Quick answer. The decision most often got wrong in this range is fume hood, laminar air flow cabinet or bio-safety cabinet, and the three are not interchangeable. A fume hood (ALI-0095, ALI-0096) draws air away from the operator and protects the person from fumes. A laminar air flow cabinet (ALI-0097 to ALI-0099) blows filtered air towards the operator and protects only the sample, so it must never be used for hazardous, toxic or infectious material. A bio-safety cabinet (ALI-0100) protects operator and sample together. Name the hazard and the job first; the autoclaves, furnaces, centrifuges and baths then follow from capacity and temperature.
This is Ray Export's general laboratory equipment range, catalogued in the ALI series from ALI-0001 to ALI-0132 across fourteen pages. It is the capital equipment a laboratory is built around rather than analytical instrumentation in the measurement sense: autoclaves and sterilisers in portable and vertical patterns, muffle and industrial furnaces, centrifuges, water, oil and ultrasonic baths, and the containment equipment, meaning fume hoods, laminar air flow cabinets and bio-safety cabinets.
| Family | Codes seen | Items as listed |
|---|---|---|
| Autoclaves and sterilisers | ALI-0001 onwards | Portable autoclaves in stainless steel wing nut type, aluminium pressure cooker type and stainless pressure cooker type; vertical autoclaves with nut locking; double walled vertical with radial locking; triple wall vertical high pressure with radial or nut locking, and versions with a steam jacket |
| Furnaces | ALI-0041 to ALI-0045 | Muffle furnaces with digital temperature controller and with PID controller, in stainless steel; grooved type industrial furnaces, plain and with digital controller |
| Centrifuges | ALI-0046 to ALI-0050 | Hand centrifuge in economy and heavy patterns, round type economy centrifuge, clinical centrifuge, economy centrifuge |
| Baths | ALI-0091 to ALI-0094 | Cylindrical high temperature oil bath, cylindrical water bath, shaking water bath, ultrasonic bath or sonicator |
| Containment and clean air | ALI-0095 to ALI-0100 | Fume hoods in mild steel and stainless steel; vertical suspended ceiling mounted stainless laminar air flow; laminar air flow dispensing and sampling units; mild steel laminar air flow bio-safety cabinet |
| Field meters | ALI-0132 | Soil pH and moisture meter |
This is the distinction most often got wrong on an enquiry, and getting it wrong has safety consequences, so it is worth stating plainly.
| Fume hood (ALI-0095, ALI-0096) | Laminar air flow cabinet (ALI-0097 to ALI-0099) | |
|---|---|---|
| Airflow direction | Draws air away from the operator and exhausts it | Blows filtered air across the work towards the operator |
| What it protects | The operator, from fumes, vapours and dusts coming off the sample | The sample, from airborne contamination |
| What it does NOT do | It is not a clean-air workspace | It does not protect the operator. A laminar flow cabinet must not be used for hazardous, toxic or infectious material. |
| Typical use | Solvent and acid work, digestions, anything generating fumes | Media plating, sterile dispensing, cell culture preparation |
A bio-safety cabinet (ALI-0100) is a third thing again: it is designed to protect the operator and the sample together. Bio-safety cabinets come in classes with different containment capability, so if you need one, ask explicitly which class the unit is, which standard it is built and tested to, whether it is ducted or recirculating, and ask for the filter test certificate. Do not treat a laminar air flow cabinet and a bio-safety cabinet as alternatives to each other.
| Specification | How to choose |
|---|---|
| Portable or vertical | Portable units suit a small teaching lab and a modest load. Vertical units take a larger load from the top and are the usual choice where sterilisation is a daily routine. |
| Locking: wing nut, nut locking or radial | Wing nut and nut locking are clamped by hand, bolt by bolt: cheaper, slower, and the clamping depends on the operator. Radial locking closes the lid with one movement and clamps evenly, which saves time on every cycle and reduces the chance of a poor seal. For several cycles a day, radial locking usually repays itself. |
| Single, double or triple wall | More walls mean more insulation: less heat loss, a cooler outer surface, and more stable pressure. A triple wall high pressure unit is specified where cycles run back to back. |
| Steam jacket | A jacket keeps the chamber hot between cycles, so the next load comes up to temperature faster. Worth it only if you run repeated cycles. |
| Stainless steel or aluminium | Aluminium is lighter and cheaper; stainless steel resists corrosion and is the sensible choice for a long service life or for anything other than clean water and glassware. |
| Always ask for | Chamber size in litres and its usable dimensions, working pressure and temperature, heater rating and supply voltage, which safety devices are fitted (pressure gauge, safety valve, low water cut-off), and whether the cycle is timed or manual. If sterilisation has to be documented, ask whether a printer or data log is available. |
| Family | What to specify |
|---|---|
| Muffle furnace | Maximum temperature, chamber size, and the controller. A digital controller sets and displays a target; a PID controller actively limits overshoot and holds the set point more closely, which matters for ashing and loss-on-ignition work where the temperature has to be held within a band. Ask for the heating element type and the availability of spare elements, since that is the part that fails. |
| Centrifuge | Give the tube size and number of tubes, and ask for the maximum speed in rpm and the relative centrifugal force, because a protocol specifies RCF rather than rpm and the two are not interchangeable between rotors. Hand centrifuges (ALI-0046, ALI-0047) need no power but cannot hold a speed; a clinical centrifuge (ALI-0049) is sized for blood tubes. |
| Water bath or oil bath | A water bath is limited by the boiling point of water, so above about 100 C an oil bath (ALI-0091) is the correct choice. Ask for the temperature range, the stability in degrees, the bath volume and whether a lid and rack are included. |
| Shaking water bath | ALI-0093 adds agitation for incubation work. Ask for the shaking speed range and the stroke. |
| Ultrasonic bath | ALI-0094 is for cleaning and degassing, not for temperature-controlled incubation. Ask for the tank volume, the ultrasonic frequency and power, and whether heating is included. |
These are capital items, so confirm the supply voltage, frequency and plug type for your country; what is included and what is an extra; the warranty term; whether installation and operator training are offered; and the availability of spares and service in your market. Any performance figure quoted for these instruments is confirmed in writing on the quotation: ask for its source and verify it against your own requirement before you order.
