The Coulter Counter Model A Showcases at Chemical Heritage Foundation Exhibit

It was the first ever in its class. It brought automation to labor-intensive tasks, changed the way cells and particles are analyzed and revolutionized our world—Beckman Coulter's Coulter Counter Model A. Eight years in the making, this 1956 instrument is the basis of automated hematology analyzers, a legacy that resounds today in literally every hospital worldwide.

Developed by Wallace H. Coulter and his brother Joseph R. Coulter, the Coulter Counter Model A is prominently featured in the Chemical Heritage Foundation's permanent exhibit, “Making Modernity,” which recently opened in the Foundation's new museum in Philadelphia, PA (USA).

The world's first automated particle counter, the Model A improved the practice of medicine by increasing the speed and accuracy of blood-cell counts. Automation of these crucial counts freed technicians from spending up to 30 tedious minutes behind a microscope, only to obtain a result that could seldom be accurately repeated. In addition, the Model A enabled previously unattainable volume measurements of both cells and particles.

The Coulter Counter Model A continues the Beckman Coulter heritage in more ways than one. Of the 50 commercial laboratory instruments determined to have changed the world in the 20th century, 19
(38%) are from Beckman Coulter. Plus, the Beckman Model G ph meter and the Beckman DU spectrophotometer are also included in “Making Modernity” —the Foundation's first permanent exhibit.

To learn more about the Chemical Heritage Foundation and the “Making Modernity”; exhibit, visit http://www.chemheritage.org/exhibits/ex-nav6-exhibition.html.