robsonscientific.co.uk

The Robson Scientific site (robsonscientific.co.uk) puts all four entry points in the top navigation bar and the header strip: Price List for product pricing, Welcome login or create an account for account access, My Basket / Checkout for ordering, and About Us / Contact Us for company and contact information. The same header also shows a currency selector (€ £ $) and a basket counter, so you can confirm you are on the right page before browsing the catalogue.

Price List

The Price List link sits in the top navigation, next to "My Account" and "My Basket." The site also lists "Product Price List" as a page heading, so this is the place to check pricing for the catalogue items — laboratory glassware, quartz tubing and rod, optical windows and polished discs, and the fluoride and sapphire optics.

Two practical notes:

• Prices are shown in the currency you select in the header (€, £ or $). Switch currency first if you are comparing against a budget in a specific currency.
• The site describes a full technical advisory service for design and application questions, and states that orders are handled the same way whether for a "one off" or thousands of pieces. For custom or close-tolerance items, expect to confirm specifications through that advisory route rather than relying on the list price alone.

Account Login and Registration

The header reads "Welcome login or create an account." Use it to:

• Log in to an existing account (for example, to see your basket or order history).
• Register a new account before checkout.

The basket counter next to it ("Your Basket 0 item(s)") confirms whether anything is waiting in your basket. If you only want to browse the price list, no login is needed to view the catalogue pages.

Basket and Checkout

My Basket and Checkout are separate links in the top strip. The flow is: add items from the product pages → review in My Basket → proceed to Checkout. Because the basket shows a running total in your selected currency, it is the quickest way to sanity-check an order before committing.

About Us and Contact Us

Both links are in the main navigation. Use them for:

• About Us — company background: established in 1988, a supplier of quartz scientific glassware using industrial glass-blowing techniques, specialising in lathe-drawn quartz tubing and serving the semiconductor, optical fibre, water sterilisation and lamp industries.
• Contact Us — the route for enquiries, including the technical advisory service for design and application questions, and for quoting custom fabricated parts.

Quick Reference

Common Sticking Points

• Currency mismatch: the header selector changes the displayed currency; check it before reading prices off the list.
• Custom vs. standard items: the site separates standard catalogue items from fabricated-to-order work. If a part is not in the standard list, the Price List will not cover it — use Contact Us and the advisory service.
• Empty basket confusion: the header always shows a basket count; a "0 item(s)" reading means nothing has been added yet, not that the basket is broken.

Robson Scientific lists two main product groups: quartz laboratory glassware (tubing, rod, wool, joints, stopcocks, flasks and beakers) and optical components (polished discs, plates and windows in quartz, UV-grade silica, sapphire, magnesium fluoride and calcium fluoride). Both standard catalogue items and made-to-order fabrication are offered, and the site states that high-purity fused quartz of 99.995% SiO₂ is used throughout manufacturing. If you need a stock lab item, browse the price list; if you need a custom dimension or assembly, the site points to its technical advisory service and order-by-specification route.

Laboratory glassware

The site's navigation groups these items under Laboratory Glassware:

• Stock shapes: quartz tubing, quartz rod, quartz wool, quartz sintered discs
• Jointware: spherical joints (balls and cups), conical joints (cones and sockets), quartz screw threads, quartz stopcocks
• Seals: quartz-to-borosilicate graded seals
• Vessels: round bottom, flat bottom and conical flasks (with optional sockets), wide-form and tall-form beakers

The company describes itself as a specialist in lathe-drawn quartz tubing and says it can supply close-tolerance material fabricated to order. That matters if your task is, for example, matching a tube to an existing apparatus rather than buying a catalogue size — the tubing line is where made-to-order work is most directly relevant.

Optical components

Under Optical Windows and related pages, the site lists polished discs and plates in several materials:

The Optical Engineering section states that windows can be circular, square or rectangular, and flat, curved or stepped, covering applications from the near infrared to the ultraviolet. Material choice should follow your transmission band: UV-grade silica and quartz for UV work, sapphire where hardness or broad-band durability matters, and the fluoride materials where their transmission range is the deciding factor. The site does not publish transmission curves or tolerance tables in the supplied content, so confirm those specifications directly before ordering.

Purity, quality control and custom work

The site states that 99.995% SiO₂ fused quartz is used throughout manufacturing, with quality control at each process step. It also states that every order receives the same attention whether it is a one-off or thousands of pieces, and that a technical advisory service is available to help with design and application. Use that service when your requirement is a non-standard joint assembly, a stepped window, or a tube tolerance not shown on the site.

