Staffan Piledahl - Co-founder, Briefly Bio 

Live Demo of Protocol-Driven Automation with an AI Co-Pilot 

Staffan will give a live demonstration of an AI-assisted lab automation interface that makes creating and running protocols as straightforward as writing them down. Using the Analytik-Jena Felix liquid handling robot, he will build an automation workflow in a protocol-style editor, with the AI suggesting steps and translating plain-language instructions into executable commands. The session will highlight how a better interface can make automation development faster, easier to modify, and more accessible to non-specialists.       

Raman Kaur - Associate Director of Process Development and Automation, Exact Sciences

PCR Workflow Without Walls: Challenges and Risk Mitigations

PCR workflows are typically designed with spatial separation to minimize contamination risks. However, with laboratory space being a high-cost resource, optimizing footprint and maximizing throughput are critical to keeping clinical lab cost-of-goods-sold (COGS) low. This presentation highlights the risk assessment and engineering innovations implemented at Exact Sciences to support PCR workflows within a single space. Key solutions include automated plate seal inspection, directional airflow Microcarts, and active contamination monitoring. These measures ensure data integrity and regulatory compliance, even in the absence of physical separation.

Advanced Instruments

Agilent

Analytic Jena

Askion

Automata

Azenta

Beckman

Biomed Recruitment 

Bionex

Biosero

Biotage

BMG

Celltrio

Cenevo 

Clickbio

Collaborative Drug

Computype

Corning

Curiox

DCM

Dexgen

Dynamic Devices

Formulatrix

GBO

Genedata

Gingko

Hamilton (Robotics and Lab Solutions)

HighRes

IMCS

IRCO

Kuhner Shaker

Lab-Machines

LVL Technologies

Macherey-Nagel

Matrix Fluidcs

Meniscense Hudson

Millipore Sigma

Molecular Devices

Monomer

Revvity

Scientific Products

SPT Labtech

Tecan

Tekmatic

Thermo

Thomas Scientific

Louis Murray, President

louis.murray@lrig.org

Louis Murray has spent over 20 years in the Bay Area focused on Lab Automation across various roles, including; current North Americas Sales Manager with the Lab Automation group at Thermo Fisher Scientific responsible for all commercial activities.  Automation Engineer at Exelixis, beta tested the GeneMachines RevPrep, Field Application Manager at Velocity11 building and supporting robotic platforms around the globe and Product Manager at Agilent Technologies for the automation portfolio and launched the Encore MultiSpan Liquid Handler.  Louis joined the LRIG Bay Area chapter in 2021 and accepted the role of Executive Chair in 2023.  Louis holds a Master of Science from the University of Aberdeen.

Michael Biros, Treasurer

mike.biros@lrig.org

Mike has over 30 years marketing and sales experience working for companies developing emerging technologies that accelerate life science research. He was the first marketing hire at LJL BioSystems, which was acquired by Molecular Devices in 2000. At Molecular Devices, he led the Drug Discovery instrumentation-marketing group as Director of Marketing, introducing several major fluorescent imaging- and point-reading systems. He was a principal and co-founder of Kallidus Group, a marketing agency serving life science, diagnostic and technology companies.  He served as Vice President, Product Marketing at IntelliCyt and founded Cellerynt Group, a marketing agency focused on improving marketing automation for life science companies. He served as Executive Chair of LRIG, Bay Area Chapter from 2002 to 2023 before assuming the role of Treasurer. Mike holds an undergraduate degree in Biochemistry and Cellular Biology from U.C. San Diego, and an MBA from the Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University. 

Maureen Beresini, Program Co-Chair and Scientific Advisor  

maureen.beresini@lrig.org 

Maureen Beresini has over 20 years of experience in small molecule drug discovery at Genentech.  She leads a group that develops and provides biochemical and cellular assays to promote the discovery of small molecule therapeutics.  In recent years, Maureen has focused on high-throughput screening.  In addition to the assays, she has contributed to the establishment of high-throughput automated systems and processes for conducting assays, analyzing data, and managing compounds.  Maureen began her industry career with Syva Company, developing assays for therapeutic monitoring of immunosuppressive drugs.  She received her doctorate in Biological Chemistry from the University of California Davis and was a postdoctoral fellow in the Cancer Research Institute at University of California San Francisco.

Dave Wexler, Program Co-Chair 

dave.wexler@lrig.org

Dave Wexler is currently Senior Director, Process Development & Automation at Exact Sciences based in the San Francisco Bay Area where he is responsible for leading the Assay Development, Process Development, Systems Engineering and Process Validation teams to design, develop, implement, test and validate processes and instrumentation critical to enable complex molecular diagnostic testing in a clinical Reference Laboratory. He provides technology vision and strategy to enable histopathology and molecular laboratory operations to scale and increase efficiency Prior to Exact Sciences, over the course of 13 years, Dave served in leadership positions with increasing responsibility at CareDx. The most recent being Vice President, Automation Engineering where Dave led a multidisciplinary group of Automation Engineers, Software Engineers, RA/QA and laboratory operations personnel to implement laboratory technology to increase throughput 10x for a Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) based diagnostic test.

Key accomplishment at CareDx: Dave directed the successful implementation and validation of Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) equipment, LIMS and data analysis software required to launch AlloSure®, a novel diagnostic test using cell-free DNA as a biomarker in a CLIA Reference laboratory. Additionally, Dave held a previous role as Senior Director, Clinical Informatics and Automation Engineering for CareDx. In this position, and earlier positions at CareDx and AGY Therapeutics, Dave was instrumental in the design and validation of new laboratory space for clinical and high-throughput drug discovery operations. Key to the ongoing success of CareDx, Dave worked closely with the head of Laboratory Operations to research, develop and validate new processes for increasing throughput and efficiency for processing of patient samples.

He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from University of Denver, his Doctorate in Physical Chemistry from the University of California, Los Angeles and performed post-doctoral research at University of California, Berkeley.

Amer El-Hage, Secretary

amer.hage@lrig.org

Amer is an independent consultant in product development and project management for the transfer from development of life-science and laboratory instruments to quality manufacturing.

From 1991 to 2000 he was the Director of Engineering Programs at LJL BioSystems, and following its acquisition at Molecular Devices until 2004. Prior to LJL, Amer held engineering, manufacturing and project management positions at Beckman Instruments and Varian Associates.

Amer technical expertise is in instrument design and automation, micro-fluidics, plastic molding, Opto-mechanical, consumables and BioMEMS applications. He is versed in product design, verification and validation processes, ISO quality Design Control systems, and FDA regulatory compliance and CE/CSA/UL agency certifications. He currently chairs the Society of Bimolecular Sciences (SBS) Microplate Standards Development.

Mr. El-Hage’s name as an inventor is on fourteen US and two international patents. Amer co-authored journal articles and made presentations at international Laboratory Automation conferences and at academic institutions. Amer received his M.Sc. in Engineering with distinction from UC Berkeley in 1980.

Maggie Nakamura, Board Member

Maggie.nakamura@lrig.org