With its announcement of the MIT 1000, the world’s first non-biological system for identifying pathogenic microbes, Micro Identification Technologies Inc. set the stage for a revolution in the way companies and health organizations identify potentially dangerous microbes. The company is now taking its next big step, initiating the production of the MIT 1000. In late May, the company signed an agreement with OSI Optoelectronics, a subsidiary of OSI Systems (NASDAQ: OSIS), to manufacture the system. The MIT 1000 uses laser light and sophisticated software to generate and read the unique reflection patterns that identify 23 species of pathogenic bacteria, all in a fraction of the time and at a fraction of the cost required by traditional methods.
OSIO, with FDA registered production facilities in California, Malaysia, and India, already fabricates the photodiode detectors that are used in the MIT 1000, and has the ability to supply other components. Worldwide, OSIO has 380,000 square feet of ISO 9001:2000 certified manufacturing space. The company employs strict statistical process control techniques, and all of their facilities and products are RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive) compliant.
Micro’s Executive VP and COO, John Ricardi, said, “All of OSIO’s world class facilities are ISO 9001:2000 certified and FDA registered and GMP compliant making them a perfect company to fabricate MIT’s systems for its current food safety applications and its planned pharmaceutical and clinical diagnostic applications.” OSIO’s President, Manocher Mansouri, added, “We are pleased to work with MIT as we feel their innovative product will become a valuable tool to help prevent widespread bacterial contamination.”
The significance of the MIT 1000 is in its remarkable ability to identify bacteria quickly, without relying on chemical and biological agents or all the other complex and costly technologies previously required for microbe identification. In addition, it doesn’t require access to or utilization of costly trained laboratory staff. The MIT 1000 can accurately identify microbes in a matter of minutes, using a very small sample, simply with laser light, special detectors, and proprietary software.
Micro Identification Technologies pursuing a rapidly expanding market, with annual revenues for all rapid testing methods currently exceeding $5 billion.
For more information, see the company website at www.micro-imaging.com.
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