How to decide where to start

• Replacing a standard lab part (beaker, flask, joint, stopcock): check the Product Price List for the size and form, then order.
• Building or repairing apparatus (tubing, graded seals, custom joints): contact the company with a drawing and dimensions, since close-tolerance tubing is fabricated to order.
• Selecting an optical window: pick the material by spectral range first, then confirm flat/curved/stepped geometry and dimensions with the technical advisory service.

The site displays prices in €, £ and $ with a basket and checkout, so listed items appear purchasable online; custom fabrication and specification queries go through the ordering and contact routes rather than the basket.

Robson Scientific supplies optical components made from fused quartz, borosilicate, sapphire, magnesium fluoride and calcium fluoride, covering applications from the near-infrared to the ultraviolet spectral region. Components can be fabricated as circular, square or rectangular windows in flat, curved or stepped forms. The site also lists UV-grade silica polished discs, plates and slides, sapphire and fluoride polished discs and plates, and B 270 crown glass slides. Exact transmission ranges, tolerances and coatings for each material are not stated on the page, so confirm those specifications with the company before ordering.

Materials Listed for Optical Work

The Optical Engineering section names five optical materials:

Separately, the product list includes UV-grade silica polished discs, UV-grade silica polished plates and UV-grade silica polished slides, plus B 270 crown glass slides. The site describes the overall optical range as spanning the near-infrared to the ultraviolet, but it does not publish a transmission curve or cutoff wavelength for each material on this page.

Component Shapes and Forms

According to the page, optical components can be fabricated into:

• Circular windows
• Square windows
• Rectangular windows
• Flat, curved and stepped window profiles

The catalogue also lists finished polished items by material — discs, plates and slides — which suits buyers who want a standard polished part rather than a custom window.

How the Materials Differ in Practice

The page does not give spectral data, so the following is general guidance on why these materials appear together in one supplier's range, not a statement of Robson Scientific's specifications:

• Fused quartz and UV-grade silica are typically chosen for UV-to-visible work where high purity matters. Robson Scientific states that high-purity fused quartz (99.995% SiO₂) is used throughout its manufacturing.
• Sapphire is generally selected where hardness and durability are priorities alongside broad transmission.
• Magnesium fluoride and calcium fluoride are commonly used for UV and infrared windows respectively, depending on the wavelength band.

For a specific application, ask the company for the transmission range and any grading of the material you intend to use. The site mentions a "full technical advisory service" to help customers choose the best design and application.

Matching a Product to Your Requirement

Use this sequence to narrow the catalogue:

1. Define your wavelength band (UV, visible or near-infrared). This determines whether quartz/silica, a fluoride, or sapphire is the sensible starting point.
2. Choose a form: a standard polished disc, plate or slide if one fits; otherwise a custom window in circular, square or rectangular shape.
3. Specify the profile: flat, curved or stepped, if a custom window is needed.
4. Confirm the details the page does not state — dimensions, tolerances, surface quality and coatings — directly with Robson Scientific before ordering.

What the Page Does Not Cover

The site excerpt does not list prices for optical components, transmission specifications, standard sizes, or ordering and delivery terms. The presence of a basket and checkout on the site indicates online ordering exists, but the page does not confirm which items can be bought directly versus made to order. Treat any assumption of stock availability or pricing as unverified until confirmed with the supplier.

For buyers comparing suppliers, the practical differentiator here is the combination of custom window fabrication across five materials with a stated advisory service, rather than published optical specifications. Request the data you need — transmission range, tolerance and coating options — as part of your enquiry.

Robson Scientific (robsonscientific.co.uk) is a UK-based supplier of fused quartz and silica scientific glassware, established in 1988. The site is a product catalogue and ordering portal for laboratory glassware, quartz tubing and rod, and optical components, aimed at industry and research buyers. It is not a general lab-supply store: the focus is quartz and silica fabrication, including custom work to order.

Company identity and positioning

According to the site, Robson Scientific is "widely recognised as a leading supplier of quartz scientific glassware using industrial glass blowing techniques." Two points define what you can expect:

• Specialism in lathe-drawn quartz tubing, including close-tolerance material fabricated to order.
• High-purity material: fused quartz at 99.995% SiO₂ is used throughout manufacturing, with quality control at each process step.

The site also states that glass blowers combine traditional craftsmanship with modern facilities, and that products range from simple glassware to complex quartz laboratory apparatus.

