March 12, 2007

Geospiza
Rob Arnold
President

How has your company adapted and responded to the changing economic climate in the past five years when so many others companies did not?

Geospiza takes a long-term view of the life science market. Our goal over the last three years has been to work closely with clients to make sure we understand their business, how they use our software today, and how they plan to use our software in coming years. Over that period, we added significant functionality to our software to meet their needs, improve our value to them, and sustain our business. We also put particular emphasis on understanding our own business before securing outside capital to grow the business. We believe our deep understanding of the market and applications for our technology gives us a significant advantage as we expand our business. 

What is your vision for the future of the life sciences market over the next several years?

We view life sciences as several specialized sub-markets. Our area of expertise is software to automate genetic analysis. Genetic tools are now routinely used in molecular diagnostics, bio-manufacturing, research and discovery, DNA service labs (clinical trials) and identification and testing (food safety, forensics, paternity testing, etc.). Each application can generate enormous amounts of data. We see substantial growth opportunity to serve these markets, particularly those that will fall under regulatory review. To meet this demand, Geospiza implemented a Quality Management System for our software development process. Our ability to serve our clients’ regulated applications is very important to our long-term growth.

What products and services does your company provide and what special capabilities do they offer the life sciences market?

Geospiza is the leading provider of automated genetic analysis software used in molecular diagnostics, bio-manufacturing, research and discovery, DNA service labs (clinical trials) and identification and testing (food safety, forensics, paternity testing, etc.). Our market advantage lies in our 10 plus years’ industry experience and ability to support both regulated and non-regulated customers. Geospiza’s modular software architecture allows us to deliver tailored solutions for scientific data management (SDMS), laboratory information management (LIMS), analytics information management (AIMS) and business information management (BIMS) as individual components or packaged into a single integrated system.

Partnerships are an effective way to track life science advances and ensure that your company delivers timely products and services. Which life sciences companies or organizations have you partnered with or invested in and why?

Partnerships are central to Geospiza’s strategy. A key partner for us is Applied Biosystems. Applied Biosystems does an exceptional job of understanding both near-term and long-term needs of their instrumentation clients. They are the dominant supplier of key sequencing, fragment analysis and RT-PCR technologies. We work closely with their product and service teams to make sure we understand how our clients can maximize the full power, utility and value of these market-leading technologies.

What are your most exciting products and initiatives in development, and how will they improve life science research?

Our most exciting products and initiatives in development are all about driving improvements and simplifying the way our customers use our software. An example of this is a customer that uses our software to manufacture a personalized cancer vaccine. They’ve told us that our software reduced 25 percent of the labor involved in analyzing patient data. This was from one “turn” of the software automation knob. The project has already generated dozens of ideas on how we can further improve their laboratory processes. Our software has now become an integral part of bringing this new treatment to market cost-effectively. This type of work is enormously gratifying to our entire company. 

Where do you see your company in five years?

Geospiza continues to deepen its expertise in statistical process control, analytic automation, laboratory process and regulatory compliance. We see Geospiza’s key value as matching expert advice with software automation to bring new and exciting genetic tools from the lab to the commercial market place. Geospiza sees significant opportunities for growth in these markets in the next five years and is committed to building our leadership role in this space.