By the early years of the 20th century, the Balston family laid the foundations for expansion into other types of paper, hiring consultant chemists to conduct pioneering experiments to help the company keep closer control of the manufacturing process.
Whatman No 1 filter paper |
Whatman No. 1 filter paper was a key medium in the pioneering experiments undertaken in 1944 by the research scientists, Consden, Gordon, and Martin. Their work in chromatography, coupled with the parallel work that earned Martin and Synge a Nobel Prize, was a technology breakthrough that enabled hospital pathologists, forensic scientists, and biochemists separate chemical compounds into individual components for analysis. By the end of the Second World War, the company’s comprehensive range of analytical filter papers had become brand leaders under the Whatman name. New materials, such as glass and quartz microfibres, were being developed and incorporated into new filters that provided solutions to the ever increasing challenges of science and industry.
By 1968, Whatman filter papers were available in more laboratories the world over than any other brand and Whatman filter products were being used in such diverse areas as coffee pots, hospital sterilizers, environmental pollution monitors, life jackets, pregnancy testing kits, and sample preparation devices for scientific research.
In the early seventies, Reeve Angel acquired the technology for manufacturing high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) columns. HPLC was emerging as a powerful analytical technique capable of separating a wide range of complex chemical, biochemical, and environmental samples. HPLC instruments were developed which used high pressure pumping systems to pump a sample through the HPLC column for separation and then through a sensitive chemical detection device which would identify each component. Given W & R Balston’s history with Whatman brand filter papers in the separation sciences, it was realized that the future of both companies would be best served by merging their interests. In 1974, W & R Balston merged with Reeve Angel International and the brand name Whatman was incorporated to form Whatman Reeve Angel, Ltd.
Following the merger, the new company was divided into two divisions based on product technology. The Paper Division had its headquarters in Springfield Mill in the UK and the newly formed Chemical Separations Division was located in Clifton, NJ. The Chemical Separations Division continued to pioneer the development of HPLC Column technology along with related thin layer (TLC) and ion chromatography (IEC). Whatman was recognized as the world-leading supplier of these important analytical technologies. In addition, HPLC and ion chromatography were able to be scaled up to allow these techniques to be used on a production level for processing large volumes of material for commercial purposes. In 1983, Whatman Reeve Angel was contracted to install a Process Liquid Chromatography System at the GD Searle Company for the production of a new synthetic sweetener called Aspartame.
Whatman paper and membrane innovations continued to enable scientific advancements at a rapid pace. As the demand grew for filtration and adsorption solutions for the biosciences, Whatman developed specialized membranes and media to allow the sensitive separation and analytical techniques required for biomolecular research.
Recently introduced patented FTA® technology is revolutionizing the handling and storage of DNA. With this unique technology, it is now possible to collect, transport, store and purify DNA safely and securely at room temperature, eliminating the need for expensive freezers.
With the new capability provided by FTA technology, researchers and scientists in many different disciplines, in laboratories throughout the world, are discovering the benefits for archiving virtually any type of biological sample for DNA analysis: Researchers are able to store and retrieve their DNA clones with unprecedented ease. Forensic scientists are using FTA technology to collect and store evidence and to build a criminal identification database. Animal breeders and agriculturalists can use FTA to monitor food origins and food safety. Because FTA technology provides a simple solution for obtaining samples from remote locations, it is being used for plant studies and other field operations.
FTA technology is just one of the exciting life science innovations that Whatman will introduce to support the important pioneering research in genomics and emerging field of proteomics.
Given his penchant for providing customers with truly innovative solutions, James Whatman would be pleased.
With the dawn of World War One, the Balston company was presented with a unique opportunity. They were approached by an anxious government which needed filter papers, particularly for steel and armament production, as previous supplies had come from Germany. It was to be an event which changed the direction of the business, and from that time production increasingly switched from handmade fine papers to scientific filters.
As the world became increasingly fascinated with, and reliant on, advances in science and technology, making filter papers for use by laboratories, hospitals, schools as well as industry became the company’s clear path to expansion.
In 1914, W & R Balston appointed Reeve Angel International in New York as its exclusive sales representative in the burgeoning North American market. Having access now to US government requirements during two world wars, plus the rapidly expanding industrial, scientific, and health care markets, contributed significantly to the company’s growth.