In everyday life, carpooling and shared meals are commonplace, but now even Guanggu—known for its cutting-edge technology—has seen the emergence of “shared laboratories.” On December 14, a joint laboratory was inaugurated at the Wuhan Institute of Biological Research in Guanggu Bio‑City, allowing small and medium-sized enterprises that cannot afford expensive equipment to conduct experiments collaboratively.

　　On the 14th, the Wuhan Institute of Biotechnology signed agreements with four Fortune Global 500 biotech companies—Bio-Rad, Thermo Fisher Scientific, AB SCIEX, and Beckman Coulter. Under these arrangements, the two sides will jointly establish a bio‑joint laboratory and a reagent‑and‑consumables supermarket, offering leasing‑based access to Chinese biotech firms in the Central China region. Going forward, biotech companies in Central China will be able to access cutting‑edge global laboratory equipment and supplies at competitive prices, right on their doorstep.

　　Optics Valley Bio‑City currently hosts 407 enterprises, most of which are still in their early stages of development and predominantly small and medium-sized. At present, certain laboratory instruments and equipment can easily cost several million yuan each; while these assets are not used very frequently, they remain indispensable throughout the R&D process, thereby placing an additional financial burden on companies.

　　In response, the Wuhan Institute of Biotechnology has signed agreements with U.S. companies Bio-Rad, AB SCIEX, and Beckman to jointly establish research laboratories, and with Thermo Fisher to co‑develop a one‑stop platform for reagents and consumables. These four Fortune Global 500 biotech firms will provide support and preferential terms in areas such as consumables, specialized training, and equipment maintenance, thereby creating China’s first large‑scale instrument‑sharing platform jointly operated by equipment suppliers and research institutions. The platform covers nearly 5,000 square meters, houses more than 200 sets of instruments and equipment, and has received an investment of approximately RMB 70 million.

　　According to the introduction, the platform features an online reservation system, allowing companies with needs to book in advance. “For certain high‑usage laboratory instruments, users may still need to wait in line; we will add more equipment as demand grows to meet enterprises’ requirements,” said a responsible official from the research institute.