Free Membership
Newsletter
Help
Subscribe
Sign In
Search
March 22, 2023
All times are Vienna time
Search
Subscribe
Sign In
Countries:
Africa »
Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burundi Côte d'Ivoire Ethiopia Ghana Guinea Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Mali Mauritius Morocco Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria Rwanda South Africa Sudan Tanzania The Congo Togo Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe
Asia-Pacific »
Afghanistan Australia Bangladesh Cambodia China Hong Kong SAR India Indonesia Japan Laos Malaysia Mongolia Myanmar Nepal New Zealand North Korea (DPRK) Pakistan Philippines Singapore South Korea Sri Lanka Taiwan Thailand Vietnam
Central- & Eastern Europe »
Albania Bosnia & Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Czech Rep. Estonia Georgia Hungary Kosovo Latvia Lithuania North Macedonia Montenegro Poland Romania Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Ukraine Western Balkans
Middle East »
Egypt Iran Iraq Israel Jordan Kuwait Lebanon Oman Palestinian Territories Qatar Saudi Arabia Syria Turkey United Arab Emirates Yemen
Russia & CIS »
Russia Armenia Azerbaijan Belarus Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Moldova Turkmenistan Uzbekistan
The Americas »
Argentina Bolivia Brazil Canada Central America Chile Colombia Cuba Ecuador Mexico Panama Paraguay Peru The Caribbean Uruguay Venezuela
United States
Western Europe »
Belgium Cyprus Denmark Finland France Germany Greece Iceland Ireland Italy Liechtenstein Luxembourg Malta Monaco Norway Portugal Scotland Spain Sweden Switzerland The Netherlands United Kingdom Vatican City
Business:
Economy
Economic Policies
Investing in Austria
Securities
Earnings
Foreign Trade
Deals
Legal Issues
More Business & Economics+
Politics:
Domestic
Brussels
International
Diplomacy
Companies:
Professional Services »
Banks Financial Services Real Estate Insurance Other Services
Energy »
Oil & Gas Utilities Renewables Mining
Industrials »
Construction Automotive Industrial Goods Basic Resources Chemicals Other Industrials
Transport »
Airlines & Airports Shipping Rail Road
Retail & Consumer
Health Care
Technology
Telecoms
Media
Tourism
Other
Organizations:
Diplomatic Missions
International Organizations
Other
People:
Executives
Politicians
Diplomats
Entrepreneurs
Other
Lifestyle & Travel:
Culture
Travel
Personal Real Estate
Health
Food & Drink
Luxury Goods
More+
More+:
Events
Photo Galleries
Videos
Classifieds
Work & Careers
More+
Home
Countries
Business
Politics
Diplomacy
Companies
Organizations
People
Lifestyle & Travel
More+
Africa
Algeria
Angola
Benin
Botswana
Burundi
Côte d'Ivoire
Ethiopia
Ghana
Guinea
Kenya
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Mali
Mauritius
Morocco
Mozambique
Namibia
Niger
Nigeria
Rwanda
South Africa
Sudan
Tanzania
The Congo
Togo
Tunisia
Uganda
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Asia-Pacific
Afghanistan
Australia
Bangladesh
Cambodia
China
Hong Kong SAR
India
Indonesia
Japan
Laos
Malaysia
Mongolia
Myanmar
Nepal
New Zealand
North Korea (DPRK)
Pakistan
Philippines
Singapore
South Korea
Sri Lanka
Taiwan
Thailand
Vietnam
Central- & Eastern Europe
Albania
Bosnia & Herzegovina
Bulgaria
Croatia
Czech Rep.
Estonia
Georgia
Hungary
Kosovo
Latvia
Lithuania
North Macedonia
Montenegro
Poland
Romania
Serbia
Slovakia
Slovenia
Ukraine
Western Balkans
Middle East
Egypt
Iran
Iraq
Israel
Jordan
Kuwait
Lebanon
Oman
Palestinian Territories
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
Syria
Turkey
United Arab Emirates
Yemen
Russia & CIS
Russia
Armenia
Azerbaijan
Belarus
Kazakhstan
Kyrgyzstan
Moldova
Turkmenistan
Uzbekistan
The Americas
Argentina
Bolivia
Brazil
Canada
Central America
Chile
Colombia
Cuba
Ecuador
Mexico
Panama
Paraguay
Peru
The Caribbean
Uruguay
Venezuela
United States
Western Europe
Belgium
Cyprus
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Iceland
Ireland
Italy
Liechtenstein
Luxembourg
Malta
Monaco
Norway
Portugal
Scotland
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
The Netherlands
United Kingdom
Vatican City
Economy
Economic Policies
Investing in Austria
Securities
Earnings
Foreign Trade
Deals
Legal Issues
More Business & Economics+
Domestic
Brussels
International
Professional Services
Banks
Financial Services
Real Estate
Insurance
Other Services
Energy
Oil & Gas
Utilities
Renewables
Mining
Industrials
Construction
Automotive
Industrial Goods
Basic Resources
Chemicals
Other Industrials
Transport
Airlines & Airports
Shipping
Rail
Road
Retail & Consumer
Health Care
Technology
Telecoms
Media
Tourism
Other
Diplomatic Missions
International Organizations
Other
Executives
Politicians
Diplomats
Entrepreneurs
Other
Culture
Travel
Personal Real Estate
Health
Food & Drink
Luxury Goods
More+
Events
Photo Galleries
Videos
Classifieds
Work & Careers
More+
Latest News
Ukrainian War
Covid in Austria
USA in Vienna
UK in Vienna
Russia in Vienna
China in Vienna
Iran in Vienna
UN
OSCE
IAEA
OPEC
Sponsored Content
Tweet
Share

City of Vienna Partner Lab Massively Expands Covid-19 Laboratory

More+ › More+ ♦ Published: December 1, 2021; 22:58 ♦ (Vindobona)
Sponsored Content

The Lifebrain laboratory, which partners with the City of Vienna, is undergoing a massive expansion on its COVID-19 laboratory. This expansion comes just weeks after an unfair competition lawsuit brought against Lifebrain by the Vienna Medical Association was dismissed. Read about Lifebrain's lab expansion and legal issues.

