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Dresden-based start-up Better Basics Laborbedarf facilitates research work in laboratories

TGFS

01. Juni 2021

This business idea was truly „born out of necessity“. Through their research work at the Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research Dresden, chemists Dr. Marcus Heinze and Dr. Sebastian Stein knew firsthand the plight of every laboratory employee. Workplaces in research are expensive to set up and therefore tend to be small in size. Fluid work is often hindered by samples in fragile glass vessels, as well as pipettes and other instruments that have to fit in a confined space next to the lab equipment. Due to the inevitable clutter in the workplace, accidents are not uncommon. Until now. The two fellow sufferers from the Leibniz Institute have made a virtue out of necessity and developed an individually compilable organization system for laboratories that not only increases work safety but also efficiency. The special feature: The individual components are manufactured directly in Dresden using a 3D printing process. In order to make their advanced products commercially viable, they brought in business management expertise in the form of Mario Schneider and founded Better Basics Laborbedarf GmbHin October 2019. They recently faced their first round of financing, which was co-led by TGFS Technologiegründerfonds Sachsen. Together with LAUDA, the world market leader for temperature control equipment and systems, and three business angels, TGFS provided venture capital for the market launch.

The core of Better Basics Laborbedarf’s product portfolio is the SmartRack©. This is a modular organization system with several rails that can be equipped with a variety of storage modules, such as holders for syringe bottles, pipettes or round-bottom flasks, as well as storage boxes with compartments for test tubes, microreaction vessels or centrifuge tubes. The added value that TGFS sees in this novel approach to basic laboratory equipment is described by investment manager Martin Liebsch: „The founding team of Better Basics Laborbedarf is in the growing segment of additive manufacturing with a scalable product and solves daily problems of scientists with a smart, simple approach. The foundation for the technological success was laid through many years of research at the Leibniz Institute for Polymer Research in Dresden and confirmed by several user feedbacks and long-term tests.“ The team’s expertise in the field of plastics, which is virtually innate, enables the development of products that are 3D printable on the one hand and meet the specific requirements of their users on the other. Depending on the intended use, starting materials with special properties are selected. Physicians, for example, need heat-resistant plastics in order to be able to heat samples to high temperatures to kill bacteria, while chemists are particularly interested in plastics that are resistant to acids and bases.

According to Martin Liebsch of TGFS, in addition to the founding team, it was „above all the competencies in the area of the strategic co-investor LAUDA and the business angels“ that contributed significantly to the investment decision. With LAUDA, an established manufacturer of innovative temperature control technology has joined the group of shareholders. „A central aspect of LAUDA’s innovation strategy is the targeted cooperation with innovative, young companies that complement and further advance our core competence, temperature control,“ explains Dr. Gunther Wobser, managing partner of LAUDA. „With Better Basics Laborbedarf, we have once again found what we are looking for and can offer customer-specific solutions to the laboratory market. In addition, we expect to gain valuable insights in the field of 3D printing for the production of our temperature control devices,“ says Dr. Gunther Wobser. Better Basics Laborbedarf’s cap table continues to be expanded by three business angels who invest out of personal motivation: Andreas Baumann, (former managing director of the technology group Heraeus and start-up advisor), Prof. Dr. Dr. Strugala (specialist for business and product development and internationalization with a pharmaceutical background) and Markus Richter (various management activities, marketing expert) support the Better Basics Laborbedarf team with their individual competencies and contacts.

With its 3D printing process, the Dresden-based start-up is entering a growth market that is developing and differentiating itself extremely dynamically. The company is currently in the process of further expanding its printer park and thus its on-site production capacities. In-house production allows the founders to produce „on demand“ in a wide range of sizes and thus save on storage costs. The young company is already equipped to cover all stages of product development completely in-house. This includes the idea and product development, through the production of prototypes and user tests, to series production. This enables development times to be significantly shortened and products to be brought to market quickly. This is how, among other things, the patent-pending holder mechanism for glass flasks was created, which allows secure fixation with just one hand. Since the start of sales in August 2020, Better Basics Laborbedarf has already been able to win well-known customers from industry and research for its filing system. With the new financial input, the start-up now wants to build up its own sales team and specifically also drive forward its expansion abroad, which is an essential part of its growth strategy. The long-term goal is to establish SmartRack© and the associated organizational aids as the standard in laboratories worldwide — people and technology in Dresden are literally working at full speed to achieve this.

Deal team TGFS
Martin Liebsch and Tobias Voigt

The article was published by the MBG Sachsen — management partner in TGFS.
Bildquelle: Better Basics Laborbedarf GmbH