Webinars and Sponsored Roundtables — Register Now
Tuesday, July 21, 2026, 11:00-11:30 AM CT
- Explain how transparency and manufacturer partnerships improve quality, consistency, and decision-making confidence in specimen management.
- Evaluate blood collection tubes beyond cost and commodity assumptions, incorporating clinical impact and risk into decision-making.
- Assess the potential risk points when using a blood collection device that has not been cleared for a specific purpose.
Roundtable presenters Nick Fingland, PhD, PMP, Senior Director, R&D Operations and Science, BD, and Chris Farnsworth, PhD, D(ABCC), Section Head of Clinical Chemistry, Professor of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine.
Moderated by: Bob McGonnagle, Publisher, CAP TODAY
Wednesday, July 29, 2026, 1:00-2:00 PM ET
Learn about digital pathology technology that is future-ready, yet practical for today’s
laboratory needs.
Webinar presenters Scott Hammond, Senior Systems Consultant, Digital Pathology Division, Wexner Medical Center, Department of Pathology, and Ursula Hofer, Imaging Technologist, Pathology Digital Imaging Lab, Wexner Medical Center, Department of Pathology, and Sandra Banky, PA(ASCP), Director of Operations, Wexner Medical Center, Department of Pathology.
Moderated by: Bob McGonnagle, Publisher, CAP TODAY
Subspecialties
Interactive Product Guides
Product Spotlight
Aesku
| Company | Aesku |
|---|---|
| Name of instrument | HELIOS HTC |
| Contact | Amanda Aulicino |
| City, State | Des Plaines, IL |
| Phone | 844-544-5044 |
| Website | |
| Type of instrument | immunoassay |
| List price/First year sold in U.S. | $175,000/2017 |
| Targeted hospital bed size/Targeted test volume | 200–1,000/daily: > 25; monthly: > 500; annual: > 5,000 |
| Company manufactures instrument | yes (also sold by Thermo Fisher Scientific) |
| Other models in this family of analyzers | HELMED, HELIA |
| No. of units in clinical use in U.S./Outside U.S. (countries) | > 60/> 500 (Europe, North and South America, Asia, Africa, more) |
| Dimensions (H × W × D)/Instrument footprint | 22.5 × 25.6 × 29.6 in./5.25 sq. ft. |
| Weight empty/Weight fully loaded | 73 lbs./— |
| No. of different measured assays onboard simultaneously | 4 (4 can be run and calibrated at one time) |
| No. of user-definable (open chemistry) channels | — |
| Test throughput per hour/Assay run time | — |
| No. of direct ion-selective electrode channels | — |
| Detection methods | — |
| Stat time until completion/specimen throughput for Ion-selective electrode | — |
| Stat time until completion/specimen throughput for Ion-selective electrode basic metabolic panel | — |
| Stat time until completion/specimen throughput for Ion-selective electrode complete metabolic panel | — |
| Typical time delay from ordering stat test until aspiration of sample | — |
| Fully automated microplate immunoassay system | — |
| Methodologies supported | fluorescence, indirect fluorescent antibody |
| Separation methodologies | coated IFA slide |
| Stat time until completion of a ß-hCG test | — |
| Stat time until completion of a cTn test | — |
| • Typical time delay from test order to aspiration of sample | — |
| Reagents refrigerated onboard/Reagents ready to use | no/yes |
| Reagent lot tracking/Reagent inventory | yes/yes |
| Reagent form/Reagents barcoded | liquid chemistry (closed reagent system)/no |
| Separate reagent pack for each specimen/for each test run | no/yes |
| Walkaway capability/Walkaway duration | yes/190 specimens or 240 tests |
| Design of sample-handling system | rack |
| Uses washable cuvettes/Uses disposable cuvettes | no/no |
| Min.–max. sample volume that can be aspirated at one time | — |
| Min. reaction volume/Min. specimen volume/Min. dead volume | —/assay dependent/tube dependent |
| Dedicated pediatric sample cup | no |
| Primary tube sampling | yes |
| Accommodates most standard tube sizes/Accepts nonstandard tube sizes | yes/yes (11–16 × 55–100 mm) |
| Pierces caps on primary tubes | no |
| Protects against probe collision | yes |
| Detects clots/liquid level/short sample | no/yes/yes |
| Detection or quantitation for hemolysis, icterus, lipemia, clots | hemolysis, icterus, lipemia, clots not available |
| Dilutes patient samples onboard/Susceptibility to carryover | yes/no carryover |
| Automatic rerun capability | no |
| Sample volume can be diluted to rerun out-of-linear-range high results | yes |
| Sample volume can be concentrated to rerun out-of-linear-range low results | yes |
| Autocalibration/Multipoint calibration supported | no (calibrants are not stored onboard)/— |
| Typical calibration frequency for ISE/therapeutic drugs/drugs of abuse/general chemistries/immunoassays | — |
| Automatic programmable start/Automatic programmable shutdown | no/no |
| Onboard real-time QC/Onboard software capability to review QC | no/yes |
| Supports multiple QC lot numbers per analyte | — |
| Waste management | — |
| Sample barcode-reading capability/Autodiscrimination | yes (Interleaved 2 of 5, UPC, Code 39, Code 128, Matrix 2/5, Code 11, EAN/JAN, more)/yes |
| Lab can control analyzer from remote computer | yes |
| Instrument can diagnose its own malfunctions | — |
| System malfunctions can be diagnosed via remote monitoring | yes |
| UPS backup power supply | yes |
| Data-management capability/LIS or EHR systems interfaced | optional add-on (HERA lab management system)/Clinisys |
| LIS interface provided/Bidirectional interface capability | no/yes (host query) |
| Modem servicing provided/Service engineer on-site response time | no/— |
| Mean time between failures | — (displays error codes for troubleshooting) |
| Average scheduled maintenance time by lab personnel | daily: 5 min.; weekly: 20 min. |
| Maintenance records kept onboard for user/vendor | no/no |
| Maintenance training demonstration module onboard | no |
| Training included with purchase/Avg. time for basic user training | yes (1 training slot)/— |
| Advanced operator training/Extra charge for follow-up or advanced training | yes/— |
| Warranty provided/Cost of annual service contract (24 h/7 d) | yes (1 year)/— |
| Distinguishing features (supplied by company) | provides all-in-one IFA ANA, ANCA, and nDNA slide processing and reading on one instrument; FDA cleared to identify seven HEp-2 patterns plus negative results; AI pattern-recognition software and endpoint titer estimation |