These terms govern the provision of services by Full Circle Labs Ltd (FCL) to the Customer, and supersede all other terms and conditions. By requesting services from FCL, the Customer exclusively accepts and acknowledges these terms and conditions as the governing agreement.
1.1 In these Terms, the following words have the following meanings:
The Contract: the agreement between the Customer and FCL for the provision of the Services.
The Customer: the person, company, or organization ordering the Services from FCL under the Contract, as provided to FCL during the initial contact for a Quotation or throughout the order process.
The Data Results: information and data extracted and generated by FCL from the Samples as part of the Services.
Estimated Delivery Date: an approximate date for the delivery of the Data Results.
Excluded Samples: Samples that FCL cannot accept for analysis, as outlined on the Website or in information provided to the Customer.
Intellectual Property Rights: patents, copyrights, registered and unregistered design rights, utility models, trademarks, database rights, know-how, confidential information, and all other intellectual and industrial property rights.
FCL: Full Circle Labs Ltd (Company Number: 13948086), providing sequencing and data analysis services, with registered office at Venture X White City, One Ariel Way, London, England, W12 7SL.
The Payment: the cost of the Services specified in the Quotation, excluding VAT.
Quality Control Criteria: the QC criteria pertaining to Sample quality/quantity, communicated to the Customer through protocols and/or by FCL.
The Quotation: as defined in clause 2.2.
The Samples: biological and non-biological samples, specimens, test items, formulated materials provided or to be provided by the Customer to FCL for genetic analysis, as specified in a Quotation, including any Samples resubmitted under clause 3.6.
The Services: genome sequencing of strains or DNA, sequencing data, or data analysis services to be provided by FCL under the Contract.
The Terms: these terms and conditions.
Prepaid Sequencing: the Service paid in advance by the Customer, the term interchangeable with Gift card, Vouchers, Credit.
The Website: the website located at www.fullcirclelabs.bio, through which the Customer can request FCL to provide the Services.
1.2 Any reference in these Terms to a statute or regulation is deemed to include references to any amendments or re-enactments made from time to time.
1.3 The Interpretation Act 1978 applies to these Terms as if they were an enactment.
1.4 The headings in these Terms are provided for convenience only and do not affect their interpretation or construction.
1.5 FCL shall not be liable for any typographical, clerical, or other error or omission in any sales literature, price list, Quotation, acceptance of offer, invoice, or other document or information issued, and reserves the right to correct such errors without any liability.
2.1 These Terms will govern the provision of the Services to the exclusion of all other terms and conditions (including any terms or conditions which the Customer purports to apply under any purchase order, confirmation order, specification, or other document), unless such other terms and conditions have been expressly agreed to in writing by FCL. These Terms will prevail over those of the Website, any Quotation, and/or any online shop terms in the event of inconsistency or conflict.
2.2 Following a request from a prospective Customer to provide the Services, FCL will issue a quotation ("Quotation") to that Customer, which is open for acceptance by the prospective Customer for 30 days after its date.
2.3 The Customer is deemed to have accepted the Quotation and these Terms by: (a) accepting the Quotation via the online finance portal; (b) making a payment for any of the Services via the Website and/or any online shop; or (c) issuing a Purchase Order to FCL for the Services. Email confirmations are also acknowledged as acceptance of the Quotation and these Terms. Provided that the Customer accepts the Quotation within the 30-day period in accordance with any of the foregoing methods, the Contract between the Customer and FCL will be formed for the supply of the Services.
2.4 If a prospective Customer does not accept the Quotation within the 30-day period but later purports to accept it, the purported acceptance will be an offer to treat. If a prospective Customer places an order with FCL without FCL first having issued a Quotation, that order will be an offer to treat. In either of those circumstances, a contract will only come into existence if and when FCL accepts the Customer's offer. FCL may decline the Customer's offer as FCL sees fit.
2.5 FCL may revise these Terms at any time by publishing new or revised Terms on the Website. If a Quotation is accepted by the Customer after the new or revised Terms have been published on the Website, those new or revised Terms will apply to the supply of the Services under such Quotation. It is the Customer's responsibility to regularly review the Website accordingly.
3.1 The Customer shall entrust FCL with the Samples and bear the responsibility and cost of delivering them to FCL's premises, including shipping and customs expenses. Unless collection arrangements are made by FCL in which case the cost will be borne by FCL. In that case, the Customer shall ensure that the Samples are appropriately packed, labelled, and comply with any instructions provided by FCL regarding containers, packaging, and shipping regulations. FCL reserves the right to reject Samples that are not submitted in accordance with its instructions.
