Waters Corp. Announces UPLC System January 25, 2010
 Waters Corp. introduced the new Waters ACQUITY UPLC H-Class System, incorporating reliable performance of ACQUITY UltraPerformance LC (UPLC) with the operational familiarity of traditional high performance liquid chromatography.
This combination of performance, simplicity and flexibility is designed to help more laboratories realize the scientific and business benefits of sub-2-micron particle column technology by making it more accessible to a range of industries, applications and operators. With systems currently installed in Waters' demonstration laboratories worldwide, the instrument is ready for customer shipping today.
"Working closely with our customers, it became obvious that the immediate next step for UPLC was to more closely link UPLC and HPLC to improve data quality, increase sample throughput, and reduce cost per analysis across a broader range of markets and entire enterprises," says Art Caputo, President of the Waters Division. "Based on conversations with some of our key accounts, the introduction of the ACQUITY UPLC H-Class is the right system at the right time."
Beyond improving chromatographic performance when running UPLC columns as well as fully supporting HPLC columns, the system closely emulates HPLC workflows making method transfer from HPLC to UPLC easier or more seamless. Furthermore, the introduction of the system allows organizations to standardize their approach to LC with a common technology platform that makes the future transition from HPLC to UPLC-based methods straightforward and practical - from product discovery through to product release testing.
"Having proven itself in the market under the most rigorous situations for the most demanding applications, UPLC technology has experienced a prolific adoption rate," continues Caputo. "So much so that today's HPLC users, many of whom are currently unable to or prefer not to change their approach to LC, are looking for the benefits from UPLC technology, but on their terms."
The answer to achieving UPLC performance and benefits without fundamentally modifying HPLC workflows came in the form of the ACQUITY UPLC H-Class' quaternary solvent manager (QSM) and sample manager (SM-FTN), with flow-through needle design, thereby mimicking traditional HPLC system workflow. The featured QSM and SM-FTN on the instrument combine to enable the chromatographer to achieve high separation efficiency using sub-2-micron particle separations at high pressures. The result is seamless upgrade of chromatographic capabilities.
Backed by a range of ACQUITY UPLC columns that include three particle substrates in 11 chemistries, all of which are scaleable between HPLC and UPLC particle sizes, the system’s introduction is complemented by ACQUITY UPLC Method Transfer kits. These kits contain both UPLC and HPLC columns, with specified chemistry, and an ACQUITY UPLC Columns Calculator, all designed to take the guess work out of method transfer. In addition, Method Development and Method Validation kits are available to ensure efficient method development and robustness.
Source: Waters Corp.
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