How we turned Shake Flasks into Smart Systems
MY ROLE
Sole UX/UI Designer
TEAM
Cross-functional, agile team
TIME FRAME
2021 – 2024
DOTS is a platform that transforms traditional shake flasks into intelligent bioreactors, giving scientists access to real-time data and automation during cell culture experiments.
I joined Aquila Biolabs (part of Scientific Bioprocessing Inc.) as the only designer on the R&D team, working closely with scientists, engineers, and developers to shape the DOTS software experience – from concept to system design.
The problem
Bioprocessing is complex…
Scientists were using disconnected tools, manually logging data, and struggling with fragmented workflows.
DOTS aimed to solve that – but it needed an interface that could bring it all together.
Challenges
📊
Too much data
Scientists were tracking oxygen, biomass, temperature, and more – but the data wasn’t easy to understand at a glance.
🧪
Manual inputs everywhere
🔌
Tools didn’t talk to each other
Most systems weren’t integrated, making the research process feel slow and disjointed.
My approach
I focused on creating a system that was clear, scalable, and actually helpful in a lab environment. I worked directly with scientists to understand what they needed – and then translated that into:
🧩 A modular design system in Figma
🖥️ Clean UI flows for experiment setup, live monitoring, and alerts
🎨 Icon sets and visual assets tailored to biotech use cases
⚡ Fast, testable UI prototypes for feedback and iteration
💧 Visual logic for features like LIS (automated nutrient delivery)
This wasn’t a handoff-style design process – I was in every sprint, workshop, and user review, continuously improving how the software functioned and felt.
Collaboration
The dev team was sharp. The scientists were generous with insights. Everyone cared about building something that actually worked.
We ran weekly sessions to test ideas, refine features, and push the interface toward something both precise and usable.
Outcomes
🚀
👩🔬
A platform that let scientists focus on research, not troubleshooting.
📊
Real-time visuals and automated controls that made experiments more consistent and repeatable.
💡
Feedback from the team and early adopters confirmed what we hoped: it just made sense.
Reflections
This project taught me a lot about designing for complexity – and about what it takes to make something feel simple without oversimplifying.
DOTS is a powerful tool, and I’m proud of the clarity we brought to it. Designing with scientists is no joke – but it’s some of the most rewarding work I’ve done.
Full recommendation available here