Start Small to Move Fast: The Benefits of the 5 L DynaDrive Benchtop Bioreactor

In the fast-paced world of bioprocessing, innovation and efficiency are key to staying ahead of the competition. For growing biotech companies and startups, the ability to quickly optimize processes and bring products to market can make the difference between success and failure. One vital strategy for achieving these goals is starting small with benchtop bioreactors.

Efficiency at benchtop

Benchtop bioreactors provide a cost-effective, flexible, and efficient platform for process development (PD). One of the key early decisions to make is to decide between the traditional glass or single-use bioreactors. The former requires rigorous cleaning and sterilization, increasing the risk of contamination and operational downtime. Agile biotech companies favor efficiency and effectiveness, and thus often opt for the pre-sterilized, ready-to-use bags as they offer rapid set up, lower contamination risk and little maintenance, while still enabling the highest product quality.

Single-use benchtop bioreactors allow scientists to conduct multiple experiments simultaneously, gather valuable data, and refine processes without the financial burden and risks associated with large-scale operations.

By leveraging the advantages of benchtop bioreactors, biotech companies can accelerate their research and development cycles, optimize resource utilization, and support economic viability.

In this blog, we will delve into some of the benefits of starting small and moving fast with benchtop solutions.

High performance and low maintenance

Benchtop solutions, such as the 5 L DynaDrive Single-Use Bioreactor (S.U.B.), can offer significant time savings compared to traditional glass bioreactors. Thanks to the elimination of time-consuming and labor-intensive cleaning and sterilization steps, single-use systems offer a more efficient and easier to maintain option compared to traditional glass alternatives. Furthermore, the ability to run smaller scale and more cost-effective experiments enable to test multiple conditions at the fraction of the cost for raw materials and reagents used.

Figure 1. 5 L DynaDrive Single-Use Bioreactor with a monitor and controller.

Increased speed and productivity

The ability to work with smaller volumes and simpler set up contributes to rapid turnaround times for experiments. Consequently, development cycles can be shortened, leading to faster progress in PD optimization.

Traditional glass bioreactors require extensive setup and turnaround times, including pressure testing, assembly, autoclaving, and cleaning. The 5 L DynaDrive S.U.B., with its factory-sterilized BioProcess Container (BPC), eliminates these steps, saving up to 20% workflow duration, thus allowing for quicker setup, execution, and completion of experiments for increased speed and productivity.

Figure 2. Easy set up and low maintenance of 5 L DynaDrive bioreactor to help you save time.

Supporting your scalability

One of the key challenges with traditional glass bioreactors is their lack of scalability. The 5 L DynaDrive S.U.B. addresses this issue with its turndown ratio of 5:1, allowing scaling of experiments from 1 L to 5 L without replacing the vessel. This scalability extends to large-scale production, as the design of the small-scale bioreactor mirrors that of larger systems like the 500 L and 5,000 L DynaDrive S.U.B.s (Figure 3). This versatility helps PD labs optimize operations and prepare for commercial-scale production.

Figure 3. DynaDrive S.U.B. scalable range from benchtop to commercialization. Scalable reactor design (geometry, impeller) and same film from 1 L working volume through to 5,000 L.

Process consistency and workflow integration

In many cases switching between different solutions during PD can create obstacles and a lot of guesswork, slowing down the process. Our benchtop solution uses a bioprocessing film called Aegis designed for maximum performance. Moreover, Aegis integration across the entire bioprocessing workflow, including all DynaDrive bioreactors, mixers, and other bioprocess container bags (BPCs), can simplify validation and contribute to consistent and reliable performance at every stage. This can help you transition to commercial scale in the future.

Figure 4. 5 L DynaDrive bag uses Aegis bioprocessing film that also present in all our DynaDrive range, mixers and BPCs for easy workflow integration.

Help minimize risk with high reliability

Testing various conditions at a smaller scale helps minimize the risk of costly mistakes before scaling to a larger, more expensive system. Even with stringent cleaning and sterilization protocols, glass bioreactors can have contamination rates as high as 17%. The factory-sterilized BPC of the 5 L DynaDrive S.U.B. addresses these risks, facilitating a sterile environment for cell culture. This reduction in contamination risk translates to more reliable, lower risk experimental outcomes, crucial for more reliable PD.

Small footprint to maximize your lab space

Optimizing space is critical, especially for rapidly growing biotech companies. Our benchtop solution is designed with a compact footprint, making it easy to integrate into your existing lab. This efficient design does not require a large, dedicated space, allowing you to maximize your lab’s operational capacity without compromising on performance (Figure 5).

Figure 5. Compact design of 5 L DynaDrive S.U.B. for easy set up when limited space is available. 

Conclusion

The combination of higher productivity, speed, and scalability makes the 5 L DynaDrive S.U.B. an attractive solution for PD optimization for new biotechs. Our technology can help you to achieve faster turnaround times with a smaller environmental footprint, all while maintaining high standards for product quality and consistency. Starting small with benchtop bioreactors is a strategic approach that can enable your growing company to be agile, move fast, optimize resource utilization, and accelerate your pathway to commercialization.

Related resources

• Download infographic: Reimage scalability with 5L DynaDrive S.U.B. 
• Read article: Transform process development with the 5L DynaDrive S.U.B.
• Learn more about our solutions for growing biotech companies
• Learn more about 5 L DynaDrive S.U.B.