3.2 The Customer shall provide FCL with the Samples along with all necessary information and supporting documentation (such as certificates of non-contamination, patient consents, and ethical approvals) as reasonably required by FCL to carry out the Services. The Samples must be submitted to FCL within 12 months of accepting the Quotation. If the Samples are received by FCL after this time frame, the Customer acknowledges that FCL's rates and administration costs may have changed, and FCL reserves the right to levy additional charges before commencing the Services.
3.3 In the event that the Customer intends to submit an Excluded Sample, prior written consent from FCL must be obtained, and the Customer must adhere to FCL's instructions for submitting such Sample, for instance, as DNA.
3.4 The Customer is responsible for ensuring that the packaging, labelling, and containers of the Samples comply with FCL's instructions, international shipping regulations, and specifically, FCL's guidelines regarding barcodes, concentrations, volumes, integrity, and sample spreadsheet information. FCL reserves the right to dispose of Samples received if they are not submitted in accordance with the provided instructions.
3.5 Before shipping the Samples or upon their receipt, FCL will conduct quality control checks to verify if the Samples meet the QC Criteria in terms of quality and quantity. If, at its sole discretion, FCL determines that a Sample fails to meet the QC Criteria, FCL will proceed with providing the Services for that Sample; however, the viability and accuracy of the results cannot be guaranteed.
3.6 If, following the completion of the Services on the provided Sample and despite the Sample meeting the QC Criteria or for any other valid reason, FCL requires the Customer to resubmit one or more Samples due to their non-viability (provided that such non-viability is not a direct consequence of FCL's actions or omissions), FCL will inform the Customer of the need for resubmission and provide instructions accordingly. The Customer must resubmit the specified Sample(s) within 30 days of receiving FCL's notification. If FCL receives the Sample(s) outside this timeframe, the Customer acknowledges that FCL's rates and administration costs may have changed, and FCL reserves the right to impose additional charges before initiating the Services or refuse to proceed with the Services. Furthermore, FCL retains the right to dispose of Samples received if they are not submitted following the provided instructions.
3.7 Upon receipt of the resubmitted Sample(s) in compliance with clause 3.6, FCL will proceed with the provision of the Services. However, if the Sample(s) remains non-viable (provided that such non-viability is not a direct consequence of FCL's actions or omissions), FCL is not obligated to accept any further Sample(s). No refunds will be issued to the Customer for any Payments made for the Services rendered. If the Customer has not yet settled the Payment for the original Sample(s) and/or any resubmitted Sample(s), the Customer must promptly make the full Payment upon request by FCL.
3.8 FCL may utilise the Samples for the purpose of performing the Services, subject to clause 3.9 below, after the completion of the Services and the delivery of the Data Results to the Customer.
3.9 FCL shall strictly use the Samples solely for providing the Services to the Customer and shall not disclose the Data Results to the public, unless otherwise agreed upon with the Customer. Irrespective of the project type: (a) FCL will retain the Samples for a minimum period of 2 weeks (unless the Customer requests their removal), after which FCL reserves the right to dispose of all DNA, strains, and DNA libraries derived from the Samples provided to FCL; and (b) FCL will retain the Data Results for a minimum period of 6 months after delivery, after which FCL reserves the right to delete such Data Results.
4.1 FCL shall undertake the Services with due diligence and professional expertise. Reasonable efforts will be made by FCL to complete the Services and provide the Data Results by any Estimated Delivery Date. The Estimated Delivery Date serves as an approximate timeframe, and FCL shall not be held liable for any delays or failure to meet the Estimated Delivery Date.
4.2 The Services offered by FCL are exclusively intended for scientific testing and research purposes. The Customer acknowledges that the Services and Data Results are not intended for clinical use (including, but not limited to, diagnostic, prognostic, or therapeutic purposes) without further data analysis by the Customer and/or the execution of additional terms and conditions with FCL.
4.3 If there is a delay on the part of the Customer in providing the Samples or making the required Payment to FCL, FCL reserves the right to reasonably postpone the performance of the Services, taking into consideration the Customer's delay and the availability of FCL's facilities.
4.4 Following the completion of the Services, FCL will deliver the Data Results to the Customer using a suitable electronic medium or other appropriate delivery method.
5.1 Payment for the Services shall be made by the Customer either at the time of placing the order through the Website and/or online shop, or by issuing a purchase order. An invoice will be generated by FCL once the purchase order is issued. Unless otherwise agreed in writing, the Customer shall make full payment of all invoices to FCL within thirty (30) days from the date of the invoice, in the currency specified in the Quotation or any other document provided by FCL relating to payment obligations.
5.2 Prices quoted are exclusive of VAT, unless otherwise stated. The Customer shall be responsible for paying any applicable taxes, duties, and government charges in accordance with the prevailing UK legislation at the tax point, as well as any other taxes and duties associated with the supply, export, and import of the Services into any jurisdiction.
