I've been making Synthetic Oligonucleotides for a living since 1998.
That year I joined Genosys Biotechnologies in The Woodlands, Texas. My first job was operating a custom oligonucleotide synthesizer, the Abacus. It was the world's fastest, high throughput synthesizer at the time, and the same platform created at Baylor to meet the demands of the Human Genome Project. I spent the next couple of years on the production floor, making oligonucleotides and learning "the business" so to speak. Later, I moved over to R&D where I spent my remaining years at Genosys validating SOPs for ISO 9001 compliance, using root cause analysis to find synthesis failures, and validating the first 96 well plate synthesizer, the ARK, into production. I even survived my first corporate acquisition when Genosys became Sigma-Genosys after being sold to Sigma-Aldrich.
That's where the work that defines my career started, and it hasn't really stopped.
Over the next two decades I moved through every layer of the oligonucleotide business. At Xeotron I managed microarray production, synthesizing gene arrays on microfluidic chips, and led the technology transfer to Invitrogen, which was my 2nd acquisition experience. Once the transfer was finalized, I moved on to bioTX Automation, where I rebuilt a struggling instrument company's sales and marketing function and shipped a redesigned, copy-protected software product.
Next was BioAutomation, where I ran technical support and product development for the entire line of MerMade DNA/RNA Synthesizers for over 13 years. I worked hands-on with the machines and engineering team, providing new insight for machine improvements that increased customer satisfaction and loyalty. In 2018, I said "NO" to another acquisition and decided to move on...
In 2019, I started Oligo Solutions, LLC.
Why this matters to you:
The oligo synthesis industry today doesn't look like it did when I started. Recent industry consolidation has hollowed out hands-on expertise, and destroyed all tribal knowledge. One private-equity holding company has rolled up four legacy companies with long standing reputations in both equipment and consumable manufacturing. Another has consolidated three more. The names on the doors may be the same, but the people who actually understood the equipment, the chemistry, and the failure modes did not come along for the ride.
What that means in practice: when you call support at one of the consolidated players, you're often talking to someone who joined after the acquisition, working from a knowledge base assembled by people who have already left. The tribal knowledge — the kind you only get with 28 years of actual oligo synthesis experience, just isn't there.
That's the gap Oligo Solutions seeks to close.
What you get when you work with me:
- 28 years of continuous, hands-on experience with automated DNA synthesis platforms — from custom university-built instruments to high-throughput, multi-well production systems
- Direct relationships with the manufacturers and chemistry suppliers behind the products you depend on — built over decades, not inherited from a slide deck
- A single owner-operator on the other end of the email — not a tier-1 ticket queue
- The same root-cause discipline I learned on the Genosys production floor, from some of the original founders of this industry, applied to your synthesizer, your reagents, and your workflow
If you need parts, columns, trap-paks, or have a question about any machine or synthesis in general give us a call or email. We are here to help.
-John Thielmier, Owner