Re: ABD Service (fwd)

Terry Mulcahy (TMulcahy@salud.unm.edu)
Thu, 04 Mar 1999 09:15:03 -0700

Personally, I don't use ABI reagents either, and I have very little trouble with my machine. It always struck me as odd, to say the least, when ABI said use their chemicals, (because other chemicals may not be correctly filtered), when the acetonitrile and ammonia solution were never from ABI. I use Glen reagents, and Glen will repair the valve blocks if their chemicals cause them to fail. I've used the CPG columns in the past also. I don't think ABI has ever insisted on using their columns, except when trying to troubleshoot poor yields.
Terry Mulcahy / Center for Genetics in Medicine, Univ. of New Mexico

>>> Ombudsman account for AECOM <ombudsman@aecom.yu.edu> 03/04/99 06:30AM >>>

Not only have we noticed a difference in service and attitude, but it has
"infected" what used to be the Perceptive Biosystems people.
It used to be when you called Perceptive, you talked to a human. Now you
get the ABI push button nightmare.
These types of incidents led us to Perceptive when we were looking for a
new DNA synthesizer. Perceptive was wonderful. No lies or empty promises.
We made sure that we would not be harassed or threatened into using their
reagents (which I have been told is illegal).They even helped us find
other sources. We felt comfortable leaving reagents from another source on
the instrument when a service person came to the lab.
Now that these same service people work for ABD, they are telling me that
using other reagents will void my expensive service (not reagent)
agreement. I cannot pay $6.00 per column from ABD when CPG sells it for
$2.00 (and it is easier to use!)

P.S. My last service call was because of a bad ABD reagent which shut down
all of my machines.