Why Hemel could be at the centre of development for crucial COVID-19 antibody testing

A global threat detection and security company based in Hemel Hempstead has partnered with Attomarker Ltd to help produce a robust and accurate COVID-19 antibody-testing device.

Smiths Detection, headquartered in the UK in Maylands Avenue, has been working with the multiplex blood-testing technology company since April on the design and performance of a COVID-19 antibidy-testing device, that could represent an evolution in rapid and precise COVID-19 antibody testing.

The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has already approved Attomarker’s Triple Antibody Test for NHS use in the UK.

The Smiths Detection team has been working alongside Attomarker and has manufactured 10 pre-production units, with the ability to ramp up volume according to demand.

Attomarker’s Triple Antibody Test device is a portable, desktop, antibody-testing device designed to provide laboratory-standard results in any environment.

It delivers rapid, accurate, quantitative results in just seven minutes – compared with up to 72 hours for tests that require to be sent away for laboratory analysis.

The result of a trial at St Thomas’ Hospital in London – published this week in the Royal Society of Chemistry’s journal Analyst – shows that the Attomarker Triple Antibody Test delivers a sensitivity of up to 96 per cent in detecting COVID-19 antibodies, including in patients who have previously presented false negatives.

A developer and manufacturer of leading-edge threat-detection equipment for security industries, Smiths Detection frequently partners with companies and governments to develop equipment that is both highly accurate in detection and offers the highest standard of technical performance.

Roland Carter, Smiths Detection President, said: “The Smiths Detection team was able to take the current designs of the existing product and make enhancements that will contribute not only to its improved performance and robustness, but also the ease at which it can be produced.

“The success we have seen so far in this project is a testament to the high-standard research that the team is able to achieve, but also its agility and flexibility to pick up a project and deliver results.

"Not just from the perspective of our engineers and scientists, but also in terms of the supply chain, manufacturing and quality.”