Laboratory redevelopment to increase food testing capacity

Work is about to get underway on a redevelopment project at AsureQuality’s Food Laboratory in Auckland.

The three-year investment is intended to increase capacity and flexibility, and provide customers with confidence in AsureQuality’s commitment to our role in assuring food safety and quality in New Zealand.  

The project involves expansion of the laboratory footprint to increase the capacity and flexibility of our food testing services. The first phase is focussed on building a dedicated people hub, designed by architects, Jasmax. This will create more space in the core lab for state-of-the art automation technology, enabling greater scalability to improve sample throughput for faster turnaround times.

This expansion project follows several other recent improvements at the laboratory. These include the addition of further automation in our busy Chemistry department, and the imminent introduction of digital plate reader technology in Microbiology, with mechanical automation for plate sorting and retention / disposal.

Group Service Manager Food Testing and Laboratory Management, Michael Hodgson, says that the project is not only about realising productivity gains, but is also an important factor in continuing to attract and retain the best people, and ultimately ensure a long-term sustainable business.

Contractors, NZ Strong, began work on Monday 10 June. Testing services will be uninterrupted by the development work, and customers can expect to receive updates as the work progresses.