The short answer: after installation, a laboratory should expect its automation partner to make self-service easy, provide on-demand training, quickly solve specific problems, add capabilities its lab lacks, and take feedback seriously.
Installation day gets the attention. The system arrives, the arm is taught, the first plate moves. The real relationship starts afterward. New instruments arrive, staff change, assays evolve, and a robotics and automation laboratory keeps asking new questions of its system.
This guide lays out what good post-installation support looks like, using Retisoft Inc.’s support for Genera, its laboratory scheduling software, as an example.
People Also Ask
What support should a lab automation partner offer post-installation?
Self-service tools for setup, on-demand training, direct support line, new drivers or packages upon request, regular product updates, and a feedback channel for feature requests.
How long does the installation of genera take?
A matter of minutes; just run the setup file, load the license key, and install the driver packages. Retisoft covers the installation process in detail in a single short video in its Zero to Hero series.
Does a lab need a vendor to come in and add instruments?
Not at all. The user can add, remove, or replace instruments in Genera themselves, once the driver package for the particular device is installed in their system (within the connections area relevant to their license).
Why Support Matters More Than Installation
A robotics and automation lab lives with its software for years after the commissioning visit. Support quality decides how fast the team grows into the system.
Retisoft offers laboratory automation solutions, including engineering and scientific application consulting, custom driver development, software support, and hardware and maintenance support. Clients provide testimonials about the company’s offerings. According to a director of lab automation at Pfizer, Retisoft’s training has enabled his developers to code complete assays, custom Genera drivers, and web-based applications, and the firm incorporated its full suite of robotic platforms in six months. In addition, during the COVID-19-related travel restrictions in 2020, Retisoft supported pandemic testing and research through online training and remote implementation.
Getting Started Without Waiting For A Visit
Good partners let you start on your own schedule. Genera was built with this in mind.
Trying The Software First
Retisoft offers a free trial of the complete Genera system. Trial licenses are issued for 30 days, and Retisoft will extend this period if needed. The clocks are set according to the public time server. This means that you should install the license on the day of arrival.
Installing And Licensing Yourself
The software includes a folder with the installer, your license, and your driver packages. Simply launch the installer, accept the defaults, and load the license. Your IT team will only be involved if the computer requires administrator rights. To permanently license Genera, email Retisoft support the unique ID Genera generates for your PC, along with the edition and number of device connections.
Adding Your Own Instruments
A robotics laboratory setup changes over time, and the software should keep pace without a service call. In Genera, you install driver packages for your laboratory robotics equipment in a few clicks, then add, remove, or swap instruments yourself in Manage Instruments, within the device connections on your license. The workspace editor handles robotics laboratory design on screen, with drag-and-drop nodes for the arm, hotels, incubators, and every nest. Each of these steps is covered in our guide to lab automation with Genera.
On-Demand Training Through The Hub
Training shouldn’t depend on a calendar invite. The Retisoft Hub (available via the HUB button on retisoft.com) brings on-demand training, support, user forums, and product updates together in one place.
Training Videos And Material
The Hub features a growing collection of Genera training videos covering everything from first installation through to process building. New staff members can take their time to learn the ropes, and experienced users can refresh themselves on a feature before using it in a live run.
The User Forum
A user forum connects customers with each other and the Retisoft team. Peer answers from users running similar processes in their labs provide an additional resource alongside the support team.
Product Updates
User-requested updates are a major focus of the latest release, Genera 7.2. We added decision nodes to the imaging edition based on customer feedback. We opened up a labware importer that was previously internal only so a process can load labware positions from a file. Other updates include a system setup step within the scheduling wizard and a filterable application log to trace what a user or instrument has done on any given day.
A Weekly Video Series For Existing Users
Genera Gems is Retisoft’s video series of tips, tricks, and best practices, released weekly on YouTube. Two Retisoft engineers walk through one feature per episode, from recurrence and scripting to the Remote API and user management. Episodes are short enough for a lunch break, and the hosts build each one live in the software.
Getting Help With A Specific Problem
When something breaks, a partner should answer quickly and specifically. Retisoft support is reached by email at support@retisoft.com, by phone at (416) 521-9720, or through the support request page on the website.
Customers point to the quality of this help. A senior research engineer at Johns Hopkins University credited detailed product documentation and friendly technical support. An assistant director at GlaxoSmithKline described excellent online and in-house support. Within Genera itself, an Information tab documents how to model each instrument, and API documentation ships with every installation.
Requesting Capability You Do Not Have Yet
Robotic laboratory systems outgrow their first configuration. A good partner extends the software instead of asking you to work around it.
Packages Not Shipped By Default
Some Genera capabilities install as packages on request. Retisoft support provides the programs for posting alerts to Microsoft Teams and Slack, as well as the Remote API plugin for connecting Genera to a LIMS or other software. For complex instruments, Retisoft also builds wizard plugins. One example sets up a full templated process for a low-volume dispenser working from pick lists, covering cherry picking, dose response, and plate reformatting.
Drivers For Instruments Not Yet Supported
Genera ships with a long list of drivers written against each vendor’s API. If your instrument is missing, Retisoft develops the driver. The same applies to robot arms not yet supported. Why that matters is explained in how instrument drivers shape time-sensitive research.
Telling Us What You Want Covered
Retisoft’s website encourages Genera users to email content@retisoft.com with video topic suggestions, which the company will incorporate into its content strategy. The same goes for feature requests, several of which Genera 7.2 users initially requested. For example, the labware importer was a customer request.
Meeting Us In Person
Sometimes, a face-to-face meeting is the best way to communicate. We participate in various industry events, including SLAS, and our website lists recommended events, including the LRIG Canada symposium in Montreal. We also offer on-site training to customers.
For example, an engineer from Johns Hopkins attended a one-week course at Retisoft to learn about drivers, plugins, and custom web pages.
What To Ask Any Automation Partner About Support
Use these questions with any vendor, Retisoft included:
- Will my team install, license, and add instruments without a site visit?
- Where does training live?
- When we need a driver you do not offer, who writes it, and how long does it take?
- How do we reach support, and does an engineer who knows the software answer?
- Do customer requests shape your releases? Ask for a recent example.
- Is there a user community, or only a ticket queue?
Choose A Partner For The Years After Installation
The best automation partner looks the same in year three as on installation day: reachable, specific, and willing to build what you need next. Look for self-service setup, on-demand training, weekly videos, new drivers on request, and releases shaped by customers.
Retisoft Inc. has built its support model around Genera and the instruments labs already own. If you are weighing partners for a new or growing system, book a Genera demo and put the questions above to the team directly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Retisoft offer training after installation?
Yes. The Retisoft Hub offers on-demand training videos, user forums, and product updates. Retisoft also runs in-person training classes for engineers.
How do I contact Retisoft support?
Email support@retisoft.com, call (416) 521-9720, or use the support request page on retisoft.com.
Will Retisoft write a driver for my instrument?
Yes. If Genera does not yet support an instrument or robot arm, Retisoft develops the driver against the vendor’s API.
Where do I find new Genera features?
Release notes accompany each version, the Hub posts product updates, and weekly Genera Gems videos demonstrate new features, such as those in Genera 7.2.
Does Retisoft sell liquid handling instruments?
No. Retisoft Inc. offers Genera, which integrates with the liquid handlers, readers, incubators, and robot arms your lab already owns.