Company History

The Spark Holland Legacy

"A Rose by Any Other Name Would Smell as Sweet"

(What the heck are these iChrom Solutions guys talking about?)

A Name Change.

For over 35 years, Spark Holland has set the world standard for autosampler technology.

This ongoing commitment to engineering and development - over three and a half decades - has resulted in Spark’s position as a leading OEM supplier of autosamplers to a number of major global instrument companies, a world-class reputation for quality, reliability, and superior technology.

In 1989, Spark revolutionized sample preparation with the first fully-automated on-line Solid Phase Extraction (SPE) instrument – the Prospekt. This instrument was re-engineered to accommodate smaller samples for life science applications, and released in 2000 as the Prospekt II. Ultimately, this evolved to the Symbiosis platform – the current state-of-the art in on-line SPE.

You may own one of these platforms.

iChrom Solutions

Until 2018, these products were sold by iChrom Solutions in North America as “Spark Holland” products.

In April 2018, Spark Holland decided to focus on their OEM autosampler business, and out-licensed the original Spark Holland-named products to Axel Semrau, GmbH & Co., in Germany.

These products will now be sold under the Axel Semrau product family as “CHRONECT”; for example, “CHRONECT Symbiosis”. (NOTE – this system may contain recognizable modules, but it will not be identical to those sold by iChrom Solutions previously.)

This new situation came into force on January 1, 2019.

What this means for iChrom Solutions North American Customers...

Very little!

We’ll explain…

What Matters (please read carefully!):

  • 1 iChrom Solutions will continue to be the exclusive North American supplier of these products – purchased through Axel Semrau.
  • 2 All Spark Holland legacy systems and modules will continue to be supported in North America by iChrom Solutions.
  • 3 All modules sold by Axel Semrau under their CHRONECT name will be available to North American customers through iChrom Solutions.
  • 4 Certain legacy systems and modules will no longer be available for sale. However – in North America, iChrom solutions will continue to support these products with parts and service.

Please contact iChrom Solutions in North America with questions regarding these changes.

But Wait – There’s More!

What will be available?

  • 1 Click HERE to see the new Axel Semrau CHRONECT Symbiosis product line
  • 2 Any module that is part of an Axel Semrau CHRONECT Symbiosis system, will be available as a standalone unit – Click HERE for details
  • 3 All HySphere SPE Cartridges (now branded as CHROSPE)
  • 4 iChrom Degasser
  • 5 Manual Injector Valve

Below is a list of Systems and Modules which will no longer be available through iChrom Solutions - but will be supported with parts and service by iChrom Solutions for a minimum of seven years after the last production unit is manufactured.

  • 1 All Spark Holland labeled Symbiosis Systems
  • 2 All Spark Holland labeled Pumps
  • 3 ECB2004 Gradient Box
  • 4 ECD 2600 UV-Vis Detector
  • 5 ECD 2800 UV-Vis Detector
  • 6 FLASH 14 DAD 400 Detector
  • 7 FLASH 14 DAD 800 Detector
  • 8 ECO 2080 Temperature Controller
  • 9 ECO 2099 Temperature Controller
  • 10 All Spark Holland labeled Autosamplers
  • 11 All Spark Holland software (Sparklink, MS and Analyst Drivers)

Please contact iChrom Solutions directly with any questions regarding these changes.