Approximately 40 percent of the sample aliquots will be stored in vapour phase liquid nitrogen freezers, meaning a complex bespoke liquid nitrogen cryosystem would be needed
Thames Cryogenics has just completed installation of one of the most ambitious cryogenic storage projects in Europe.
Based in Stockport, the UK Biobank aims to recruit around 500,000 people across Britain between the ages of 40 and 69 and track their health over the course of the next 30 years.
To be able to do this UK Biobank need a facility in which to store millions of samples of blood and urine in a way that will leave them suitable for use in future scientific research.
The solution came in the shape of Thames Cryogenics, which was awarded a contract for the design, supply, installation and maintenance of the facility.
Thames Cryogenics, based in Oxfordshire, says it has been one of Europe's leading manufacturers and installers of cryogenic distribution systems for the past 20 years.
It says its reputation for expert technical advice and first class service, coupled with its status as a distributor of Chart MVE freezers, meant it was perfectly positioned to win this prestigious project despite stiff competition.
The package supplied consisted of 30 high efficiency vapour phase freezers, bespoke inventory systems, liquid nitrogen distribution piping, oxygen depletion monitoring, remote temperature monitoring and alarm status, and the complete extraction system.
Working with another specialist company, Automation Partnership, Thames Cryogenics is now also involved in the supply of the liquid nitrogen distribution system for a -80C automated biological sample management system.
