The JANUS™ automated workstation is designed for the efficient automation of sample preparation procedures utilized in pharmaceutical, biotech and research applications. The instrument consists of a modular platform that enables one pipetting arm with different tip configurations as well as one plate movement arm on a single workstation. The JANUS platform allows for one or two arms in a variety of combinations with the option to upgrade a one-arm system to a two-arm system. Liquid transfers can be performed in a multi-tipped mode from any combination of laboratory containers including 384-well formats for complete and flexible assay automation. JANUS is controlled by a Windows® XP compatible computer. Three different JANUS platforms are available.