BUSINESS AREA

Business area Labtech

The Labtech business area provides products, solutions and services in fields such as diagnostics, biomedical research and laboratory analysis. Customers include hospitals, research laboratories, pharmaceutical companies, and food industry groups, primarily in the Nordics and rest of Europe.

Labtech subsidiaries work closely with customers and suppliers through highly developed local sales and service organisations. The companies have strong market positions and highly qualified personnel.
The business area offers products and solutions, including equipment, consumables and reagents, that are used to diagnose disease or to conduct research. It also provides training and technical service to facilitate effective equipment use. As a distributor, we have the possibility to respond quickly to a changing market and to deliver customer-tailored solutions. About 75 percent of sales originated from public procurement processes in 2021.

Market trend in 2021

Growth in the Labtech business area was strong in 2021, primarily due to high sales of COVID-19 products as well as by increased demand for non-COVID goods.

The pandemic’s third wave increased infection spread, which drove up sales and earnings for the Labtech business area. Testing operations were ongoing in all countries and our diagnostics companies sold large volumes of PCR tests for COVID. The companies’ ability to offer solutions from multiple suppliers to assure customers' access to products became a competitive advantage. The spread of infection fell sharply throughout Europe in the end of the second quarter as vaccination rates increased, resulting in a gradual decrease in sales of COVID-19 related products.

A fourth pandemic wave in the autumn brought a return to widescale testing in the Nordic region and the Labtech diagnostics companies returned to sell large volumes of PCR tests. Demand for our products was high, especially on our patient-friendly PCR platform that provides a result within 20 minutes. Customers included public and private actors in a range of industries, including offshore and airports. By contrast, turnover decreased in Central and Eastern Europe due to lower test volumes and reduced COVID test prices. Future sales of tests are entirely depending on how the pandemic develops in terms of new mutations and the different governments’ sampling requirements. Despite challenges arising from the heavy focus on COVID, Labtech companies also recorded higher sales of other tests on their installed base of molecular and microbiological instruments. Sales of blood gas analysis reagents remained high throughout the year.

Labtech’s research companies reported higher sales, with an increase in demand for laboratory reagents used for cell therapy and cancer immunology. A strong scientific focus on virus research and solutions for gene sequencing of new COVID-19 mutations increased revenue. Sales of own-brand advanced instruments performed well, especially in Europe, the US, and Asia outside China. However, the public health restrictions implemented during the fourth pandemic wave forced the closure of research laboratories in several countries and prompted a number of customers to delay planned purchases.

In September 2021, the Benelux-based Bio-Connect Group joined the Labtech business area. The acquisition strengthens our presence in north-west Europe and creates increased collaboration opportunities with other Labtech companies.

LABTECH’S STRENGTHS

• Dedicated and highly qualified employees with many years of experience in their segment
• High-quality products, service, training programmes and advisory services
• Long-term collaboration with leading suppliers and exclusive distribution rights
• Strong technical service organisation with local support