The Applikon AppliFlex ST in detail.
The AppliFlex ST is a single-use stirred-tank bioreactor built around a deceptively simple idea: the bioreactor should be configured around your process requirements — instead of forcing your process to adapt to a fixed vessel design. 3D printed customisation lets you specify the impeller geometry, sparger type, sampling lines and head-plate ports your bioprocess needs — and the Box-To-Bench workflow means the configured vessel is operational the moment it leaves the packaging. Whether you’re characterising a new cell line, screening media formulations, scaling out a microbial fermentation or preparing a GMP-compliant process, the AppliFlex ST delivers tailored hardware without the cleaning validation overhead of multi-use systems.
Built on proven Getinge quality.
The AppliFlex ST is engineered by Getinge Applikon, the worldwide reference in bioprocess instrumentation, with decades of field-proven experience supplying universities, biotech start-ups and biopharmaceutical organisations across the globe. The AppliFlex ST extends Getinge’s proven customisation capability into a fully disposable, single-use format — every vessel built to the same exacting standards that have made Getinge Applikon synonymous with reproducible bioprocess data, and produced with full interchangeability with Getinge Applikon’s glass and stainless steel systems of the same volume.
Resea Biotec is the official Swiss Getinge Applikon distributor and certified service partner — see below for support details.
Easy operation with professional process control.
The AppliFlex ST is designed for straightforward benchtop operation. No autoclaving or time‑consuming preparation is required: the vessel is placed on the benchtop, connected through the configured ports and prepared for use. The vessels accept either optical or classical sensor technologies: optical sensors offer barcode calibration directly on the vessel for fast setup, while classical sensors cover pH, dissolved oxygen, temperature, optical density, biomass and RedOx.
Process control runs through any of three Getinge Applikon platforms — Livit Flex, my-Control or ez2-Control — giving you full PAT functionality and the flexibility to integrate the AppliFlex ST into existing controller infrastructure without disruption.
Available AppliFlex ST Volumes:
The AppliFlex ST range spans four vessel sizes to match every research and process-development requirement. Working volumes are continuous from 100 mL through to 12 L.
- 1 AppliFlex ST 500 mL — working volume 100 – 400 mL
- 2 AppliFlex ST 2 L — working volume 0.3 – 1.7 L
- 3 AppliFlex ST 3 L — working volume 0.6 – 2.4 L
- 4 AppliFlex ST 15 L — working volume 3 – 12 L
| Attributes | AppliFlex ST Single-Use Bioreactor 500 mL | AppliFlex ST Single-Use Bioreactor 2L | AppliFlex ST Single-Use Bioreactor 3L | AppliFlex ST Single-Use Bioreactor 15L |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| L1 – Core Physical & Construction | ||||
| Volume | 500 mL | 2 L | 3 L | 15 L |
| Total volume | 0.575 L | 2.2 L | 3.1 L | 16.5 L |
| Working volume range | 100 – 400 mL | 0.3 – 1.7 L | 0.6 – 2.4 L | 3 – 12 L |
| Footprint | 236 x 75 mm | 340 x 130 mm | 340 x 130 mm | 500 x 223 mm |
| Aspect ratio working volume | 1.33 : 1 | 1.9 : 1 | 1.33 : 1 | 1.33 : 1 |
| Aspect ratio total volume | 2 : 1 | 2.3 : 1 | 2 : 1 | 2 : 1 |
| Compatible motor types | Stepper motor M02.2 / Brushless Motor M10 | Stepper motor M02.2 / Brushless Motor M10 | Stepper motor M02.2 / Brushless Motor M10 | Brushless Motor M14 |
| Impeller types | Marine / Rushton | Custom | Marine / Rushton | Marine / Rushton |
| Gas sparger types | Porous sparger / L-type sparger | Custom | Porous sparger / L-type sparger | Porous sparger / L-type sparger |
| L2 – System Properties & Process Parameters | ||||
| Agitation / mixing speed (rpm) | 0 – 2000 rpm | 0 – 2000 rpm | 0 – 2000 rpm | 0 – 750 rpm |
| Motor torque | 0.24 Nm | 0.24 Nm | 0.24 Nm | 0.92 Nm |
| L3 – Functional & System Capabilities | ||||
| Head plate ports | Various options | Custom | Various options | Various options |
| Harvest port | Various options | Custom | Various options | Various options |
| Sampling port | 1 × Sample port (Y piece, swabable valve, Luer lock) / Custom | Custom | 1 × Sample port (Y piece, swabable valve, Luer lock) / Custom | 1 × Sample port (Y piece, swabable valve, Luer lock) / Custom |
| Supported sensor types | Various options | Custom | Various options | Various options |
| Number of sensor / condenser ports | Various options | Custom | Various options | Various options |
| Cell Type | Cell Culture and Microbial |
| Technology Platform | Single-Use |
| Wall Type | Single Wall |
| Material | Single-Use Polymer |
| Autoclavable | No |
| Max operating temperature | 45 °C |
| SIP / CIP capability | No |
| Max sterilization temperature | N/A |
| Max operating pressure | 0.5 bar |
| Drive system | Lipsealed |
| Cooling method | Optional Water cooling |
| Heating method | Heating Blanket |
| Geometric similarity maintained | Yes |
| GMP-ready configuration available | GMP / Non- GMP Versions |
| Scale transfer support | Yes /Interchangeable with Multi-Use |
| Platform scalability range | 500 mL – 15 L |
| IQ/OQ/PQ support | Yes |
| Warranty period | N/A |
| Shelf life | 2 years |
| Lead time | Depending on Configuration |
| Validation documentation available | Yes |
Screening & Optimization
The AppliFlex ST’s single-use format eliminates cleaning and sterilization downtime between runs entirely — making it ideal for high-frequency screening campaigns. With working volumes from 100 mL to 12 L, fully customizable head plate configurations, and a choice of optical or classical sensor technologies, researchers can systematically evaluate cell lines, media formulations, and process parameters without risk of cross-contamination between consecutive runs.
