Development and manufacturing of systems for MALDI-MS sample preparation, analytical HPLC and beverage and food analysis
SunChrom Wissenschaftliche Geräte GmbH
Friedrichsdorf (headquarters: development, production, sales)New on Amplifa
About Us
SunChrom Wissenschaftliche Geräte GmbH develops and manufactures scientific instruments for analytical laboratory practice. The company has been on the market since 1988 and specializes in three areas: sample preparation for MALDI mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS and MALDI-MS Imaging), modular analytical HPLC systems, and beverage and food analysis with a focus on wine analysis. Products include the MALDI sprayer and spotter SunCollect, the contact-free CF-Spotter for MALDI-TOF microorganism identification, the incubation chamber SunDigest, HPLC components such as pumps, detectors, autosamplers and column thermostats, as well as the Titrolyzer system for SO2 determination. In addition to its own manufacturing, SunChrom distributes products from its partners Spark Holland, Eldex, Teledyne SSI and Biosystems. Wetted parts are made predominantly of biocompatible materials such as stainless steel, PEEK, PTFE, ETFE and quartz glass. The company is based in Friedrichsdorf in the Taunus region, where it operates development, production and sales; the production processes are powered predominantly by electricity from its own 14-kW solar system.
- Site
- Friedrichsdorf
- Processes
- HPLC analytics (analytical liquid chromatography), HPLC beverage analysis (sugar and alcohol determination), Residual alcohol determination in non-alcoholic wines/sparkling wines by HPLC, SO2 determination in wine by titration (Titrolyzer/SunTitro III), MALDI-MS sample preparation (spotting), MALDI-MS sample preparation (spraying/imaging), Automated MALDI target preparation for MALDI-TOF microorganism identification (contact-free, On-tissue digestion/incubation for MALDI-MSI (SunDigest)
- Materials
- Stainless steel / stainless steel 316, V4A stainless steel, PEEK, PTFE (Teflon), Teflon-AF, Quartz glass, ETFE, Sapphire
- Founded
- 1988
- Industries
- Food and beverage analysis (focus on wine analysis), Proteomics / life science research, Pharmaceuticals (active ingredient distribution, MALDI-MS Imaging), Microbiological diagnostics (MALDI-TOF identification), Quality control / laboratory analytics
- 01
Development and design of the instruments
- 02
Manufacturing and assembly at the main plant in Friedrichsdorf
- 03
Sales of own products and partner products (Spark Holland, Eldex,
- 04
Individual consultation, customer support and application optimization
Materials and Processes
V4A stainless steel
Corrosion-resistant stainless steel for wetted parts such as high-pressure mixing chambers and detector components with high corrosion resistance.
Stainless steel 316
Material of the flow cells and wetted parts in the RI detector RefractoFlow 2030.
PEEK
Biocompatible high-performance plastic for all sample-carrying pathways in the SunCollect system.
PTFE (Teflon)
Chemically resistant; used in degasser tubing, seals and mixing chamber components.
Teflon-AF
Fluoropolymer with ten times higher gas permeability for efficient degassing in degasser channels.
ETFE
Biocompatible material for wetted parts in the SunCollect system.
Quartz glass
Material for cell windows in UV/VIS and DAD detectors as well as wetted parts in the SunCollect.
Sapphire
Wear-resistant material for piston components of the HPLC pump SunFlow 2010.