5.3 In the event of late payment by the Customer, FCL reserves the right, without prejudice to any other rights and remedies it may have:
5.3.1 To suspend the Services and/or cancel any outstanding obligations under the Contract.
5.3.2 To impose a service charge to cover administrative and related costs for overdue accounts, calculated at a rate of 5% per month on all unpaid accounts. This charge may include additional administrative fees such as but not limiting to repeat service costs.
5.3.3 To charge interest on the outstanding amount at the rate prescribed in the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998, accruing from the due date until the full outstanding amount is paid.
5.4 The Customer shall not have the right to offset any amounts owed to them by FCL against unpaid invoices due to FCL.
5.5 Any claims or queries regarding the invoiced price of the Services must be promptly notified to FCL by the Customer within the time period specified in clause 5.1.
5.6 Prepaid Sequencing are purchased by the Customers are subjected to the FCL Terms and must be used within 5 years of purchase.
6.1 These Terms do not grant the Customer any license or other rights under any Intellectual Property Rights belonging to or used by FCL as of the Contract date. The Customer shall have no claim to any Intellectual Property Rights held or utilised by FCL, including those related to nucleic acid analysis methods, experimental design methods (such as sample preparation and library preparation), genomic sequencing, or data analysis tools.
6.2 The Intellectual Property Rights in the Data Results will belong to the Customer, and upon the Customer's request and at their expense, FCL will execute necessary documents and take appropriate actions to assign the Intellectual Property Rights to the Customer. The Customer grants FCL a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, fully paid-up, sublicensable license to use the Data Results for the provision of Services, service improvement (including the Services), and internal research and development purposes. However, FCL undertakes not to share such Data Results outside its organisation without the prior written consent of the Customer. Nonetheless, FCL reserves the right to generate aggregated anonymized summary information from the Data Results and utilise and publish such summary information as it deems appropriate.
6.3 FCL grants the Customer a non-exclusive, non-transferable license to access and use the FCL website portal and associated software solely for the purpose of accessing and utilising the Data Results, to the extent necessary for the Customer's use of the Data Results, provided that:
6.3.1 The Customer shall restrict access to the FCL portal and software to its employees and named collaborators (whose names are provided to FCL in writing prior to such access, including via the project portal), and shall not disclose details of the FCL portal and/or software to any third party.
6.3.2 The Customer may not distribute any part of the FCL portal or software to any third party, share its access or use with any third party (whether for commercial purposes or otherwise), or sublicense the use of the FCL portal or software.
6.3.3 The Customer may not access and/or use the FCL portal or software on behalf of, or for the benefit of, anyone else.
6.3.4 The Customer may not modify, adapt, reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the whole or any part of the FCL portal or software for any purpose, except as expressly permitted by and in accordance with Section 50 of the Copyright, Design and Patents Act 1988 or any other directly applicable law.
7.1 The Customer represents and warrants that:
7.1.1 It has obtained all necessary patient and/or ethical consents for the Samples, allowing the Customer to submit them to FCL and enabling FCL to fulfil its obligations under the Contract.
7.1.2 FCL's possession or use of the Samples for providing the Services, as well as its handling and storage of the Samples and Data Results in accordance with the Contract, comply with applicable laws and regulations, including Data Protection Legislation (as defined in the Data Processing Terms), and do not infringe any third-party Intellectual Property Rights.
7.1.3 It has provided FCL with all essential information regarding the safe handling and storage of the Samples.
7.2 The Customer shall indemnify FCL against any actions, claims, damages, losses, and expenses (including legal and other costs) incurred by FCL as a result of or in connection with any breach of the warranties stated in clause 7.1.
7.3 The Customer warrants that its decision to enter the Contract is not based on any representation or warranty, whether oral, written, or in any other form, except for those expressly included in the Contract. The Customer waives all claims for breach of any warranty and any claims for misrepresentation (whether negligent or of any other nature, unless fraudulently made by FCL) that are not specifically outlined in the Contract as warranties.
7.4 The Customer acknowledges and agrees that the Services provided are scientific testing services, and therefore, specific results or outcomes are not guaranteed or warranted.
7.5 The Data Results are supplied without any express or implied warranties, conditions, or representations. All warranties, conditions, terms, undertakings, and obligations on the part of FCL implied by statute, common law, custom, trade usage, course of dealing, or any other means are, to the extent permitted by law, excluded.
7.6 FCL makes no representations and provides no warranty that the use of the Data Results or the exercise of any other licensed rights under this Agreement will not infringe any Intellectual Property Rights or other rights of any third party.