Research & Process Development
The AppliFlex ST is designed for researchers who need a bioreactor built around their process — not the other way around. Using 3D printing technology, each vessel can be uniquely configured with custom impeller designs, port connections, spargers, and sampling lines. The Box-To-Bench workflow means the system is ready to use straight from the box — no laminar flow hood, water supply, or drain required — allowing teams to focus entirely on process development.
Scale-Up
Full interchangeability with Applikon’s glass and stainless steel multi-use systems of the same volume provides a direct and reproducible process transfer pathway — from AppliFlex ST into the Glass Autoclavable Bioreactor, BioBench, or BioPilot. Geometric similarity across platforms ensures that process parameters established in single-use format translate reliably to larger scales.
GMP Transition
The AppliFlex ST is available in both GMP and non-GMP versions, with IQ/OQ/PQ support and full validation documentation. Its fully closed single-use system, 2-year sterility guarantee, and consistent vessel geometry make it a strong platform for early GMP bridging work — particularly where eliminating cleaning validation requirements offers a significant compliance advantage.
Compatible controllers
- Applikon Livit Flex Bioprocess Controller The Applikon Livit Flex is the next generation of bioprocess control systems — c…
- Applikon my-Control Bioreactor Controller The Applikon my-Control is the most advanced bioreactor controller for small-sca…
- Applikon ez2-Control Bioreactor Controller The Applikon ez2-Control is an advanced bioreactor controller designed to simpli…
- Applikon in-Control Bioreactor Controller The Applikon in-Control is a process controller for laboratory scale bioreactors…
Compatible Bioreactors
Compatible sensors
- AppliSens DO₂-Sensor
- AppliSens LumiSens Optical DO₂ Sensor
- AppliSens pH-Sensor
- AppliSens Smart DO₂ Sensor
- AppliSens Smart pH Sensor
- Hamilton CO₂NTROL Arc Sensor
- Hamilton Dencytee Arc The Hamilton Dencytee ARC is an intelligent optical sensor for total cell densit…
- Hamilton EasyFerm Plus Arc
- Hamilton Incyte Arc Intelligent capacitance sensor for real-time viable cell density (VCD) measureme…
- Hamilton VisiFerm DO₂ Arc Sensor
- Repligen MAVEN Glucose and Lactate Sensor
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AppliFlex ST in action — customisable single-use Bioreactor for the lab
Getinge Applikon AppliFlex ST – Customizable single-use bioreactor for laboratory applications
Designed on demand — built for your process
The AppliFlex ST is designed and built around your bioprocess. Where most single-use bioreactors arrive as fixed catalogue vessels — a set headplate, a chosen sparger, a predetermined port layout — the AppliFlex ST is configured first and 3D printed second. Impellers, sparger geometry, addition ports, sample lines, pH and dissolved oxygen probe positions are all set to match what your process actually needs, so the vessel that arrives is the one your bioprocess was asking for. No unused ports, no spargers with blind plugs, no compromises baked into the geometry.
Because every configuration lives as a digital file, the second vessel is identical to the first, and the fiftieth identical to both. Impeller-to-sparger distance, port spacing, headspace volume — reproduced print after print, to within tolerance. When a result shifts between runs, you know it’s the biology, not the hardware. That run-to-run reproducibility is what makes the AppliFlex ST a credible platform for screening studies, media optimisation and full bioprocess characterisation.
The same logic carries up the range. The 500 mL and 3 L share a working H/D ratio of 1.33 and the same impeller geometry, so a screening hit at 500 mL transfers cleanly to 3 L. The 3 L and 15 L are sized as direct replacements for their autoclavable counterparts — same footprint, same controller integration, no replatforming of the lab.