Locations
Friedrichsdorf
DEHeadquarters with development, production and sales
- Materials
- Stainless steel, PEEK, PTFE, ETFE, quartz glass
- SunCollect MALDI sprayer/spotter
- SunCollect CF-Spotter
- SunDigest incubation chamber
- Sublimator (from autumn 2026)
- HPLC pump SunFlow 2010
- Solvent Organizer SF 2040
- UV/VIS detector SF 2020
- DAD detector SF 2050
- RI detector RF 2030
- Autosampler SF2000
- Column thermostats SunTherm 2070/100
- Titrolyzer III (SunTitro III)
- 14-kW solar system with storage
Devices and Systems
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HPLC analytics (analytical liquid chromatography)Testing | – | – | – | – | – |
| HPLC beverage analysis (sugar and alcohol determination)Testing | – | – | – | – | – |
| Residual alcohol determination in non-alcoholic wines/sparkling wines by HPLCTesting | – | – | – | – | – |
| SO2 determination in wine by titration (Titrolyzer/SunTitro III)Testing | – | – | – | 10 mL – up to 40 samples per run | – |
| MALDI-MS sample preparation (spotting)Testing | – | – | – | – | – |
| MALDI-MS sample preparation (spraying/imaging)Testing | – | – | – | – | – |
| Automated MALDI target preparation for MALDI-TOF microorganism identification (contact-freeTesting | – | – | – | – | – |
| On-tissue digestion/incubation for MALDI-MSI (SunDigest)Testing | 4 °C to 50 °C | – | – | – | – |
| Enzymatic analysis of wine and juices (Biosystems analyzer)Testing | – | – | – | – | – |
| Column thermostating for HPLCTesting | ± 0.2 °C | – | – | – | – |
21 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MALDI spotter/sprayer | SunChrom SunCollect | – | – | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| MALDI sprayer (pneumatic) | SunChrom SunCollect MALDI Sprayer | – | Dimensions 36 x 49 x 40 cm; up to 8 microscope slides simultaneously; ITO glass slides 75 × 25 mm | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| MALDI spotting robot (contact-free) | SunChrom SunCollect CF-Spotter | – | up to 2 MALDI targets simultaneously; 1 s per spot | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Incubation chamber | SunChrom SunDigest | – | 4 °C to 50 °C, 95-100 % humidity | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Sublimator | SunChrom Sublimator | – | up to 4 glass slides, sublimation temperature up to 300 °C (from autumn 2026) | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Analytical HPLC pump (double-piston pump) | SunChrom SunFlow 2010 (SF 2010) | – | 10 µL to 10 mL/min; max. 400 bar (10 mL head) / 150 bar (50 mL head) | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Solvent organizer with degasser | SunChrom SF 2040 | – | 5 degasser channels, max. 10 mL/min; space for 6 × 1 L bottles | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| UV/VIS detector | SunChrom SpectraFlow 2020 (SF 2020) | – | 190–600 nm (STD) or 190–800 nm (EXT) | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Diode array detector (DAD) | SunChrom SpectraFlow 2050 (SF 2050) | – | 200–800 nm | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Refractive index detector (RI) | SunChrom RefractoFlow 2030 (RF 2030) | – | 1.00–1.75 RIU; 0.1–3.0 mL/min | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Column thermostat with Peltier | SunChrom SunTherm 2070 | – | 0–80 °C; up to 3 columns up to 25 cm length | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Column thermostat | SunChrom SunTherm 100 | – | 5 °C (above ambient) to 100 °C; 1 × 300 mm column | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Autosampler/sample injector | SunChrom SF2000 | – | 60/90 samples (1.5 mL vials) or 96 microtiter plates; injection volume 0.1–999.9 µL | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| High-pressure liquid metering pumps | Eldex Optos series | – | 0.002–80 mL/min; up to 6000 psi (approx. 414 bar) | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| High-pressure piston pumps | Teledyne SSI (Scientific Systems Inc.) | – | – | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Autosampler | Spark Holland | – | – | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Titration system/analysis automaton | SunChrom SunTitro III (Titrolyzer III) | – | 20-sample rack 1 + up to 40 titrations per run; 10 mL sample volume | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Vacuum degasser (2 or 4 channels) | SunChrom | – | approx. 480 µL per channel | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| High-pressure mixing chamber | SunChrom | – | 260–1800 µL variable | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Enzymatic analyzer | Biosystems | – | – | – | Friedrichsdorf |
| Solar system | – | 1 | 14 kW | – | Friedrichsdorf (roof of company building) |
Additional services
History
- 1988
Founded as Spark Deutschland GmbH, initially exclusive sales partner of Spark Holland B.V.
- 1995
Renamed SunChrom Wissenschaftliche Geräte GmbH; introduction of an own HPLC product line.
- 1996
Entry as a partner in wine and beverage analysis; development of micro and nano HPLC systems.
- 2003
Market launch of the SunCollect MALDI spotter; entry into sample preparation for MALDI mass spectrometry.
- 2023
Change in wine law as of 01.01.2023; SunChrom offers an HPLC method for residual alcohol determination in non-alcoholic wines and sparkling wines.
- 2026
New development Sublimator (ultrafine matrix crystals) announced for autumn 2026.