By Gabby Mora

With the long and successful history of xMAP^® Technology, cited in tens of thousands of peer-reviewed publications, the Luminex team puts a lot of thought and care into the instruments we design to support xMAP^®-based investigations and ensure our solutions focus on your research needs.

The newest edition to our lineup, the xMAP INTELLIFLEX^® System, not only offers the latest innovations — from a simple touchscreen interface to streamlined software — but it also doubles the amount of information users can generate with its unique dual-reporter feature. That’s a lot of multiplexing power!

To ensure that xMAP customers have the best possible experience with this system, we built a dedicated xMAP INTELLIFLEX team to support the instrument. From creating software to responding to technical support queries, our team includes Luminex staffers with a broad range of expertise.

To share how we support our customers, we’re introducing some team members in a short series of blog posts. Let’s get to know Tammy Hunter, senior project manager, and Nikki Torres-Avila, a senior software engineer in our Research & Development (R&D) group.

Q: What do you do to support the xMAP INTELLIFLEX System?

Tammy: Most of what I have been doing is related to supporting the new software version 2.1 that includes new features for automation and compliance. I also dig into any pain points for customers and figure out how we can improve their experience.

Nikki: I’m a software developer and have worked with the xMAP INTELLIFLEX System since the product’s early stages. My main responsibility is to write code to enable the desired functionality. I also investigate any bugs and find the root cause before the software is released.

Q: How does your team help drive improvements for the xMAP INTELLIFLEX System?

Nikki: We are working toward a common goal, but we all have different perspectives. For example, team members who focus on user experience examine the workflow and create scenarios involving a workflow that might not be ideal for a certain need, and we work to make it more robust. Ultimately, we want to create something that will benefit the user, and this highlights the importance of having a good team—one that is technically capable but also good people. If there’s a problem, everybody leaves their egos aside. We just look at the problem and devise a way to make it better.

Tammy: I support a cross-functional initiative to help ensure the best possible experience for xMAP INTELLIFLEX customers. When our entire team meets, anyone can mention an issue. This discussion keeps us informed on what’s occurring, and we make decisions and get to solutions right then and there. We also review metrics to see how what we’re doing is benefiting the long-term health of the system.

Q: What’s your favorite thing about the xMAP INTELLIFLEX System?

Tammy: The replay feature is really cool. It allows customers to take data from previously acquired plates, apply new parameters on them, and just hit go without having to redo an entire run. This prevents the waste of materials and allows work to be done much faster and more easily. I think it’s one of our most interesting features. Also, I love seeing how excited people are to work on this system and develop new assays on it.

Nikki: It’s a tool that you can see having an immediate benefit to society. Our customers can use it to develop new vaccines or to test for disease. It’s a cool technology that can help improve our health and lives.

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