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Kuhner Seminars and (Online-)Trainings

As part of our comprehensive customer service and support, we also offer our customers scientific seminars on application-related questions and issues, and tailor-made training courses for our shaking machines and orbital shaken bioreactors.

Our scientific seminars cover all kinds of topics about cultivations in shaken bioreactors such as shake flasks, microtiter plates, and orbital shaken bioreactors.

Frequently asked questions addressed in our seminars include:

  • What are the cultivation conditions in a shake flask/MTP?
  • How do I cultivate in a shake flask without oxygen limitation?
  • Why are my cells not growing?
  • What is the different between a glass and plastic flask regarding cell growth?
  • Baffles: yes or no?
  • Why doesn’t the scale-up work in stirred bioreactors?
  • Which stoppers/adhesive foils are suitable for shake flasks /MTP?
  • Why are the cultivation results not reproducible?

These and other issues are discussed and backed up with scientific evidence.

Dr. Shaker

The training courses for our shaking machines and orbital shaken bioreactors can be either conducted at one of our own training sites, on-site at the customer’s premises, or online. Each training course will be adapted specifically to the customer’s demands. The training may take between a few hours to several days, depending on the program. For example, in a training program for our incubator shakers, we will look at the machine's interior, the electric box, learn how to change the shaking diameter or other general settings. A training program for our orbitally shaken single-use bioreactors (OSB) will help to ease the first process run and ensure a smooth transition. Setting up cultivations with a new bioreactor system can be challenging, and the user may come across unexpected questions. Therefore, our training course will cover a wide range of topics such as machine installation, setting up automatic control programs, steps to correctly install the single-use bags for each bioreactor, sterile handling of the bioreactor, etc.

If you would like to be notified about future scientific seminars or you are interested in a specific seminar or training for your employees, please contact us: shakingtechnology@kuhner.com

You can also find more information in our flyer:

Kuhner seminars
Seminarraum Mas Boada

FAQs

What is the shaking diameter?

The shaking table of an orbital shaker moves in a circle. The diameter of this circle is called the “shaking diameter”.

Most commonly used diameters are

  • 12.5 mm (ca ½ inch)
  • 25 mm (ca. 1 inch)
  • 50 mm (ca. 2 inch).

On all Kuhner shakers the orbital movement can be changed at any time.

Do different diameters affect the cultivation? 

Yes. The shaking diameter is a key factor for the cultivating conditions in a shaken bioreactor. Given the same speed; the bigger the shaking diameter, the better the oxygen transfer rate inside the culture. This also applies to microtiter plates.

Do you need a smaller shaking diameter when working with microtiter plates (e.g. 3mm)?

No. Microtiter plates can also be shaken with a larger diameter; the smaller the diameter, the faster the speed required (e.g. 700 rpm with 3mm). When choosing a larger diameter such as 50mm, a speed of 250 rpm may be enough to guarantee proper mixing and oxygen transfer.

What is the sheer sensitivity in a shaken bioreactor?

In a shaken bioreactor the mechanical stress on the cells is usually considerably less than in a stirred system. In a stirred bioreactor there are two stress effects: on the one hand you have small eddies near the impeller blades and on the other hand, small bubbles burst on the liquid surface because the vessel is sparged from the bottom. In a shaken bioreactor there is surface aeration and the shaking movement gives uniform mixing without any local power inputs

Does the shaker motor heat the shaking table?

No. Kuhner shakers have a unique drive system emitting less than 10 watts of heat.

How about shaking light sensitive medium?

Kuhner has the option of blackened windows to prevent light affecting your medium.

How do I reduce evaporation from flasks/MTP?

The smaller the volume and the longer the fermentation time, the more the evaporation rate affects your cultivation. Evaporation can be reduced by using special lids, stoppers, adhesive foils etc. One example is the Duetz system for microtiter plates. It is also necessary to humidify the incubator chamber.