About INSS

Independent NeuroScience Services (INSS) was founded in 2016 to offer neuroscience labs an alternative to ready-made, one-size-fits-all microscopes. We build bespoke and highly customisable Multiphoton systems that are tailored specifically to your experiments, budget, and lab environment. You get the performance and flexibility of a top‑end custom rig, typically at a substantially lower cost than a comparable commercial turn‑key system. Independent NeuroScience Services (INSS) was founded in 2016 to provide the neuroscience community with a new value proposition: instead of selling ready-made one-size-fits-all microscopes, we build bespoke and highly customisable Multiphoton systems that are tailored specifically to your experiments, budget, and lab environment. You get the performance and flexibility of a top‑end custom rig, typically at a substantially lower cost than a comparable commercial turn‑key system.

Our core model is what we call “Assisted DIY”. We take care of the design, procurement, pre‑assembly, integration, and installation work, and you get a custom-designed microscope that is as flexible and expandable as any DIY or homebrew multiphoton rig you’ve worked with in the past.

What You Can Expect From Us

• Collaborative design process
  We start with your science: experimental paradigms, preparations, fluorophores, lasers, current bottlenecks, and future plans. Together, we co‑design a system architecture (scanheads, detection, photostimulation, FLIM, etc.) that matches those needs instead of forcing you into a fixed product line.

• Turnkey‑level build and integration (without the lock‑in)
  INSS takes responsibility for specifying and sourcing system components, preassembling major submodules in our workshop, and integrating hardware and software (ScanImage + vDAQ) before shipment. On site, we complete assembly, optical alignment, system integration, calibration, and initial validation so that you end up with a working bespoke prototype, not a pile of parts.​

• Training and remote support
  During installation we train your initial users in operating the microscope, standard workflows, and routine maintenance. After installation, we provide ongoing support via email and Zoom for troubleshooting, configuration changes, and incremental upgrades.

• Transparent boundaries
  You do not have to manage dozens of individual orders: we handle almost all procurement and logistics, then ship a largely preassembled system. The only items we ask you (or your institution) to provide are the ultrafast lasers, the anti‑vibration table, and any laser and blackout enclosures required by your local safety rules.

What We Expect From You

To make an Assisted DIY system a success, we ask for two key commitments.

• A hands‑on, tech‑affine mindset
  Our systems are highly capable and flexible, but they are not “black boxes.” We expect our clients to be comfortable with a bit of optics and electronics, and to handle first‑line troubleshooting in‑house with our guidance. For some of the more advanced systems we strongly recommend that the lab nominates a postdoc or staff scientist to act as “superuser”: the internal technical owner of the microscope. This person becomes our main technical counterpart, takes charge of routine alignment and basic maintenance, and trains other users locally.

• Realistic expectations about service
  INSS is a specialist micro‑enterprise, not a large service organization. We do not bundle annual on‑site service contracts or promise frequent on‑site engineer visits; instead, we focus on robust design, clear documentation, and responsive remote support, with occasional in‑person visits when truly necessary.

Benefits of the Assisted DIY Model

For the right lab, the Assisted DIY approach offers several key advantages:

• A system tailored to your science
  Every build is a bespoke prototype shaped around your specific experimental questions: e.g. 2p/3p, dual‑path photostimulation, FLIM, unusual geometries, or niche objectives. You are directly involved in design decisions, so the final system does exactly what you need, instead of 70% of what you need and 30% you never use.

• Lower total cost for high‑end capability
  By using an assisted‑DIY, modular architecture and off‑the‑shelf components, INSS systems typically come in around 30% below the price of comparable big‑vendor microscopes while matching or exceeding their performance.

• Long‑term flexibility and upgrade‑ability
  Because the system is open and documented, your superuser can add or reconfigure modules (new detectors, scan geometries, optogenetics paths, etc.) over time, with our advice. You are not locked into a closed ecosystem, fixed options list, or vendor‑only upgrades.​

• Deep in‑house expertise
  The superuser model means your lab builds genuine internal know‑how about the microscope rather than outsourcing everything to the vendor. That pays off in faster troubleshooting and better experimental design.

Honest trade-offs

The Assisted DIY model is not for everyone, and we prefer to be upfront about that.

• Not a “plug‑and‑forget” black box
  If your expectation is to unwrap a system, press a single button, and never think about optics or software again, a conventional turn‑key product from a large vendor may be a better fit.

• You carry first‑line responsibility
  Day‑to‑day stability depends on your superuser keeping the system well aligned, clean, and within its safe operating envelope. We are there to help, but we cannot replace an internal technical owner.

For labs that like to work this way, the reward is not only a powerful, flexible, and cost‑effective microscope that genuinely fits their science, but also a long‑term partnership with a team that has deep, long‑standing experience in custom multiphoton systems and is genuinely excited about assisting PhD students, postdocs, and PIs.​

We operate worldwide and have served clients at world-renowned institutions including:  

Get in touch

☎ +44 20 386 863 20

✉ INFO@INSS.ORG.UK

INSS is based in South Chailey, East Sussex, 40 miles South of London and 0.88 miles West of the Prime Meridian:

The INSS Team

simon@inss.org.uk