And because the system is fully closed and pre-sterilised by gamma irradiation, the cleaning, autoclaving and validation overheads of multi-use vessels fall away. The AppliFlex ST is ready to run straight from the packaging — whether you’re developing a new cell culture process, scaling a microbial fermentation or bridging R&D into GMP-compliant production.
Box-To-Bench — from packaging to bioprocess in minutes
The AppliFlex ST continues Applikon’s trademark Box-To-Bench workflow. Unbox the bioreactor, place it on the benchtop and dive straight into your bioprocess — no laminar flow hood, no water supply, no drain required. Cooling and heating run on electric elements, the condenser is cooled electrically too, and the configured ports are connected as the vessel is positioned. Within minutes of unboxing, the system is ready for inoculation. The fully closed design eliminates cross-contamination between runs entirely, and when a run is finished you simply dispose of the vessel and start fresh with a new one — no cleaning, no sterilisation, no downtime, no cleaning validation.
For high-frequency screening campaigns, the impact compounds quickly: every campaign that would otherwise lose days to cleaning, autoclaving and re-validation runs end-to-end at full pace. A team that previously ran four to six conditions per month against a single autoclavable vessel can run that many in a week, with each AppliFlex ST gamma-irradiated to >25 kGy and shelf-stable for two years. For regulated environments, eliminating cleaning validation is itself a compliance advantage that often justifies the move to single-use on its own — and because the AppliFlex ST is also available in a GMP-compliant configuration, the same workflow extends from R&D screening into clinical production without re-engineering the platform.
What is the AppliFlex ST workflow?
The AppliFlex ST workflow runs on a single platform across three phases.
Configure. Specify your vessel: impeller type and count, sparger geometry, head-plate ports, sampling lines and sensor format (optical or classical). Each vessel is then 3D printed to the locked configuration — identical from one batch to the next.
Run. Unbox the AppliFlex ST, place it on the bench, connect to your Livit Flex, my-Control controller and start the run. The platform covers microbial fermentation, mammalian cell culture, stem-cell expansion, regenerative medicine and plant-cell systems — with motor and impeller specifications scaled appropriately to each vessel size. No infrastructure setup, no sterilisation cycle, no laminar hood. Monitor and adjust in real time across pH, DO, temperature and feed strategy.
Dispose. When the run is complete, dispose of the vessel according to instructions and start the next run with a fresh one. No cleaning validation, no cross-contamination risk, no campaign-end downtime. Process parameters established on the AppliFlex ST transfer cleanly to Applikon’s glass and stainless steel systems of the same volume — Glass Autoclavable Bioreactor, BioBench or BioPilot — for downstream scale-up.
Why use the AppliFlex ST?
- 3D printed customisation — impellers, spargers, ports and sampling lines built to your bioprocess specification
- Box-To-Bench setup — no laminar flow hood, no water supply, no drain required; ready straight from the box
- Fully closed single-use system — zero cross-contamination risk, no cleaning validation, no sterilisation downtime
- Four cultivation modes — Batch, Fed-Batch, Perfusion and Continuous across microbial and cell culture
- GMP and non-GMP versions — IQ/OQ/PQ documentation, full validation support, 2-year sterility guarantee from the initial sterilisation date
- Direct interchangeability — geometric similarity with Applikon’s glass and stainless steel systems for clean scale-up
Build the bioreactor of your dreams.
The AppliFlex ST is a 3D printed single-use bioreactor, configured around your bioprocess and ready to run straight from the box. Available in 500 mL, 2 L, 3 L and 15 L vessels, in GMP and non-GMP versions, with full interchangeability across Applikon’s glass and stainless steel platforms — from screening at the bench to pilot and clinical production.
Process parameters you lock on the AppliFlex ST transfer cleanly upward through the Applikon product family, all the way to pilot and production. Resea Biotec is Switzerland’s official Getinge Applikon distributor and certified service partner — based in Recherswil, supporting customers across Switzerland with local technical support and on-site service.
Talk to our team and we’ll spec the right configuration for your bioprocess, coordinate IQ/OQ/PQ documentation where required, and stay on hand for application advice, training and maintenance throughout the system’s life. Whether you’re characterising a new cell line, scaling a microbial fermentation, or preparing a GMP-compliant clinical process — we’ll help you get there.
AppliFlex ST product literature
Product specifications, configuration options and application data for the Applikon AppliFlex ST single-use bioreactor — for evaluation, procurement and internal review.
AppliFlex ST Single-use bioreactor datasheet
Complete product brochure covering benefits, applications, custom design options, full specifications (500 mL, 2 L, 3 L, 15 L), GMP variant and related products.