Lifebrain's laboratory can now test for the new coronavirus Omicron variant. / Picture: © Lifebrain COVID Labor GmbH / Philipp Lipiarski & Peter Hautzinger

Lifebrain, the company currently responsible for an overwhelming share of the COVID-19 testing in Austria, will massively expand its laboratory location at Klinik Penzing, 1140 Vienna.

In addition to the existing two pavilions, 16 (logistics) and 17 (high-tech COVID-19 laboratory on three floors, with 118 PCR analyzers and 144 pipetting robots), Lifebrain is significantly expanding the logistics and laboratory capacity with two additional pavilions renovated from the ground up and converted into a laboratory.

This will increase the daily maximum testing capacity to approximately 750,000 PCR tests by early 2022.

Sponsored Content

At the same time, the number of employees will be increased by up to 600 to a total of more than 1,500. Around € 18 million will be invested in the expansion.

This massive expansion comes only a few weeks after the Commercial Court of Vienna dismissed an unfair competition lawsuit against Lifebrain that was brought forth by the Vienna Medical Association.

Completion of expansion by mid-December

Currently, preparations for the capacity expansion are in full swing.

The necessary construction measures for the two new pavilions should be completed by mid-December.

This includes the renovation of the completely outdated infrastructure, the laying of around 50 km of data lines per pavilion, a separate power supply by Wien Energie, emergency power generators, and the creation of a hygienically clean, germ-free atmosphere for PCR tests and sequencing.

After that, the highly sensitive laboratory equipment, which is currently in enormous demand on the world market and thus difficult to obtain, must be installed, connected, and put through its paces.

At the same time, new staff members are already being recruited and trained.

With a total of four pavilions on the Baumgartner Höhe in Vienna, the Lifebrain laboratory will be by far the largest COVID-19 laboratory in Europe.

Testing for Omicron

Sponsored Content

The laboratory, which currently specializes in COVID-19 analyses, is also a pioneer in other testing areas.

For example, sequencing to detect different mutations of the COVID-19 virus also takes place at Baumgartner Höhe, with around 1,000 examinations every week.

Lifebrain is now also able to test samples with positive results for possible infection with the new Omicron mutation by PCR melting curve analysis and new test kits.

If Omicron is suspected, then sequencing of the relevant samples takes place.

Lawsuit

Lifebrain’s expansion of the laboratory is happening just as the company had an unfair competition lawsuit dismissed in the Vienna Commercial Court.

Earlier this year, the Vienna Medical Association challenged Lifebrain Laboratory’s authorization to conduct COVID-19 testing and to operate several testing stations in Vienna, and, more recently, it sued for unfair competition concerning the Federal Procurement Agency’s (BBG’s) tenders for the performance of COVID-19 testing throughout Austria for public clients.

After the lawsuit was dismissed, Lifebrain CEO Michael Havel said, “It was clear to us from the beginning that the abundantly transparent strategy of the Vienna Medical Association to force the Lifebrain laboratory out of the market with a wave of lawsuits and thus to pursue professional politics for the existing laboratories is baseless.”

However, the Vienna Medical Association still views the situation very differently. According to Die Presse, the Vienna Medical Association stressed, “The Commercial Court regrettably failed to answer the question of whether and what public legal authorization Lifebrain had shown–the court did not address this question at all.”

It added, “For the Vienna Medical Association, it is important that medical services are only provided by authorized persons and that this is closely monitored by public authorities. Therefore, for us in the present case, the issue requires further clarification.”

Sponsored Content

The Vienna Medical Association has announced that it will appeal the court’s ruling.

City of Vienna

Lifebrain

Copyright © Vindobona. You may share using our article tools. Please don't cut articles from Vindobona and redistribute by email or post to the web.
Sponsored Content
Fast News Search
Related News
Austrian Covid Data: Vaccination Protects 95 Percent from Hospitalization (December 1, 2021)
Covid Lockdown Controls: Already 386,000 Inspections and 3,700 Charges (November 29, 2021)
Travel and Covid: Austria Imposes Entry Ban on Southern African Countries (November 26, 2021)
Read More
Vienna Medical Chamber - Aerztekammer fuer Wien, Vienna City Government - Magistrat der Stadt Wien, SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant, PCR-Test, Michael Havel, Lifebrain, Law, COVID-19, Coronavirus, Commercial Court Handelsgericht, BBG - Federal Procurement Agency, 2019-nCov
Featured
See latest Vindobona Newsletter
Sign up now for full site access and to read a limited amount of free premium articles per month:
Sign Up
×
Sponsored Content
Sponsored Content
©1995-2023 Vindobona
Contact
Help
Imprint
Press
Careers
Partners
Terms & Conditions
Site Security
Privacy
Sitemap
Advertise
About Us