The LightDeck COVID-19 total antibody test device [Photo courtesy of LightDeck Diagnostics]
LightDeck Diagnostics has selected GS Plastic Optics to make optical components for its new COVID-19 antibody testing platform.
Boulder, Colorado-based LightDeck developed a screening platform to deliver results as quickly as five minutes for SARS-CoV-2 ultra-rapid antigen and COVID-19 total antibody tests, using a laser waveguide with a consumable cartridge for each testing sample.
Rochester, New York-based GS Plastic Optics (GSPO) will be the lead source for that highly-engineered laser waveguide, requiring a $5 million expansion in Rochester for an 8,000-square-foot addition to the injection molding facility and additional presses, tooling and ancillary equipment.
Funds for the GSPO expansion will come out of a $35 million federal contract to expand LightDeck’s monthly test production capacity from 50,000 to 1 million by fall 2022.
“During the several years we have worked together with GSPO, we have built a trusting, collaborative relationship with their engineering and production teams,” LightDeck CEO Nick Traggis said in a news release. ”Their impeccable attention to detail aligns very well with our own product strategy, and they stand as a powerful domestic partner to support the scale of our testing capabilities.”
“Today more than ever, our goal is to support the medical community in their great strides to improve the healthcare for our nation,” GSPO CEO Andy Germanow said in the news release. “Particularly during this pandemic, point-of-care testing is at the forefront of our minds, and we are dedicated to supplying precision components that are built to spec.”