Case study: sharing equipment between Essex and Kent

In September 2025 Eastern Arc launched the Equipment Sharing Platform. This week we caught up with Sammy Skivens, a PhD student at Kent, who benefited from the scheme. She shared her story below.

If you want to find out more about the scheme, or want to access equipment at one of the other EARC universities, contact us at info@easternarc.ac.uk.

Sammy’s story

I’m currently working on a doctorate at the University of Kent, focused on understanding the development of fungal biofilms, a complex and fascinating area of research that explores how microbial communities grow, organise, and persist. 

My work sits at the intersection of microbiology and imaging, where visualising these structures over time is essential to uncovering the mechanisms that underpin their formation and resilience.

My recent project, funded by the National Biofilm Innovation Centre, aimed to address a key challenge in the field: capturing high-resolution, long-term images of biofilm development across multiple scales. 

This is not something that can be achieved with standard laboratory equipment. Through the Eastern Arc Equipment Sharing Platform (ESP), I was able to access advanced imaging facilities through a collaboration with Dr Philippe Laissue at the University of Essex, and in particular a 3i Light Sheet Microscope and a spinning disc confocal microscope—both powerful tools that are relatively rare in the UK and uniquely suited to long-term live imaging.

I first learned about these facilities through my supervisor, Professor Campbell Gourlay, who encouraged me to explore this collaboration. Working with Philippe was an invaluable experience. His expertise in imaging and analysis complemented my own research perfectly, and together we were able to design experiments that pushed beyond what I had previously been able to achieve.

Eastern Arc facilitated the collaboration and paid for a three day visit to Essex. This allowed me to make full use of the time and undertake extended imaging experiments that would not have been feasible otherwise. 

During my visit, I not only collected data but also received hands-on training in image acquisition and analysis techniques from Philippe. This training has been particularly impactful, as it has significantly increased my confidence in handling complex imaging workflows independently.

The outcome of this visit exceeded my expectations. I was able to generate a fantastic dataset that captures the dynamics of Candida albicans biofilm development in unprecedented detail. 

Some of this work has already been recognised, with data contributing to a paper titled “A quantitative framework for multiscale analysis of Candida albicans biofilm development”, recently accepted for publication in the journal Biofilm.

This experience has made a tangible difference to my research. Beyond the data itself, it has equipped me with new technical skills and a deeper understanding of how to approach imaging-based experiments. 

Being introduced to the Essex research infrastructure opened my eyes to other opportunities, different institutions and new colleagues. I’d strongly encourage others to take the same step to explore how their work could similarly benefit from the ESP. There’s a huge range of facilities available across the Arc; if you don’t have the equipment at your own institution, there’s a strong possibility that one of the other EARC universities will. Stepping outside of your own lab and your own university, being able to work with others and undertake different analyses and experiments, can only be a good thing–and may even be career-changing.