INTEGRA Biosciences AG
Accelerating science
Biosciences in Zizers, Graubünden, is booming. Existing employees are called in for weekend shifts, and new staff are recruited. “Overnight, we had to increase production,” recalls Thomas Granzotto, “while some of our suppliers had shut down.” But appearances can be deceptive: INTEGRA Biosciences makes pipetting systems used around the world for Covid-19 testing and the development of vaccines and medicines.
No sleepless nights
Thoughtful, organised and focused on solutions, Thomas Granzotto has overseen all production in Zizers as Head of Instrument Production for the past three years. The 35-year-old coordinates around 30 employees to ensure that the right quantity of the right product is in the right place, at the right time and to the right quality standards. In his role, preparation is everything. “I can only go home with peace of mind,” he says, “once everyone knows what they need to do the next day.”
INTEGRA Biosciences manufactures automated pipetting systems and other laboratory equipment for diagnostics, research and development in the life sciences. Or “picks and shovels for laboratories”, as management team member Alex Studer puts it. Laboratories around the globe use these tools to investigate the causes of Alzheimer’s disease and cancer, or to search for active substances to combat Covid-19.
“There were no sleepless nights,” says Granzotto, even though demand for testing, and consequently for their products, doubled during the pandemic. In a sense, day-to-day business simply carried on. INTEGRA was ready. Not specifically for a pandemic, but the foundations for increasing output were already in place. Over recent years, processes had repeatedly been adapted to changing circumstances. “I was, and still am, very confident that we can get through the crisis.” His confidence stems above all from a deep trust in his team. “The sense of community and the way people work together here are impressive.” Every employee contributes to the company’s success.
At INTEGRA, we have the freedom to innovate.
Thomas Granzotto
“The secret to our success,” says Alex Studer, “is that we identified a gap in the market between automation and manual processes and filled it with Swiss engineering.” Founded in 1965, INTEGRA has become one of the world’s leading suppliers of laboratory equipment for liquid handling and culture media preparation in life science research. Annual growth in recent years has ranged from ten to twenty per cent. As recently as August 2019, the company doubled its office and production space in Zizers. Land for the next expansion has already been purchased. “The only question now is how much we’ll build,” says Granzotto. “But we certainly know where we’re heading.” One driver of this success: one in every ten francs goes into innovation.
Intuitive and reliable
No idea that could benefit the business is dismissed, says Thomas Granzotto. “We have the freedom to innovate here.” That freedom also gave rise to the software used to control the pipetting systems. Operating the equipment is “a bit like Lego Technic”: intuitive and reliable. The user interface works in much the same way across all models. With the appropriate instrument, even large volumes of samples can be processed very quickly, with automation available too. Because “where people are involved, mistakes happen.”
Thankfully, lockdown is now behind them. “My employees never complained,” Granzotto recalls, “despite the extra shifts.” They knew that what they were doing mattered. To the company, certainly, but also, in some small way, to the world.
Further information about INTEGRA
INTEGRA Biosciences is always looking for new talent and welcomes your application.
