Automated microbial detection of E.coli and total coliforms saves lives, time and money in Australia

Australian Tamworth Environmental Laboratories have received NATA accreditation effective from 14 June 2018 to use Canadian technology from TECTA-PDS in order to automate their water testing for E. coli and Total Coliforms. The TECTA-PDS automated microbial detection system, TECTA™ B16, is the only US EPA approved automated method for drinking water compliance testing and provides the fastest time to detect while also being the easiest test to conduct. The portability and complete testing capabilities, including interpretation of results and full reports sent immediately via email, will provide lab grade quality results instantly for Tamworth Laboratories who, being in a regional area, were previously outsourcing their micro samples to an external lab and having to wait several days to receive the results, which caused operational delays for both them and their customers.

With the TECTA™ B16 instrument, supplied through TECTA-PDS’ regional distributor Thermo Fisher Scientific, Tamworth has been able to shave off a minimum of 1 day time-to-result as well as lowering shipping costs for samples. From an operational perspective, Tamworth has embraced the ease of use and limited training required for a lab technician to run aseptic microbial samples.Tim Adams, EVP TECTA-PDS says “This is a fantastic step forward in the Australian market. We are very proud to be adopted in over 35 countries and look forward to continuing to work closely together with Tamworth Laboratories and in Australia.” James Anderson, Senior Laboratory Technician at Tamworth Environmental Laboratory says “The requirement for timely microbiological analysis for drinking water was identified as a public health issue in our region and TECTA™ B16 provided the solution with the added benefits over other methodologies of rapid detection and notification.