What PIC Solution does

PIC Solution, founded in 2004 by Dr. Mohamed Shaimi in Avignon, France, designs and manufactures laboratory and industrial-scale instrumentation based on supercritical fluid technology for CO2 Separation (SFC) and CO2 Extraction (SFE). The product portfolio spans analytical instruments (PIC-Lab Analytical SFC series with parallel column configurations), preparative systems (PIC-Lab PREP 100, SUPER SFC 200-800), and industrial-scale units (PIC-Lab MAGNUM SFC 10-30 and SFE-25 through SFE-500), all controlled by proprietary PICLab Software interfacing with PLCs. Differentiated features include the Dual SFE-SFC Mode, X-Injection (Extraction-Injection) technique, FlexPacker Dynamic Axial Compression System, GLS collection technology, and a proprietary Back Pressure Regulator, with multiple patents held by the founder.

The company's core customers are pharmaceutical and natural products companies requiring SFC and SFE equipment for drug discovery, API purification, scale-up, and botanical extraction applications. Notable industrial deployments include a COVID-19 vaccine production system for CordenPharma achieving 99.5% API purity at 2000 mL/min flow rates, and the SFC-700 — described as the largest industrial-scale supercritical chromatography system in Europe — built in 2008. Industrial-scale SFE systems are designed to cGMP and EU-GMP standards, supporting pharmaceutical production customers.

PIC Solution generates revenue through hardware sales of instruments and accessories (DAC columns, FlexPacker), plus professional services including consulting in separation sciences, custom purification, and method development. The company sells direct via enterprise field sales with a global collaborative network spanning Europe, North America, South America, India, China, and Israel, supported by a wholly-owned US subsidiary (PIC Solution Inc., San Diego, opened 2011) and an industrial partnership with a global food-ingredient extraction leader. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. The company remains privately held with no disclosed institutional funding and operates with a small core team.

Name

PIC Solution

Legal name

Pic Solution, Inc.

Website

https://pic-sfc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

PIC Solution, founded in 2004 in Avignon, France, designs and manufactures supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) and CO2 extraction (SFE) instruments for pharmaceutical and natural products companies, spanning analytical to industrial scale under proprietary PICLab Software.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Laboratory Instrumentation

NAICS

Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing (334516)

SIC

Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826)

akta.pro primary industry

Analytical Instruments & Chromatography Systems (HLAGAIAA)

Keywords

• Supercritical fluid chromatography
• Supercritical fluid extraction
• Pharmaceutical laboratory instrumentation
• CO2 extraction equipment
• Industrial SFC systems

Headquarters

HQ city

Avignon

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Laboratory Equipment Sales: PIC Solution designs and manufactures supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) and extraction (SFE) instruments. The company sells a range of products from analytical-scale PIC-Lab Analytical SFC to industrial-scale PIC-Lab MAGNUM SFC and Industrial Scale SFE systems. Revenue is generated through the sale of these instruments to pharmaceutical and natural product companies.
2. Consulting Services: PIC Solution offers consulting services in separation sciences, drug discovery, natural products research, SFC, SFC-MS, SFE, HPLC, high throughput purification, large scale separation, SMB, workflows and process development, laboratory automation, analytical chemistry, systems qualification and compliance. Also offers custom purification and extraction services.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

PIC Solution designs, manufactures, and sells laboratory and industrial instrumentation for supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) and supercritical fluid extraction (SFE). Products range from analytical benchtop systems (PIC-Lab Analytical SFC) to industrial-scale SFE units (SFE-25 through SFE-500) and the largest industrial supercritical chromatography system in Europe (SFC-700). The company also provides consulting services in separation sciences, drug discovery, and custom purification/extraction.