What the website offers

Laboratory glassware (quartz)

The catalogue lists a broad set of quartz lab items, including:

• Quartz tubing, rod and wool
• Quartz sintered discs
• Spherical joints (balls and cups) and conical joints (cones and sockets)
• Quartz screw threads and stopcocks
• Quartz-to-borosilicate graded seals
• Round bottom, flat bottom and conical flasks, with optional sockets
• Wide-form and tall-form beakers

Optical components

A separate Optical Engineering section covers components for applications "ranging from the near Infrared to the ultraviolet spectral region." Materials listed are quartz, borosilicate, sapphire, magnesium fluoride and calcium fluoride, fabricated into windows (flat, curved and stepped) and other components. The catalogue also lists:

• Quartz polished discs and plates
• UV-grade silica polished discs, plates and slides
• Sapphire, magnesium fluoride and calcium fluoride polished discs and plates
• B 270 crown glass slides

Services

• Custom fabrication to order, from one-off pieces to thousands of pieces; the site states every order receives the same level of care.
• Lathe-drawn quartz tubing in close tolerances.
• Technical advisory service to help customers choose the best design and application for their requirements.

Who it is for

The site names the semiconductor, optical fibre, water sterilisation and lamp industries as customer sectors, alongside general research use. If your work involves UV-to-IR optical windows, high-purity quartz apparatus, or custom quartz tube assemblies, the catalogue and advisory service are the relevant entry points.

Practical notes before you order

• Pricing: the site shows a basket and a "Product Price List" link, but no prices appear in the available page content. Check the price list or request a quote rather than assuming listed pricing.
• Account and checkout: the header includes "Welcome login or create an account," "My Account," "My Basket" and "Checkout," so ordering appears to run through an account-based basket. Whether guest checkout exists is not stated.
• Currency: a € / £ / $ selector is shown, so pricing display may be switchable by currency.
• Custom work: for non-standard items, the stated route is direct contact through the advisory service rather than catalogue ordering.

The most efficient way to use the site is to identify whether your item is a standard catalogue product (glassware or optics) or a custom fabrication, then use the price list or contact route accordingly.

Robson Scientific (robsonscientific.co.uk) accepts custom work as well as standard catalogue items: the site states that orders can range from a "one off" to thousands of pieces, and that lathe-drawn quartz tubing can be supplied as close-tolerance material fabricated to order. To start a custom order, use the site's technical advisory service to agree the design and application first, then confirm the item through the account, basket and checkout route shown on the site. The catalogue and price list cover standard laboratory glassware and optical components; bespoke fabrication is described as a service rather than an online configurator, so expect to discuss specifications before ordering.

What the site lists for standard purchase

The published catalogue is organised into three groups:

Materials named for optical work are quartz, borosilicate, sapphire, magnesium fluoride and calcium fluoride. The site states that high purity fused quartz (99.995% SiO₂) is used throughout manufacturing, with quality control at each process step.

Ordering route shown on the site

The page evidence shows a basket, account login/registration, price list, my account, my basket and checkout. The practical sequence is:

1. Check the price list for the standard item closest to your requirement.
2. Create an account or log in to place and track an order.
3. Add items to the basket and proceed to checkout for catalogue products.
4. For non-standard work, contact the technical advisory service before ordering — the site describes this as support for choosing the best design and application, and custom fabrication is quoted around your specification rather than selected from a menu.

The site does not publish custom-order lead times, minimum quantities or fabrication tolerances beyond the close-tolerance statement for lathe-drawn tubing, so these need to be confirmed directly.

When this supplier fits your requirement

• You need quartz apparatus rather than off-the-shelf glass: the range is built around quartz scientific glassware made with industrial glass blowing techniques, including joints, stopcocks and graded seals to borosilicate.
• You need a single prototype or a production run: the site explicitly covers both "one off" and thousands of pieces under the same process.
• You need tight dimensional control on tubing: lathe-drawn quartz tubing is offered as close-tolerance material fabricated to order.
• You need optical parts across a wide spectral range: windows and polished discs/plates are offered in quartz, UV grade silica, sapphire and fluoride materials, from near infrared to ultraviolet.
• You need design input: a technical advisory service is offered alongside the standard items.

If you need an instant online price for a fully bespoke part, this is not a self-service configurator — the design conversation comes first. Established in 1988, the company describes itself as a leading supplier to the semiconductor, optical fibre, water sterilisation and lamp industries, which is a useful signal if your application sits in those areas.

Practical checks before you order

• Confirm the material grade against your spectral or thermal requirement (fused quartz versus UV grade silica versus sapphire or fluorides).
• For custom joints or apparatus, specify the mating parts — the catalogue separates balls from cups and cones from sockets, and graded seals to borosilicate are a distinct item.
• Ask for the tolerance and inspection documentation for lathe-drawn tubing if the part is dimensionally critical.
• Verify current pricing and availability through the price list and basket rather than relying on any figure quoted elsewhere.