PSS - Polmer Standards Service

Feb. 1985

PSS founded by 2 PhD students at the Physical Chemistry Department, University of Mainz.

1985

Trial period for real-life market analysis for polymer standards; business setup at University facilities.

1986 to 1987

Company expands staff and products including tailor-made polymers, organic GPC columns, GPC software.

1988

Company moves to own facilities located in a Mainz suburb; introduces aqueous GPC columns, new polymer standards for aqueous applications, GPC co-polymer analysis tools and runs contract analysis lab.

1988

PSS gains market leadership (and keeps it until today) in Germany with its polymer standards, custom polymer synthesis, GPC software, GPC method development.

1989

PSS offers turn-key systems for polymer research, process control and quality insurance, GPC/SEC viscometry, GPC/SEC light scattering.

1990

Beginning of highly successful and comprehensive GPC/SEC training schools.

1991

Introduction of new PSS GPC Data Station 2000 for conventional, co-polymer and viscometric analysis.

1992

Launching into particle sizing business offering particle sizing instruments and standards.

1993

PSS enlarges its facilities to double lab and office space; new PSS Data Station available for WINDOWS and OS/2 platforms.

1994

PSS opens its US office in Houston, Texas; PSS starts marketing its 2-dimensional chromatography technique with dramatically improved resolution and separation efficiency.

1995

The PSS-USA office moved to Silver Spring, Maryland; PSS WinGPC software available for all graphical environments; introduction of new 10 000 000 Å GPC columns and Polar Fluoro Gel (PFG) for semi-crystalline polymers. PSS becomes HP Channel Partner for polymer characterization.

1996

PSS focuses on intelligent detector combination techniques; LC combinations with FTIR allow a better understanding of product formulations.
PSS and Lab Connections (Marlborough, USA) start a cooperation.

1997

PSS offers SUPREMA, a new generation of aqueous SEC/GPC/GFC columns allowing separations of samples with Mw up to 100 million g/mol.
PSS introduces ReadyCal standards for ease-of-use in calibration.

1998

Sale of flow-tube reactor starts. It allows lab scale continuous synthesis and investigation of fast kinetics; LC-MALDI combinations become a reality with LC Transform 500.
Development of GRAM, new columns material with medium polarity.
PSS gains DIN/EN/ISO 9001 certification.

1999

PSS becomes channel partner for Agilent Technologies. 
PSS introduces POLEFIN, new HT GPC Columns for up to 210°C separations.
The PSS Magic Triangle visualizes the different material polarities for a broad range of different solvents/applications.
PSS enlarges the analytical service department.

2000

PSS introduces HighSpeed columns: fast high speed GPC with separations in 2 minutes is no longer a dream....

2001

PSS is moving. During 2001 PSS was building a new home for the company. In december 2001 PSS finaly moved into the new building. The new facilities enables PSS to improve business as well as customer service and products.

2002

PSS introduces Certified Reference Materials developed and characterized together with the Federal Institute for Material science and testing (BAM).
PSS is introducing the PSS SUPREMA Lux Light scattering GPC columns.
PSS is launching a new data base supported homepage including a direct business shop.
PSS presents a new multi angle laser light scattering detector on Analytica 2002.

2003

PSS introduces WinGPC Unity, the first Macromolecular Chromatography Data system (MCDS) that supports all GPC/SEC methods and all GPC/SEC detectors on the market.

2004

PSS expands the contract analysis labs and offers dedicated additive analysis. The high temperature GPC capacity was doubled to ensure timely analysis in all fields of characterization.

2005

PSS celebrates its 20th anniversary with several activities, including a mini symposium at the BPS 2005 with well known scientists.
PSS introduces PROTEEMA columns for protein analysis with highest resolution.

2006

PSS introduces EasyValid, the first dedicated GPC/SEC validation kit, that offers a quick and easy system suitability test independent on instrument brand.
PSS offers a internet publication database for the NetCommunity members. The column application database allows users to search for optimum GPC/SEC analysis conditions.

2007

PSS introduces standards for membrane characterization and launches a totally revamped new website.

2008

PSS and Tosoh Bioscience start a cooperation to promote and distribute the EcoSEC semi-micro GPC instrument in the European market. PSS expands its HT-GPC service analysis capabilities and offers detailed analysis of composition, short chain and long chain branching for poly(olefins) using IR detection.