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Biotest Diagnostics and Group Services for America's Blood Centers Sign Multi-Year Agreement for Blood Bank Products

Posted on: Thursday, 16 October 2008, 09:00 CDT

Biotest Diagnostics Corporation (Biotest) and Group Services for America's Blood Centers (GSABC), a cooperative wholly owned by America's Blood Centers (ABC), announced today their multi-year supply agreement for Biotest blood bank products including the Biotest traditional blood bank reagents and the TANGO(R) optimo Automated Blood Bank System, reagents, consumables and service. Biotest is a subsidiary of Biotest AG, a worldwide supplier of manual and automated solutions to the blood bank industry since 1946.

"We are pleased that GSABC has selected Biotest as a business partner," said Bill Weiss, President, Biotest. "Our goal is to provide high-quality, cost-effective blood bank testing solutions for hospital transfusion services, donor centers and commercial laboratories."

The agreement will provide members of GSABC with access to Biotest's complete line of both traditional and automated blood bank products. Recently licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the traditional blood bank reagents include monoclonal rare antisera, ABO/Rh reagents, reagent red cells, antihuman-globulin, controls and potentiators. The Biotest TANGO optimo Automated Blood Bank System is already in use in many GSABC facilities to primarily perform donor antibody screening and for ABO/Rh testing. Additional assays, such as weak D, antibody identification, Rh and Kell phenotyping, crossmatching and direct antiglobulin testing - which recently received FDA clearance for use on the TANGO - will increase the utility of the instrument. The flexibility and reliability of the TANGO optimo also make it an ideal instrument for GSABC members' reference labs and those within the lab performing transfusion service testing.

Susan Claffey, GSABC Director of Contracting said, "We continue to monitor the industry for new suppliers that enable our blood centers to provide the safest, most cost-effective blood products possible. We are delighted to welcome Biotest Diagnostics as a new supplier to our market. GSABC is committed to providing our members with high-value choices for the reagents and equipment they need at a competitive price."

About Biotest Diagnostics Corporation

Headquartered in Rockaway, N.J., Biotest Diagnostics Corporation is the U.S. subsidiary of Biotest AG. Biotest supports two product groups: Laboratory Diagnostics and Industrial Microbiology. An innovator of immunology, the Diagnostics Group spearheads the development of traditional and automated solutions for transplant and transfusion diagnostics. The Microbiology Group assists customers in the monitoring and maintaining of quality assurance programs in their industries while also providing a one-stop shop for environmental monitoring needs, including a complete line of prepared culture media and solutions for air sampling, particle counting and surface testing. For more information about Biotest's blood typing and testing solutions, call 800-522-0090, e-mail info@biotestusa.com or visit Biotest at www.biotestusa.com.

About GSABC

Group Services for America's Blood Centers is a cooperative wholly owned by America's Blood Centers, providing group purchasing enterprise expertise and resource sharing services to ABC members. GSABC is committed to member involvement and to providing its members meaningful benefit through resource management and financial returns. With an independent board of directors, GSABC is a member directed organization.

TANGO(R) is a trademark of Biotest AG.

Source: Business Wire

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