February, 2004
For Immediate Release

Saving Time for Quality Control Labs and Food Processors: 3M Introduces a Fast, Automated Reader for Reading 3M™ Petrifilm™ Plates
3M™ Petrifilm™ Plate Reader reads and records results in 4 seconds

London, ON - Four seconds doesn’t seem like enough time to accomplish very much, especially with regards to food safety, where plate counting can often become tedious and time consuming. As it turns out, four seconds is all that is required to read a 3M™ Petrifilm™ Plate. The 3M™ Petrifilm™ Plate Reader, just being introduced by 3M Canada, is designed to read the most commonly used Petrifilm Plates (Aerobic Count, Coliform Count, and E. coli/Coliform Count). It provides consistent, automated reading and recording of those results in an astonishing four seconds.

For years the challenge for food processors has been balancing the critical need to provide accurate results on food safety tests with the need to maximize productivity. For obvious reasons, productivity could never compromise safety. Now, the two seemingly at-odds factors, are no longer an issue. The 3M™ Petrifilm™ Plate Reader solves the conundrum by providing numerous benefits to food processors around the globe. Fast, consistent, automated reading of Petrifilm Plates increases productivity, reduces costs and eliminates variation between lab technicians. As a further benefit, automatic storage of those results into Microsoft® Excel as well as a log file saves time, eliminates transcription errors, and improves audit compliance. It couldn’t get much less complicated than that.

“The 3M™ Petrifilm™ Plate Reader was designed to be easy to use and easy to set up”, says Charlie Peatman, Sales and Marketing Manager, 3M Microbiology. “The software loads on to the customer’s own computer using a wizard for easy installation. The reader itself hooks up to the computer via a USB2 port. When you’re ready to read plates, you simply insert the Petrifilm Plate into the slot on the reader and it automatically ejects when reading is complete. The count results, as well as a colour image of the plate itself, are displayed on the computer screen. The actual time to read the plates and store results is about 4 seconds.”

The 3M™ Petrifilm™ Plate Reader will join the industry-leading Petrifilm family of products to assist global food processors with the need to reduce costs, increase productivity, and still provide high quality food products.

3M Microbiology designs, manufactures, and markets innovative testing and monitoring products that help food and beverage processors, retailers, and food service companies worldwide manage microbial risk and improve food quality. For information, please call or write to 3M Microbiology Products, 1-800-563-2921 or 3M Microbiology Products Canada, P.O. Box 5757, London, ON, N6A 4T1.