| Abstract: | Recently there have been hot arguments both for and against investment in Total Laboratory Automation (TLA) in both Japan and the U.S. There is especially much doubt about the underlying economics. As pioneers of TLA, we would like to express our opinion on this. With TLA, the age of pioneers has already ended, yet TLA is currently expanding and we should construct practical systems now. We feel it is not fair to criticize pioneers from the economic side only.The main goal for pioneers in Japan and the U.S. had been what we could do with TLA. We are aware of the criticism from the U.S. that Japan has introduced TLA with no thought of profit due to financial support from the government, but Japan is already changing its course towards a world where profitability is important. Some examples will follow.In this article we mention processes through which the U.S. has come to have doubts about investment effectiveness in TLA, whether it is really dubious economically, the differences between laboratories in Japan and the U.S., and whether the future shines bright for TLA. |
