Image management is becoming the backbone of the new research economy

As research budgets shrink and institutions reassess their financial commitments, one thing is clear: the way we fund, access, and manage scientific technology is changing. This shift is particularly visible in spatial biology and digital pathology, where high capital costs and evolving data needs are prompting vendors and CROs to rethink how they deliver value—and why scalable image management is now mission-critical to staying competitive.

The impact of the U.S. funding squeeze

Across the United States, government-funded research institutions are grappling with tightened grant approvals, flatlined federal budgets, and growing financial scrutiny. These pressures have frozen large capital purchases—such as slide scanners, image analysis systems, and high-throughput multiplex platforms.

For vendors, this means fewer system sales, longer buying cycles, and increased price sensitivity from clients. But it’s not just a downturn—it’s a tipping point.

A shift toward services

Let’s be clear: the CAPEX model is still very much alive. Many academic institutions rely on grant funding that’s explicitly tied to capital purchases. As federal budgets recover, so will traditional equipment sales. For vendors, this remains a critical part of the business model—and always will be.

Yet, with uncertainty around the return of normal levels of federal research funding, a strategic shift toward service-based (OPEX) models is unfolding. This isn’t just a short-term solution—it’s a meaningful evolution in how research is conducted, accessed, and scaled.

Instead of investing in full-system installs, many research institutions are moving toward on-demand access—outsourcing key workflows like imaging, analysis, and annotation to specialized partners. This is especially true in spatial biology, where the complexity and cost of technology make ownership impractical for many labs.

In response, forward-thinking scanner vendors, reagent providers, and CROs are evolving to also provide hybrid and pay-as-you-go service organizations. They’re building out “on-demand” arms that offer multiplexed tissue imaging, analysis, and reporting on a per-slide or per-project basis, allowing researchers to pay only for what they need—when they need it.

Industry experts like Trang Vu, CEO of Astraea Bio, have noted the speed of this transition. With increasing frequency, vendors are forming service partnerships, launching core facility-like models, and mimicking the flexibility of contract research organizations.

By offering OPEX-friendly services, vendors can:

• Reach labs that lack current capital funding
  
• Introduce their technology to new customer segments
  
• Build early-stage relationships with future buyers
  
• Create scalable access to high-cost workflows
  
• Maintain revenue continuity even during funding freezes
  

And when capital becomes available again, these customers are already familiar with the vendor’s tools, workflows, and outcomes—making the path to full-system adoption faster and more frictionless.

Flexibility brings its own complexity

However, with greater flexibility comes greater complexity.

Service providers now manage hundreds (sometimes thousands) of scanned images and datasets across multiple clients, projects, and timelines. Without a centralized, secure, and accessible system, even the most advanced lab risks becoming a bottleneck instead of a solution.

Today’s research clients expect more than just a report—they want:

• Real-time access to raw and processed data
  
• Visibility into workflows and turnaround timelines
  
• Seamless collaboration across distributed teams
  

Meeting those expectations requires more than just cloud storage—it requires a fully integrated image management system (IMS) that supports the operational demands of a modern, service-first model.

Image management matters more than ever

An IMS is no longer a “nice to have.” It is the operational core of any scalable service offering.

A well-designed IMS goes far beyond file storage. It enables:

• Centralized access to scanned slides, annotations, and data across labs and users
  
• Secure collaboration between internal teams and external clients, with role-based permissions and audit trails
  
• Scalable throughput, ensuring that growing data volumes don’t create new operational and financial headaches
  
• Regulatory readiness, supporting GLP, 21 CFR Part 11, HIPAA, and institutional data security policies
  

For CROs and vendors offering spatial biology and toxicologic pathology services, a modern IMS is what makes quality, speed, and scalability possible—especially as demand increases and capital budgets remain constrained.

Purpose-built for the service economy

At Pathcore, we recognized this shift early. PathcoreFlow is designed to support service providers, CROs, and vendors as they navigate this transition.

Whether you offer complete imaging services or supplement in-house teams with analysis and reporting, PathcoreFlow provides the digital backbone to manage it all:

• Centralized, secure access to whole slide images and project data
• Streamlined collaboration with clients and external researchers
• Scalable infrastructure that grows with your service model
• Compliance with industry regulations and data protection standards

This is especially impactful in areas like toxicologic pathology, where the on-demand service model is already well-established. Many pharmaceutical and biotech organizations outsource their toxpath studies to CROs—not only for cost efficiency, but for faster access to specialized expertise. These studies generate high volumes of image data across multiple timepoints and tissues, all of which require precise organization, compliance, and collaborative review.

PathcoreFlow supports these workflows at scale, enabling toxpath CROs to manage complex study designs, accelerate turnaround times, and deliver seamless experiences to their clients—without compromising on data integrity or regulatory requirements.

We work closely with service providers building the future of spatial biology and toxicologic pathology—and we’ve seen how the right infrastructure can reduce turnaround time, improve client satisfaction, and open up entirely new revenue streams.

Rethinking what researchers really need

Today’s clients don’t just want access to the latest technologies—they want access to insights, outcomes, and impact. That means faster results, easier collaboration, and seamless integration with their research ecosystem.

By developing effective value-added and on-demand services, vendors can not only meet researchers where they are—and build stronger, more resilient business models in the process.

And by investing in the right digital tools—like PathcoreFlow—you can support those goals without sacrificing flexibility, control, or scientific rigor.

Ready to adapt? Let’s talk.

If your organization is navigating the shift to service-based delivery, now is the time to lay the digital foundation for long-term success.

Book a personalized demo with our team to see how PathcoreFlow can help you streamline workflows, support your clients, and scale with confidence.

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