The department of biological sciences at Imperial College London now has 150 Zeiss Axiostar Plus microscopes installed and working in its teaching labs
In a massive exercise to replace the entire stock of 30 year old student microscopes, chief technician Ian Morris chose Zeiss microscopes after sampling units from every major manufacturer.
"Our new microscopes had to be light and easily transportable, with excellent optics and upgrade options to cope with the rapid developments in modern microscopy.
"But they also had to be robust enough to withstand the demands of a generation of inexperienced users while staying within our budget.
"The Zeiss Axiostar fitted the requirement perfectly", says Morris.
The entire order was delivered in one shipment in less than 12 weeks, with Zeiss personnel unpacking and installing every unit.
"As well as keeping to the agreed delivery schedule, which is extraordinary with an order of this magnitude, each and every microscope worked right out of the box.
"I will not hesitate to come back to Zeiss for any future requirements", adds Morris.
The department runs several undergraduate courses utilising light microscopy.
These include botany, biomedicine, and genetics and involve the routine imaging of mitotic spindles and parasite inclusions in blood cells, for instance.
"It was certainly the most extraordinary installation I have ever done," says Paul Brown, senior area manager for Carl Zeiss Microscopy.
"The Zeiss Axiostar Plus is designed for brightfield and phase contrast microscopy and is an ideal introduction to modern microscopes".
Carl Zeiss describes itself as an innovative technology leader in the fields of optics, precision engineering and electronic visualisation, setting new, pioneering standards in sophisticated technology for recognising, experiencing, measuring, analysing, structuring and processing a wide spectrum of objects.
