CELISCA (Center for Life Science Automation)

What CELISCA (Center for Life Science Automation) does

CELISCA (Center for Life Science Automation) is a Central Scientific Research Center of the University of Rostock, founded in 2003 by the chair of laboratory automation. It operates as a BMBF-funded Center for Innovation Competence (Zentrum für Innovationskompetenz) with a headcount of 5, located at Friedrich-Barnewitz-Str. 8 in Rostock, Germany. The center's mission centers on developing automation solutions for life science processes, spanning chemical, catalytic, and medical domains.

The center's core offering is the FUTURE-LAB approach — a comprehensive automation framework that integrates sensor systems, spectrometers, robotic systems and actuators, information technologies, and human-robot collaboration into a unified methodology. The work is driven by the chair of automation/life science automation and draws on deep process knowledge for emerging chemical/catalytic and medical processes. A flagship initiative is the A.D.A.M. (Autonomous Development of Advanced Materials) project, funded by an ERC SYNERGY Grant running from 2020 to 2027.

CELISCA does not operate on a commercial business model. It is funded through government grants — primarily from BMBF and the European Research Council — and operates within the University of Rostock's research ecosystem. Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed, and the center has no commercial customers, pricing structure, or distribution channels. Its outputs are disseminated through academic publications, institutional collaboration, and the ERC SYNERGY project.

Name

CELISCA (Center for Life Science Automation)

Legal name

CELISCA (Center for Life Science Automation)

Website

https://celisca.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Research & Development Services - Life Science Automation

NAICS

Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Lab Automation, Instrument Control & Workflow Orchestration Software (HLAGAJAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Scientific Data Management & Data Platforms (SDMS/Data Lakehouse for R&D) (HLAGAJAC)

Keywords

• Life science automation
• Laboratory automation research
• Process automation systems
• Human-robot collaboration
• Spectrometer automation

Headquarters

HQ city

Rostock

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

CELISCA is a Central Scientific Research Center of the University Rostock that conducts research on life science automation. Its core offering is the FUTURE-LAB approach, an integrated research framework encompassing sensor systems, spectrometers, robotic systems/actuators, information technologies, and human-robot collaboration for chemical, catalytic, and medical process automation.

Product overview

CELISCA is a Central Scientific Research Center of the University Rostock focused on life science automation. Founded by the chair of laboratory automation in 2003, it operates as a BMBF funded Center for Innovation Competence. The center's primary offering is the FUTURE-LAB approach, which encompasses different stages of automation for life science related processes. This includes sensor systems and spectrometers, robotic systems/actuators, information technologies, and human-robot collaboration. The work is driven by efforts from the chair of automation/life science automation and is based on deep process knowledge for emerging chemical/catalytic and medical processes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• FUTURE-LAB Approach
• ADAM - Autonomous Development of Advanced Materials (ERC SYNERGY Grant)

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• University of RostockcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCELISCA is a Central Scientific Research Center of the University Rostock, founded by the chair of laboratory automation. The center operates within the university's research ecosystem and is affiliated with the Faculty of Engineering (IEF).

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Bruker: Manufacturer of high-end spectrometers and analytical instruments used in chemical, biological, and materials research — closely comparable to the spectrometer-driven components of CELISCA's FUTURE-LAB stack.
• Agilent Technologies: Major analytical instrument and lab automation vendor with deep footprint in chemical and life science research — overlaps with CELISCA's chemical/catalytic process automation research at the instrumentation layer.
• Thermo Fisher Scientific: Global life sciences incumbent with broad portfolios in laboratory equipment, automation, and analytical instruments — provides an industry reference point for the markets CELISCA's automation research ultimately targets.
• Beckman Coulter Life Sciences: Major life science instrumentation and automation vendor offering cell sorting, liquid handling, and lab automation platforms — overlaps with CELISCA's lab automation focus but operates at much larger commercial scale as part of Danaher.

Direct peers

• Tecan Group: Swiss leader in laboratory automation, offering robotic liquid handling workstations, readers, and integrated workflow solutions for life science research — directly comparable to CELISCA's FUTURE-LAB automation stack across pharma, chemical, and diagnostic end markets.
• Hamilton Company: U.S.-based manufacturer of automated liquid handling workstations, robotic arms, and process analytics used in life science labs — overlaps directly with CELISCA's robotic system and sensor/spectrometer integration work.
• Analytik Jena: Germany-based provider of analytical instrumentation, sample preparation, and laboratory automation — comparable in geographic origin and in the combination of spectrometers with automated workflows that CELISCA develops.
• Eppendorf: German-headquartered life science supplier of liquid handling, automation, and cell handling instruments — a domestic European peer operating in overlapping laboratory automation product categories.

Others

• Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials (IFAM): German applied research institute working on automation, materials, and process technologies under publicly funded contract research — comparable organizational model to CELISCA as a publicly funded German research center advancing process automation.

Emerging players

• Strateos: U.S. startup building cloud-based, robotic 'self-driving' laboratories for chemistry and materials discovery — pursuing a vision directly aligned with the autonomous materials development work funded by CELISCA's ERC SYNERGY grant.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/celisca-center-for-life-science-automation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about CELISCA (Center for Life Science Automation)