During the International Symposium on High-Performance Liquid Phase Separations and Related Techniques (HPLC 2025) in Bruges, Belgium, Waters Corporation highlighted updates to its Alliance iS HPLC System Software version 2.0. The system is designed to provide end-to-end traceability and improved data security for labs in the pharmaceutical industry.
The updated technology will build upon the architecture found with Empower Software to the Alliance iS HPLC System touchscreen, which is said to enhance compliant monitoring and traceability for customers. The Alliance iS HPLC System uses touchscreen security to offer individual and identifiable access control with user authentication. More than 80% of novel drugs have been submitted to regulatory authorities using Empower Software, according to the company’s presentation at the J.P. Morgan 43rd Annual Healthcare Conference (1).
Bruges, Belgium | Image Credit: © ecstk22 - stock.adobe.com
The International Symposium on High Performance Liquid Phase Separations and Related Techniques, more commonly known as the HPLC conference, is one of the leading conferences on liquid phase separations and hyphenation with advanced detection technologies, including mass spectrometry (MS) and data treatment (2). Featuring discussions on topics like mRNA structural characterization and sample preparation, awards presentations, and more, researchers and scientific companies attend this conference to discuss the latest advancements in science and the technologies that allow said discoveries to be made.
This continues Waters’ release of new products this year. During the 73rd American Society for Mass Spectrometry (ASMS) Conference on MS and Allied Topics in Baltimore, Maryland, Waters Corporation announced several product portfolio updates aimed at supporting advancements in key application areas, including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) detection and biopharmaceutical analysis, among others (3). Waters’ major announcement focused on the launch of the Xevo TQ Absolute XR Mass Spectrometer, a benchtop tandem quadrupole instrument for high-throughput laboratories in sectors such as pharmaceuticals and environmental analysis. During this workshop, the company highlighted the importance of creating new technologies, especially as biopharmaceutical companies continue doing in-depth research into personalized medicine and increasingly complex molecules. With this approach, more sensitive and sophisticated technologies are needed to meet these growing demands.
“These are components that we cannot analyze with traditional methods, so having this new category of instrumentation will be really enabling our customers to better characterize,” said Guillaume Bechade, senior manager of Biologics Marketing at Waters (4). “We are trying really to develop fit-for-purpose solution[s] for the category of drugs that our customers are working with.”
With these new upgrades, Waters claims the Alliance iS HPLC System’s integration is further enhanced, reducing human error by up to 40%. Further, productivity in quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) laboratories can be enhanced further; according to an estimate based on Waters market research in 2022 after surveying 56 global pharmaceutical company QC labs, the intelligence can address errors prior to their occurrence.
The Alliance iS Platform has also earned the Accountability, Consistency, and Transparency (ACT) Ecolabels from My Green Lab, a nonprofit organization dedicated to building a global culture of sustainability in science. The Ecolabel was designed to address the needs of scientists and procurement specialists for clear, third-party verified information about the environmental impact of laboratory products (3).
The Alliance iS HPLC System Software version 2.0 will be available starting in August 2025.
(1) Presented at the J.P. Morgan 43rd Annual Healthcare Conference. According to internal analysis, ~80% of the drugs filed with the FDA, EMA, and China National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) in 2023 were done so using Empower Software. Source: Waters data and estimates.
(2) Desmet, G.; Cabooter, D.; Lynen, F.; et al. In Bruges: The HPLC 2025 Conference. LCGC Int. 2025, 2 (4), 33. https://cdn.sanity.io/files/0vv8moc6/chroma/2554809b5610dd49dbebe2a21a0ca51234dafc3c.pdf/LCGC0525_Digital_NA.pdf
(3) Hroncich, C. Waters Introduces Xevo TQ Absolute XR Mass Spectrometer at ASMS. LCGC International 2025.https://www.chromatographyonline.com/view/waters-introduces-xevo-tq-absolute-xr-mass-spectrometer-at-asms (accessed 2025-6-19)
(4) My Green Lab® ACT® Ecolabel 2.0. My Green Lab: ACT Ecolabel 2025. https://act.mygreenlab.org/ (accessed 2025-6-19)
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