology analysis systems, founded in 1985 and operating as a division of Synoptics Ltd. The company designs and sells capital instruments that perform rapid automated colony counting and inhibition zone measurement for microbiology laboratories. Its technology is built around image recognition and analysis algorithms that can differentiate colony types by color (blue, purple, white, black) on chromogenic media, distinguish grid lines from colonies, and accommodate multiple plate formats including spiral plates, gridded filters, pour plates, and standard agar plates. Target end-uses include food safety testing (e.g., Salmonella and E. coli enumeration), pharmaceutical quality control, antimicrobial susceptibility testing, and toxicology/genotoxicity research including Ames testing.

The product portfolio comprises four core instruments: AutoCOL (entry-level automated colony counter), ProtoCOL 3 and ProtoCOL 3 HDE (combined colony counting and inhibition zone measurement systems, with HDE being a higher-definition variant), and ProcScan (sample preparation system). Revenue is generated primarily through capital equipment sales to laboratories and research institutes, supplemented by maintenance and service contracts. Go-to-market combines direct field sales and application specialists for the UK market with a structured global distributor network spanning Europe, North America, South America, Africa/Middle East, and Asia/Australia. Pricing is quote-based with no public list prices, and customer engagement is driven by a consultative "Request a Demo" sales motion rather than self-service.

With a headcount of 11-50 employees and a stated customer base of "thousands of microbiologists" globally, Synbiosis operates as a niche specialist in laboratory automation. Named reference customers include the University of California Davis (food safety) and Cultex Laboratories (genotoxicity/Ames testing). The company holds ISO certification (achieved in 2018) and states that its systems comply with current regulatory standards, positioning it as a compliance-ready alternative to manual colony counting and zone measurement workflows used in regulated environments.

Synbiosis firmographics

Firmographics

Name: Synbiosis
Legal name: Synoptics Ltd.
Website: https://synbiosis.com
Company type: Private
Founded year: 1985
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 11–50 employees
Short description: Synbiosis, a Cambridge-based division of Synoptics Ltd. founded in 1985, manufactures automated colony counters and inhibition zone measurement systems for microbiology laboratories worldwide. It serves food safety, pharmaceutical QC, antimicrobial research, and toxicology customers via direct UK sales and a global distributor network.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

Synbiosis industry classification

Industry

Product category: Laboratory Microbiology Equipment
NAICS: Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing (334516)
SIC: Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826)
akta.pro primary industry: Microbiology & Infectious Disease Diagnostics (culture, rapid antigen, syndromic panels) (HLAAALAC)
akta.pro secondary industry: Environmental Pathogen Monitoring Programs (Listeria, Salmonella, STEC) (AFALAEAA)

Keywords

Automated colony counting
Inhibition zone measurement
Microbiology analysis instruments
Colony counter systems
Agar plate imaging

Where Synbiosis is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Cambridge
HQ country: United Kingdom
HQ region: Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

Synbiosis business model

Business model

GTM type: B2B
Offering type: Hardware or Manufacturing
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

Hardware Systems Sales: Sale of automated colony counting and zone measurement instruments including AutoCOL, ProtoCOL 3, ProtoCOL 3 HDE, and ProcScan systems.
Maintenance and Servicing: Ongoing maintenance and servicing programs for installed systems, providing recurring revenue from the existing customer base.

Pricing tiers

Model	Billing	Price
Other	Multi-year contract	Custom pricing based on product configuration and customer requirements

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Synbiosis product offering

Product offering

Core offering

Synbiosis designs, manufactures, and sells automated instruments and software for rapid, accurate colony counting and inhibition zone measurement in microbiology laboratories. Its portfolio includes the AutoCOL colony counter, ProtoCOL 3 and ProtoCOL 3 HDE combined counting/zone measurement systems, and the ProcScan sample preparation unit, all serving food safety, pharmaceutical QC, antimicrobial research, and toxicology testing customers worldwide.

