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
Beckman Coulter
| Company | Beckman Coulter |
|---|---|
| Name of instrument | AU5800 |
| Contact | Doug Lee |
| City, State | Brea, CA |
| Phone | 800-526-3821 |
| Website | |
| Type of instrument | chemistry |
| List price/First year sold in U.S. | —/2011 |
| Targeted hospital bed size/Targeted test volume | —/annual: ≥ 1.5 million |
| Company manufactures instrument | yes (also sold by McKesson, Henry Schein, Medline, Thermo Fisher Scientific) |
| Other models in this family of analyzers | DxC 700 AU, AU480 |
| No. of units in clinical use in U.S./Outside U.S. (countries) | — |
| Dimensions (H × W × D)/Instrument footprint | 50 × 168 × 62 in./72 sq. ft. |
| Weight empty/Weight fully loaded | 2,300–6,375 lbs. (model dependent)/— |
| No. of different measured assays onboard simultaneously | 54–216 (54–216 can be run and calibrated at one time) (model dependent) |
| No. of user-definable (open chemistry) channels | 18 (76 can be active simultaneously) |
| Test throughput per hour/Assay run time | 2,000–9,800/8 min. 30 sec. |
| No. of direct ion-selective electrode channels | 3 |
| Detection methods | photometry, potentiometry |
| Stat time until completion/specimen throughput for Ion-selective electrode | 4.5 min./model dependent |
| Stat time until completion/specimen throughput for Ion-selective electrode basic metabolic panel | 9 min./model dependent |
| Stat time until completion/specimen throughput for Ion-selective electrode complete metabolic panel | 9 min. 20 sec./model dependent |
| Typical time delay from ordering stat test until aspiration of sample | 1 min. |
| Fully automated microplate immunoassay system | — |
| Methodologies supported | — |
| Separation methodologies | — |
| 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 | yes (4°–12°C)/yes |
| Reagent lot tracking/Reagent inventory | yes/yes |
| Reagent form/Reagents barcoded | liquid chemistry (open reagent system)/yes |
| Separate reagent pack for each specimen/for each test run | no/no |
| Walkaway capability/Walkaway duration | yes/400 specimens |
| Design of sample-handling system | rack |
| Uses washable cuvettes/Uses disposable cuvettes | yes/no |
| Min.–max. sample volume that can be aspirated at one time | 1–25 µL |
| Min. reaction volume/Min. specimen volume/Min. dead volume | 120 µL/41 µL or 1 µL with 4 mm above gel barrier/50 µL |
| Dedicated pediatric sample cup | yes (dead volume: 50 µL) |
| Primary tube sampling | yes |
| Accommodates most standard tube sizes/Accepts nonstandard tube sizes | yes/yes (primary, secondary tubes: 11.5–16 × 55–102 mm; nested micro cups) |
| Pierces caps on primary tubes | no |
| Protects against probe collision | yes |
| Detects clots/liquid level/short sample | yes/yes/yes |
| Detection or quantitation for hemolysis, icterus, lipemia, clots | detection and quantitation for hemolysis, icterus, lipemia, clots |
| Dilutes patient samples onboard/Susceptibility to carryover | yes (can be programmed to perform dilutions prior to analysis)/0.001 parts per million |
| Automatic rerun capability | yes |
| 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 | yes (calibrants are not stored onboard)/yes (recommended avg. frequency: assay dependent) |
| Typical calibration frequency for ISE/therapeutic drugs/drugs of abuse/general chemistries/immunoassays | 1 day/14 days/14–20 days/30 days/— |
| Automatic programmable start/Automatic programmable shutdown | yes (90 sec. warm-up time)/yes |
| Onboard real-time QC/Onboard software capability to review QC | yes/yes |
| Supports multiple QC lot numbers per analyte | yes |
| Waste management | direct to drain |
| Sample barcode-reading capability/Autodiscrimination | yes (Interleaved 2 of 5, Codabar, Code 39, Code 128)/yes |
| Lab can control analyzer from remote computer | yes |
| Instrument can diagnose its own malfunctions | yes (operator intervention required to order parts) |
| System malfunctions can be diagnosed via remote monitoring | yes |
| UPS backup power supply | yes |
| Data-management capability/LIS or EHR systems interfaced | onboard/Oracle Health, Antrim, CCA, Chemware, Dawning Technologies, SCC, Dynamic Healthcare, Antek, more |
| LIS interface provided/Bidirectional interface capability | yes (included in instrument price)/yes (broadcast download and host query) |
| Modem servicing provided/Service engineer on-site response time | yes/within 24 hrs. |
| Mean time between failures | 1.2 down service calls per year (displays error codes for troubleshooting) |
| Average scheduled maintenance time by lab personnel | daily: 8 min.; weekly: 15 min.; monthly: 45 min. |
| Maintenance records kept onboard for user/vendor | yes/no |
| Maintenance training demonstration module onboard | yes |
| Training included with purchase/Avg. time for basic user training | yes (2 training slots)/3 days (combination of vendor and customer sites [includes vendor training and in-lab operator training]) |
| Advanced operator training/Extra charge for follow-up or advanced training | yes (at vendor site)/yes |
| Warranty provided/Cost of annual service contract (24 h/7 d) | yes (1 year)/— |
| Distinguishing features (supplied by company) | standardization across the AU family of chemistry analyzers; lower total cost of ownership due to fewer consumables and concentrated reagents; most common parts can be changed in three steps in less than 60 seconds and without tools |