Services · Innovation & Technology

The Ideal Breeding Ground for Innovation

Innovative capability is a key factor for the competitiveness of the lab science industry. Through its proven process, Toolpoint helps members identify shared needs, launch joint technology projects, and accelerate the transfer of knowledge across the cluster.

ABOUT THIS SERVICE

Innovation by Design, Not by Chance

Toolpoint helps to create the ideal breeding ground for innovation within the lab science cluster. Rather than leaving breakthrough discoveries to chance, the organisation provides a structured, proven process for identifying shared technology needs and launching pre-competitive joint projects.

By combining joint technology roadmaps with individual one-to-one discussions, Toolpoint surfaces the needs that exist across multiple member companies — then organises resources, academic partnerships and external expertise to address them collectively. What individual companies cannot achieve alone becomes achievable together.

THE TOOLPOINT PROCESS

A Proven Framework for Joint Innovation

The Toolpoint process is the engine at the heart of all joint technology projects — a structured, repeatable approach that transforms individual member needs into collective action.
The Toolpoint Process
With joint roadmaps (top section), global trends are identified and the needs of the members are clarified in one-to-one discussions (bottom section). The results are summarised and presented to all members in anonymised form. If there is sufficient interest, the corresponding projects are implemented.

JOINT TECHNOLOGY ROADMAPS

Toolpoint’s roadmap team monitors global trends, emerging technologies and competitive developments in the lab science industry — building a shared forward-looking view that individual companies rarely have time to construct alone.

One-to-One Member Discussions

Toolpoint holds regular individual meetings with each member to assess their specific technology and innovation needs. These conversations are conducted confidentially, allowing candid disclosure of genuine strategic priorities.

Anonymised Synthesis & Presentation

Results from the one-to-one discussions and roadmap analysis are synthesised and presented to all Toolpoint members in anonymised form — revealing common needs without exposing individual company positions.

Project Launch on Shared Interest

Where sufficient common interest is identified, a joint project is initiated. Academic institutions or external companies are brought in as needed to provide specialised knowledge, enabling targeted technology and knowledge transfer.

Individual Conversations, Collective Intelligence

Toolpoint’s innovation process begins not with technology, but with listening. Each member receives dedicated attention — ensuring that the projects pursued truly reflect the cluster’s most pressing shared challenges.

Regular 1:1 Member Meetings

Toolpoint meets individually with each member company on a regular basis to assess their specific needs, priorities and technology gaps — creating a genuinely personalised view of the cluster’s innovation landscape.

Anonymised Results Sharing

The outcomes of all individual discussions and roadmap findings are summarised anonymously and shared with the full membership. Companies benefit from insight into shared needs without revealing commercially sensitive information.

Interest Validation & Consultation

Members are consulted on the synthesised findings to establish which common needs command sufficient collective interest to warrant a joint project. This ensures resources are directed only where real demand exists.

Confidentiality Policy

Most projects are confidential and only pertain to the participating companies. Jointly developed technical standards and SOPs are made publicly accessible — contributing to the advancement of the broader lab science industry while protecting each company’s proprietary interests.

What Joint Projects Deliver

Toolpoint projects produce two distinct types of output — confidential deliverables that benefit only participating companies, and open outputs that raise the standard of the entire industry.

Confidential Deliverables

Company-Specific Project Results

The majority of Toolpoint-facilitated projects produce results that remain strictly confidential to the participating member companies. Jointly developed research, technology insights and prototypes are shared only within the project group — protecting each participant’s competitive position while enabling collaboration that would otherwise be impossible.
Joint R&D outputs Technology assessments Shared test results

Open Industry Standards

Publicly Accessible Standards & SOPs

Where projects result in broadly applicable technical standards, standard operating procedures (SOPs) or interoperability guidelines, these are made publicly available — strengthening the entire lab science ecosystem and contributing to Toolpoint’s mission of long-term cluster competitiveness.
Joint R&D outputs Technology assessments Shared test results

Knowledge & Technology Transfer

The T-TIP Platform

Beyond joint projects, Toolpoint organises regular events to promote the active transfer of knowledge and technology across the cluster and its broader network.

Programme · T-TIP

Toolpoint Technology Information Platform

Toolpoint organises a regular Technology Information Platform — known as T-TIP — bringing members face-to-face with the research institutions, technology partners and industry leaders shaping the future of lab science.

Each T-TIP event is designed to actively accelerate the transfer of knowledge and technology, providing vertical networking that connects the industry across levels — from working engineers and researchers to strategic leadership.

All Toolpoint Services

Education & Training is one of six service pillars Toolpoint provides to its members. Explore the others below.

Education & Further Training

Professional development across the entire education chain. Talks, workshops and custom training modules.
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Policy Action & Representation

Advocacy with political institutions and regulatory bodies on behalf of the lab science cluster.
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Services for Members

Tailored member support including the Who-is-Who directory, job postings and IP consultations.
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Cluster Expansion

Close collaboration between Toolpoint members, academia, government and cross cluster dialogue.
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Research & Network

Collaborative research, expert groups and the T-TIP Technology Information Platform.
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Events & Community

The Swiss Symposium on Lab Automation, Top of Toolpoint CEO event, and more.
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