Sphere Fluidics, a leading provider of innovative microfluidic-based solutions for single-cell analysis and isolation, today announced the appointment of Dale Levitzke as CEO, effective immediately, as Dr. Frank F. Craig, its current CEO and co-founder. retirement.
Dale joins Sphere Fluidics with over 25 years of experience in the life science tools, biopharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, where he has built a strong track record of successfully driving innovation, commercial development and IPO strategies. In the role of CEO, Dale will shape Sphere Fluidics’ future commercial operations and advance the Company’s ongoing global expansion strategy to reach new customers and create shareholder value.
Throughout his career, Dale has focused on supporting innovative early-stage and VC-backed tool companies and guiding them to global market success. Prior to joining Sphere Fluidics, he was Senior Vice President of Global Sales and Support at Vizgen, in which role he built a global commercial infrastructure and rapidly scaled the Company’s operations. Prior to that, as Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Marketing at Dropworks Inc., Dale’s contributions were instrumental in the development of a comprehensive Digital Droplet PCR platform, and his strategic leadership culminated in the company’s acquisition by Bio-Rad for 125 million dollars. He also held key senior positions leading commercial expansion at NanoString Technologies, Illumina Inc., and Helixis Inc. Dale holds a BSc (Hons) in Molecular Biology and Genetics from La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia.
Dr. Frank F. Craig co-founded Sphere Fluidics, along with Prof. Chris Abell and Prof. Wilhelm Huck, before becoming CEO in 2010. During this time, he led the commercialization of new products and R&D services leveraging its proprietary picodroplet technology Company. and uniquely positioned it in the life science tools industry to address a growing portfolio of markets, including biologics discovery, cell therapy and synthetic biology. Sphere Fluidics has a proven track record with over 400 international customers, including partnerships with seven of the world’s top 10 pharmaceutical companies, over £40m of investment (from prestigious angel and VC funds) and a portfolio of 135 international patents. The Company is well positioned to drive this next phase of commercial development.
Sphere Fluidics’ picodroplet technology and microfluidics platforms are transforming the capabilities of single cell analysis and isolation, bringing new possibilities to biopharmaceutical research and development. I would like to thank Frank for his commitment to developing a company that prides itself on providing high quality products and services to its customers. I look forward to joining the team as it continues to lead and drive its ambitious plans for commercial growth, international expansion and eventual exit.”
Dale Levitzke, Incoming CEO, Sphere Fluidics;
Dr. Frank F. Craig, outgoing CEO, Sphere Fluidics, commented: “It has been a privilege to serve as CEO of Sphere Fluidics for over 14 years and I am delighted to hand over the baton to Dale as he takes over as CEO. His experience in driving innovation and commercial success will be instrumental in driving Sphere Fluidics’ ambitious strategic vision and plans for commercial growth.”