Further autoclaves, sterilisers and shakers are under Autoclaves, Sterilizers and Shakers, and clinical sterilisers under Autoclaves and Sterilizers for Medical Lab. Cold storage is under Lab Refrigerator and Freezer, weighing under Laboratory Balances, and measuring instruments under Measuring Lab Instruments. Pharmaceutical production and QC plant is under Pharmaceutical Lab Equipments. Parent range: Scientific Lab Equipments.
Give the code, the capacity or chamber size, the temperature or speed you need and your supply voltage, for example Autoclave, Triple Wall, Vertical, High Pressure, Radial Locking with Steam Jacket (ALI-0010) with the chamber litres you need, or Muffle Furnace, PID Controller (ALI-0042) with the maximum temperature. Contact Ray Export for prices, specifications and lead times.
They do opposite jobs. A fume hood (ALI-0095 in mild steel, ALI-0096 in stainless steel) draws air away from the operator and exhausts it, protecting the person from fumes, vapours and dusts during solvent, acid and digestion work; it is not a clean-air workspace. A laminar air flow cabinet (ALI-0097 to ALI-0099) blows filtered air across the work towards the operator, protecting the sample from contamination for media plating, sterile dispensing and cell culture preparation. It does not protect the operator and must not be used for hazardous, toxic or infectious material.
When you must protect the operator and the sample at the same time, typically with infectious material. It is a third kind of cabinet, not an upgraded laminar flow unit, so do not treat the two as alternatives. Bio-safety cabinets come in classes with different containment capability, so ask explicitly which class the unit is, what it is built and tested to, whether it is ducted or recirculating, and for the filter test documentation. For certificates, contact us for the latest copies of the relevant certificates.
Portable units suit a small teaching lab and a modest load; vertical units take a larger load from the top and suit daily sterilisation. Wing nut and nut locking are clamped by hand, bolt by bolt, and depend on the operator; radial locking closes the lid in one movement and clamps evenly, which usually repays itself at several cycles a day. More walls mean less heat loss and a cooler outer surface, and a steam jacket helps only with repeated cycles. Stainless steel resists corrosion; aluminium is lighter.
The muffle furnaces sit in ALI-0041 to ALI-0045, with digital temperature controller and PID controller versions. A digital controller sets and displays a target; a PID controller actively limits overshoot and holds the set point more closely, which matters for ashing and loss-on-ignition work where the temperature must stay within a band. Ask for the maximum temperature, the chamber size, the heating element type and the availability of spare elements, since the element is the part that fails.
Give the tube size and number of tubes, then ask for the maximum speed in rpm and the relative centrifugal force. A protocol specifies RCF rather than rpm, and the two are not interchangeable between rotors, so rpm alone does not tell you whether a centrifuge will do the job. The hand centrifuges ALI-0046 and ALI-0047 need no power but cannot hold a speed, while the clinical centrifuge ALI-0049 is sized for blood tubes.
A water bath is limited by the boiling point of water, so above about 100 deg C the oil bath ALI-0091 is the correct choice. The shaking water bath ALI-0093 adds agitation for incubation; ask for its shaking speed range and stroke. The ultrasonic bath ALI-0094 is for cleaning and degassing, not temperature-controlled incubation; ask for the tank volume, ultrasonic frequency and power, and whether heating is included. For any bath, ask the temperature range, stability in degrees, volume and whether a lid and rack are supplied.
Ray Export is a manufacturer and exporter of laboratory, scientific and educational equipment based at Plot No. 449, HSIIDC Industrial Area, Saha, Ambala, Haryana 133104, India. Enquiries: [email protected], +91-9817319615.
Written by Palak Mall, Senior Content Writer. Technically reviewed by Arvind Kumar, Lab Equipment Specialist, 12+ years in laboratory and testing instrumentation. Last updated: 17 October 2026.
Specifications for the ALI range, including chamber size, working pressure, maximum temperature, speed and RCF, and cabinet class, are confirmed in writing on the quotation. For certificates, contact us for the latest copies of the relevant certificates. No price is quoted on this page. Listing notes: the range runs ALI-0001 to ALI-0132, but the families described account only for ALI-0001 to ALI-0050, ALI-0091 to ALI-0100 and ALI-0132, leaving ALI-0051 to ALI-0090 and ALI-0101 to ALI-0131 undescribed; and ALI-0132, a soil pH and moisture meter, is a field instrument rather than general laboratory equipment.
| Pure Water: | 7.0 |
| Lemon Juice: | 2.2 to 2.4 |
| Orange Juice: | 3.4 to 4.0 |
| Fresh Milk: | 6.3 to 6.6 |
| Mild Soap Solution: | 8.5 to 10.0 |
| Most Ontario soils: | 4.5 to 8.0 |
Login
Register
+91 9817319615