Product overview

Synbiosis offers a portfolio of four core automated microbiology analysis products. The AutoCOL provides rapid automated colony counting, while ProtoCOL 3 and ProtoCOL 3 HDE offer combined colony counting and inhibition zone measurement capabilities. ProcScan handles sample preparation. These systems are designed for microbiologists in quality control and research environments, supporting various plate formats (spiral plates, gridded filters, pour plates) and exporting results directly to Excel. Product categories include Colony Counters, Zone Measuring, Sample Preparation, and Microbiology Analysis Software.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

AutoCOL: Automated colony counter system
ProtoCOL 3
ProtoCOL 3 HDE
ProcScan

Products and services

AutoCOL

Quantifiable outcome

Significant time savings in manual colony counting workflows
+2 more outcomes

Companies that use Synbiosis

Customer profile

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Synbiosis technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Synbiosis partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

Regional Distributors (Europe)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEuropean distributors provide local sales, installation, and support services for Synbiosis products across the region, enabling market access in countries where direct presence is not maintained.
Regional Distributors (North America)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNorth American distributors serve as primary market access channel in the US and Canada, providing localized sales and technical support for Synbiosis microbiology analysis systems.
Regional Distributors (Asia & Australia)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAsia and Australia distributors enable market reach across the Asia-Pacific region with local sales and support capabilities for automated colony counting and zone measurement products.
Regional Distributors (South America)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSouth American distributors provide market access in Latin American countries for Synbiosis products.
Regional Distributors (Africa & Middle East)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAfrican and Middle Eastern distributors serve customers in these regions, providing localized sales and support for microbiology automation products.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Synbiosis competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

AID Autoimmun Diagnostika GmbH: AID is a German manufacturer of automated colony counting and ELISpot readers, directly competing with Synbiosis in microbiology imaging instruments for clinical and research labs.
Cellular Technology Limited (CTL): CTL makes automated colony and immunoassay analyzers (ImmunoSpot, ELISpot readers), competing head-to-head with Synbiosis's ProtoCOL and AutoCOL systems in cell/colony counting applications.

Regional players

Syngene: Syngene is a sister division under Synoptics Ltd. offering gel documentation and imaging systems; while its core product category is different, it shares the same parent, UK base, and lab-imaging customer base as Synbiosis.

Broad incumbents

Bio-Rad Laboratories: Bio-Rad is a large life-science instrumentation company offering imaging, microbiology QC, and lab automation products that overlap with Synbiosis's customer workflows in pharma and academic labs.
Thermo Fisher Scientific: Thermo Fisher is the dominant life-science tools incumbent, with microbiology, lab imaging, and QC instrumentation that competes for the same lab budgets as Synbiosis.
Molecular Devices: Molecular Devices supplies high-content imaging and microplate readers used in biology and microbiology QC, competing for the same plate-imaging budgets that Synbiosis serves with ProtoCOL.
Beckman Coulter Life Sciences: Beckman Coulter offers microbiology, lab automation, and imaging instrumentation across clinical and research labs, overlapping with Synbiosis's QC and antimicrobial testing use cases.

Emerging players

Analytik Jena (UVP): Analytik Jena, with its UVP imaging product line, sells automated gel and colony documentation systems that compete with Synbiosis in plate-imaging workflows for microbiology labs.
Berthold Technologies: Berthold Technologies supplies imaging, luminescence, and detection instruments used in life-science and microbiology QC, with adjacent but partial overlap to Synbiosis's colony-counting and zone-measurement systems.

Others

Hamilton Company: Hamilton provides lab automation and robotic sample-preparation platforms that complement the workflow around Synbiosis's ProcScan sample-preparation system, addressing adjacent lab-automation buyers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Synbiosis compliance and trust

Trust signal

Compliance1 record

Synbiosis financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Synbiosis leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Synbiosis funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

Synbiosis M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Synbiosis

What does Synbiosis do?

Is Synbiosis a public or private company?

Synbiosis is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.

When was Synbiosis founded?

Synbiosis was founded in 1985. It employs 11 to 50 people.

Where is Synbiosis based?

Synbiosis is headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.

How does Synbiosis make money?

Two revenue lines are on record. Hardware Systems Sales are the primary driver. The others are maintenance and Servicing.

Who are Synbiosis's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are AID Autoimmun Diagnostika GmbH and Cellular Technology Limited (CTL). Syngene is listed as a regional player. Broad incumbents are Bio-Rad Laboratories, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Molecular Devices and Beckman Coulter Life Sciences. Emerging players are Analytik Jena (UVP) and Berthold Technologies. Hamilton Company is listed as an others.

Does Synbiosis have an API?

No public API is recorded for Synbiosis.

What industry is Synbiosis in?

Synbiosis's product category is Laboratory Microbiology Equipment. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAAALAC, Microbiology & Infectious Disease Diagnostics (culture, rapid antigen, syndromic panels), with a secondary code of AFALAEAA, Environmental Pathogen Monitoring Programs (Listeria, Salmonella, STEC). Its NAICS code is 334516 and its SIC code is 3826.