Where there is a lab, there is Eppendorf: Elevating Malaysia’s life science landscape

“If there is a lab, Eppendorf will be there,” quipped Shim Yok Lam, Eppendorf Asia Pacific’s Southeast Asia Zone Director, cleverly summing up the crux of Eppendorf’s brand purpose in one simple sentence.

If you’re thinking that what you just read sounds vaguely familiar, you are on the right track as most of us were introduced to the Eppendorf Tubes as students in a school’s science lab.

Created in 1963 in Germany, the eponymous tube changed the face of molecular biology by providing a new tool for experiments. Today, the microcentrifuge tube has become an indispensable apparatus in the laboratory and the German company continues to elevate the standards of life science by inventing and developing cutting-edge products for laboratories that have made them a leading sample management solutions provider.

Their other products include pipettes, pipette tips, centrifuges, mixers and ultra-low-temperature freezers that freeze up to -80 degrees Celsius.

Fans of procedural forensics crime drama television series such as CSI: Crime Scene Investigation would have also come across their lab equipment.

“The everyday man may not come into contact with our products, but our products are in healthcare facilities such as hospitals and we are also in the media a lot if you watch TV series such as CSI,” Shim said, offering an interesting piece of pop culture trivia.

MGCC recently popped by the Eppendorf office in Petaling Jaya to catch up with the team – the conversation ranged from harnessing the MGCC network to connect with other pharmaceutical companies to student exchange programmes for Eppendorf staff.

It is an exciting time for the life sciences industry as the Covid-19 pandemic demonstrated the capabilities of the biotechnology market which has led to a rise in opportunities and advancements for drug development and manufacturing of vaccines for the disease.

The pandemic kept Eppendorf staff, or Eppendorfers as they are called, busy with high volumes of tests and servicing laboratory equipment to serve the larger healthcare ecosystem.

“The short-term challenge faced is a waning Covid-19 marketplace packed against restrained capital expenditure, destocking and macroeconomic conditions,” Shim said.

“Like many others in our industry, we are also hit with significantly higher material and energy costs.

“It increases our resolve to see the realisation of our transformation plans which were started pre-Covid.”

Despite the challenges, the team continues to innovate – we learned about the development of shorter pipettes specially designed for the Asian market when they discovered that labs in Asia are mostly operated by women and they tend to have smaller hands.

When it comes to sustainability, the Eppendorf team’s efforts range from packaging reduction to reducing the usage of water and electricity in their factories as well as using sea freight instead of air freight to reduce their carbon footprint.

On the product front, they also develop products that are environmentally-conscious best exemplified by switching up their ultra-low temperature freezers to be powered by more climate-friendly hydrocarbon refrigerants. Fun fact: Eppendorf freezers were the first to receive the Pfizer vaccine in Malaysia!

They also converted cooking oil waste into bio-based Eppendorf Tubes.

In the past, these vessels were made of glass which were then replaced by fossil-based plastic tubes – with a growing need to cut down on plastic waste, this new development saves up to 54% plastic without compromising on the safety standards Eppendorf products are known for.

Asia plays a crucial role for Eppendorf, contributing about a third of the firm’s total turnover. Zooming in closer, Malaysia ranks third amongst middle-income economies in the global innovation index in 2022 and ranks 36 out of 132 economies. Along with its high biodiversity, Malaysia represents the potential in life sciences and healthcare as the country scales.

“I want to add that our presence here transcends beyond the opportunities that the Malaysian market may be able to provide us,” Shim said.

“We have found Malaysian employees to be multi-talented and multilingual which has helped improve our operational excellence and business across the region.

“It makes excellent sense to place our regional centre in Malaysia.”

Interestingly, we learned that Malaysia was the second base for Eppendorf outside of Germany (the first was in Spain). They arrived on Malaysian shores 27 years ago in 1995 when Eppendorf opened a rep office here because the company wanted to find out what was happening in the region.

Hong Kong was the first consideration but Malaysia won because of the quality of life, cost, good command of English and being multilingual which supports our regional efforts.

“MGCC consulted for us when we first ventured into Malaysia connecting us to the relevant professional services that allowed an easy entry into Malaysia,” Shim shared.

“As soon as we incorporated in Malaysia, we joined MGCC as a member.

“Overall, the connection that MGCC provides to the government and others in business has helped navigate our local business and operations.”

Being in Malaysia for close to three decades, their operations grew from a Sales and Marketing Support Centre in 1995 to a Regional Customer Support Centre in 2002 where young Malaysian scientists and engineers were recruited to conduct technical training as well as product and technical support that played a role in their regional competitiveness.

In 2010, Eppendorf launched its Regional Shared Services Centre covering human resources, IT infrastructure, enterprise software support and project management across Asia Pacific, Africa and the Middle East. Their Corporate and Business Support Function was another milestone that came into being in 2019, rounding off a comprehensive suite of support for the region.

Asked what was the best advice Eppendorf received that has served them well in the life sciences business, Shim said it has to be, “Trust is Key”.

“Eppendorf’s brand DNA revolves around the idea of quality and reliability that our customers can trust to give them reproducible results from their experiments.

“Any frontline Eppendorfer learns early on that this trust enhances our brand value and support their relationship with customers,” she concluded.