LABORATORY ROBOTICS INTEREST GROUP LAUNCHES LINKEDIN NETWORK GROUP

The Laboratory Robotics Interest Group Introduced on World’s Largest Professional Network To Increase Member Communication

Martinsville, NJ – November 18, 2004 - The Laboratory Robotics Interest Group (LRIG), a non-profit organization that fosters international knowledge sharing and networking between laboratory automation professionals, today announced that it has chosen LinkedIn for Groups to facilitate professional networking for its members on both local and international levels. To join the LRIG groups on LinkedIn and to learn more about its members and business opportunities, please go to www.lab-robotics.org.

By accessing the LRIG group on LinkedIn, LRIG members can network, accomplish their business goals, and further their careers by safely and effectively leveraging existing relationships via the LinkedIn/LRIG network. LinkedIn for Groups enables professionals to help themselves and their contacts to connect with peers, business partners, industry experts and employees. Joining the LRIG network on LinkedIn is free for LRIG members. Members will enjoy the following benefits:

· Extended reach of the group’s network: Members will be able to access other LRIG members and potential members directly or through referrals from shared contacts.

· Access to the group directory with rich contact information, professional histories and endorsements with minimal administrative effort.

· Focused searches on group members using criteria such as geography and areas of interest.

“LinkedIn for Groups is the right choice for LRIG for a variety of reasons, including its ease-of-use, efficiency, the seniority of the members who join the network, and its privacy standards,” said Andy Zaayenga, executive chair of LRIG. “Approximately 15 percent of LRIG members already use this network to generate business opportunities that support our goal of facilitating knowledge sharing and peer contact. By joining the LRIG group on LinkedIn individual members enhance their network and open doors to great professionals and business ventures, benefiting communities in the United States and abroad,” concluded Zaayenga.

“With approximately 1,500,000 users and more than two million searches conducted every month by professionals who are looking for either business partnerships or job opportunities, LinkedIn is the largest and most trusted professional network worldwide,” said Konstantin Guericke, co-founder and vice president of marketing at LinkedIn. “The LinkedIn network has grown 20 times in the past year, and adding the LRIG group to LinkedIn supports our goal of offering our members access to great business leads and talent. More than 450,000 of our users are located in Europe, making our relationship with LRIG relevant by supporting LRIG’s goal of integrating international chapters. We’re pleased LRIG chose LinkedIn to host its official professional network,” emphasized Guericke.

Founded in 1985, LRIG has more than 9,000 members and is one of the fastest growing non-profit membership organizations in laboratory automation. Through its events, LRIG offers its members networking opportunities with well known industry leaders of world -renowned companies and institutions, including international pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies as well as laboratory automation providers. LRIG’s regional chapter meetings offer special events, discussions, and the exchange of information focusing on industry areas such as life sciences, chemical synthesis, quality assurance, and system validation.

About LRIG
The Laboratory Robotics Interest Group is a rapidly growing non-profit special interest group focused on laboratory automation. The membership consists of over 9,000 scientists and engineers. There are Bay Area California, Chesapeake (Maryland, Virginia, Washington D.C., and Delaware), Europe, Mid Atlantic, MidWest, New England, Northwest, Philadelphia, San Diego, SouthEast, Upstate New York, and Texas chapters. A majority of members are from the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry with others from the chemical, agriculture, cosmetic, food, and specialty industries. Multiple regional meetings are held each year in which members' experiences in automation are presented. Among the topics discussed are the uses of laboratory automation in high throughput screening, drug discovery, combinatorial chemistry, chemical synthesis, compound purification, compound distribution, data management, pharmaceutical dosage form sample preparation, dissolution testing, bioanalytical technology, chemical analysis, solid phase extraction, validation, and product formulation.  Additional information is available at www.lab-robotics.org.

About LinkedIn
LinkedIn is the premier provider of private and effective networking tools used by over 1,400,000 professionals across the globe. By managing their existing professional network on LinkedIn, professionals can strengthen and extend their existing network of trusted contacts. By searching their extended network, LinkedIn professionals can discover inside connections they never knew they had to recommended job candidates, industry experts and business partners. LinkedIn for Groups enables professional groups, alumni associations and conference organizers to facilitate professional networking among their membership. Through LinkedIn for Groups, members of these organizations can further their careers and accomplish specific business tasks by safely and effectively leveraging their existing relationship networks through LinkedIn. For more information, visit www.LinkedIn.com.

Send mail to with questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © 1999 Laboratory Robotics Interest Group Home
LRIG™ is a trademark of the Laboratory Robotics Interest Group
Last modified: February 23, 2009