Product overview

PIC Solution provides supercritical fluid technology for CO2 Separation (SFC) and CO2 Extraction (SFE) since 2004. The product portfolio is organized around three core technology areas: SFC instruments (PIC-Lab Analytical, Hybrid, PREP, SUPER, and MAGNUM series), SFE systems (PIC-Lab DE, SUPER, and Industrial Scale models), and combined SFE-SFC solutions. The PIC-Lab Analytical SFC series provides analytical-scale analysis and method development with parallel column configurations. The Hybrid SFC series enables both analytical and preparative functions on a single instrument. The PREP 100 SFC offers open-bed collection with proprietary GLS technology. The SUPER SFC series delivers bulk-scale purification (200-800 mL/min), while the MAGNUM SFC series provides industrial-scale purification (up to 2000 mL/min). SFE products range from the PIC-Lab DE SFE for method development to Industrial Scale models (SFE-25 through SFE-500) for production. The proprietary Dual SFE-SFC Mode and Extraction Injection (X-Injection) enable combined extraction-separation workflows. All instruments are controlled via PICLab Software interfacing with Program Logic Controllers. The company also offers consulting and custom purification services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• PIC-Lab Analytical SFC Versatile, fully automated analytical SFC system for routine analysis, profiling, method development, and QC of chiral and achiral small molecules, peptides, Hemp, and natural products. Accommodates 10-20 columns running in parallel. Targeted at pharmaceutical, natural products, and analytical laboratories.
• PIC-Lab Analytical SFC SN Latest version of PIC-Lab Analytical SFC containing two sets of 10 columns in parallel, either halving screening time or doubling column availability. Features two UV detectors per channel with optional third detector (CD or polarimeter).
• PIC-Lab Hybrid SFC One Machine-Multiple Use system providing both automated analytical method development and semi-preparative purification. Ideal for rapid selection of optimal stationary and mobile phases, scale-up studies, and purification. CO2 recycling reaches 90-95% efficiency.
• PIC-Lab PREP 100 SFC Open-bed collection system offering routine mass-triggered and UV-triggered purification of small molecules, peptides, and natural products. Features proprietary GLS technology for accurate collection up to 95% of fraction tube capacity with CO2 recycling at 100 mL/min flow rate.
• PIC-Lab SUPER SFC Bulk-scale purification SFC system available in 200, 400, 600, and 800 mL/min flow rate configurations, with 50mm and 76mm column i.d. options and estimated throughput from 15 g/day to 2000 g/day depending on configuration.
• PIC-Lab MAGNUM SFC Industrial scale SFC purification system with 10cm, 20cm, and 30cm i.d. DAC column options and throughput from 1-5 kg/day up to 8-40 kg/day. Used in COVID-19 vaccine production achieving 99.5% purity at 2000 mL/min flow rate.
• PIC-Lab DE SFE Development and extraction SFE system for economical method development and small-scale CO2 extraction. Features automated screening of up to 6 co-solvents, 10 extractors, and 10 fraction collectors with fractional separation capability.
• PIC-Lab SUPER SFE High-quality CO2 extraction system available in 200, 400, and 600 LPH flow rate configurations (2L, 5L, and 10L extraction vessels) for multi-kilogram biomass extraction per day.
• Industrial Scale SFE Industrial scale CO2 extraction systems (SFE-25, SFE-50, SFE-100, SFE-200, SFE-500) with 2-3 extraction vessels ranging from 25L to 500L and flow rates of 150-350 LPH or 600-3000 LPH. cGMP/EU-GMP compliant design.
• DAC Columns Dynamic axial compression columns for SFC, HPLC, or SMB available in 50, 76, 100, 200, and 300mm i.d. with integral heating jackets. Designed to CODAP and ASME standards with maximum 300 bar operating pressure, built from 316L stainless steel and PTFE.
• PICLab Software Proprietary software on separate PC enabling intelligent samples programming, automated sample runs, and fast data visualization. Interfaces with the PLC managing all instrument module operations for high reproducibility and robustness.
• Consulting Services Over 80 years of combined experience in separation sciences, chemistry, extraction, and process development. Services include SFC, SFC-MS, SFE, HPLC, UPLC, high throughput purification, large scale separation, SMB, workflows and process development, laboratory automation, analytical chemistry, purification data management, systems qualification, and compliance.
• Custom Purification and Extraction Services Custom purification and extraction services to solve difficult problems, optimize methods, and deliver high purity products using PIC Solution's proprietary SFC and SFE technologies.

Quantifiable outcome

• CO2 recycling efficiency of 90-95%
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Global leader in food ingredient extraction and process automationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustrial scale SFE models are offered in partnership with a global and recognized leader in the extraction of food ingredients and process automation. Large scale CO2 extraction technology is combined with PIC Solution's proprietary SFC technology to offer complete solutions for producing high quality and compliant natural products extracts such as Hemp extracts.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Knauer Wissenschaftliche Geräte GmbH: Knauer manufactures HPLC, SFC, and SMB chromatography systems for lab and pilot-scale purification. It directly overlaps with PIC Solution's Hybrid and Prep SFC product lines and serves similar pharma and chemical customers.
• Sepiatec GmbH: Sepiatec specializes in preparative SFC and SFE systems for pharmaceutical and natural-product purification. It is a direct competitor in the same product category with similar customer targets and scale.
• JASCO Corporation: JASCO manufactures SFC and SFE instruments alongside HPLC and other analytical instruments — a direct competitor in analytical and preparative SFC systems serving pharma and natural-product labs. Comparable in scope of SFC product line and customer base.
• Waters SFC (formerly Thar Process): Thar Process, now part of Waters, was a pioneer in industrial supercritical CO2 extraction and chromatography. Its technology and installed base directly overlap with PIC Solution's industrial SFE/SFC offerings in pharma and natural products.

Broad incumbents

• Thermo Fisher Scientific: Thermo Fisher sells chromatography, SFC, and laboratory extraction equipment across pharma, food, and chemical markets. It is a much larger incumbent that competes in pharma analytical and prep purification workflows.
• Agilent Technologies: Agilent sells a broad analytical instrument portfolio including SFC solutions and chromatography columns. It competes with PIC Solution in pharma and natural-product QC and prep chromatography, but as part of a much larger instruments-and-services portfolio.
• Shimadzu Corporation: Shimadzu manufactures analytical and preparative chromatography systems, including SFC platforms, for pharmaceutical and chemical customers. Comparable as a broad analytical instrument incumbent with SFC offerings.
• Waters Corporation: Waters offers the ACQUITY UPC² SFC platform and acquired Thar Process, giving it a broad SFC and preparative chromatography portfolio. It is a much larger incumbent that competes with PIC Solution in pharma SFC but also sells HPLC, MS, and informatics suites.

Emerging players

• BÜCHI Labortechnik AG: BÜCHI provides laboratory and industrial extraction equipment, including supercritical CO2 systems for natural-product and food applications. It competes with PIC Solution's SFE portfolio in food, cannabis, and natural-product extraction, with a broader food-science base.
• Natural Drug Discovery / SFC Instrument vendors (e.g., Analtech, SFC Fluidics): Smaller specialty vendors offering SFC instruments and chromatography consumables. They partially overlap with PIC Solution's analytical SFC product line and address similar pharma and natural-product customers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pic-solution

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 PIC Solution