Isolytix - New Agent for New Zealand and Australia

We are pleased to announce that Ken Neal (Isolytix Ltd, Dunedin, New Zealand) has been appointed as our agent for Australia and New Zealand. We have known and worked with Ken for many years. He has been working in the field of Analytical Chemistry for 20 years since graduating from Sunderland Polytechnic ( now university) with a BSc (hons) in Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences. Previously he has worked in Industry, the health service, academia and private laboratory settings

Ken has been in the field of stable isotopes for the last 10 years starting with four years at Oxford University, then to laboratory manager at Bradford University stable isotope facility before heading to New Zealand where Ken worked at the Institute of geological and Nuclear Sciences before becoming laboratory manager at Isotrace, a private light stable isotope laboratory in Dunedin.

Ken has now started his own company, Isolytix Ltd which is based in Dunedin , New Zealand. This new venture will benefit both companies and its customers by providing a link between Iso-Analytical Ltd and those requiring stable isotope services in the Southern hemisphere. Isolytix will be able to ensure that samples reach Iso-Analytical on time with the minimum of fuss, track their progress during the analysis, report the results back to you and take care of all the associated administration and paperwork.

Contact details for Isolytix Ltd are:

Ken Neal
Director
Isolytix
Dunedin
New Zealand
www.isolytix.com

+64 021 824388

2007 Inter Laboratory Comparisons

As part of our quality system we participate in inter laboratory comparisons. One such scheme is the 'Food analysis using Isotopic Techniques - Proficiency Testing Scheme'. The first sample we analysed in 2007 was a wheat flour which required measurement of both carbon-13 and nitrogen-15. The charts below show the 'Z scores' of each laboratory. Essentially the Z score indicates how close a laboratory came to achieving the 'robust mean value' (excludes outliers) during the test. The closer your value is to zero, the closer you were to the robust mean. Laboratories with a Z score near to zero are near the middle of the chart.

Our Z score was close to zero for both the carbon-13 and nitrogen-15 measurements. Our position in the chart is highlighted by the red block (we are identified as lab1 for this study)





Later in 2007 we were involved in an inter laboratory comparison for the measurement of carbon-13 in honey. The requirement here was to measure the carbon-13 signature of the honey as a whole and to measure the carbon-13 of protein that we were required to extract from it. This is exactly the same as the 'carbon-13 honey test' that we provide clients with on a regular basis.

Again Iso-Analytical achieved close to zero Z scores which are identified by the red blocks in the charts below but this time we were allocated the code of lab2.





The excellent Z scores we achieved in these tests are testament to both the accuracy of our analytical methods and the laboratory standards we use during the analyses.

Where are we?

When you send your samples off to us for analysis and have written our address on the parcel, have you ever wondered out of curiosity where the samples actually end up? Well, if you load up 'Google maps' and type in 'Iso-Analytical' you will be able to see where exactly our lab is based.




Happy New Year to all of our customers old and new.