GradingOct 26, 2022
SSEF Introduces Automated Diamond Screener for Very Small Melee GradingNov 08, 2022
De Beers to Launch New Melee Screening Device
Set to roll out in early 2023, it will enable verification of up to 3,600 diamonds per hour for stones as small as 0.001 carats.
De Beers’ new screening device can verify diamonds as small as 0.6 mm.
London—De Beers Ignite, the science and technology division of De Beers Group, has announced it will launch a new diamond verification instrument early next year.
Part of the company’s automated melee screening range, the new device will enable automated and rapid verification of up to 3,600 diamonds per hour in the 0.001-carat to 0.0033-carat (or 0.6 mm to 1 mm) size range.
The previous instrument, the AMS2, can process up to 3,000 stones per hour and screen diamonds between 0.0033 carats and 0.2 carats.
The previous instrument, the AMS2, can process up to 3,000 stones per hour and screen diamonds between 0.0033 carats and 0.2 carats.
De Beers said that with its automated feed, dispense function, and low referral rate of less than 1 percent, the new device can be operated in-house with no specialist expertise required.
The company developed the instrument over the past 18 months, using a collaborative approach that involved working alongside several customer businesses to ensure it was meeting clients’ screening and diamond verification needs.
“We constantly challenge ourselves to find new ways to ensure we are meeting the industry’s needs at all stages of the pipeline with our advanced innovation and technology solutions,” said Sarandos Gouvelis, head of De Beers Group’s Ignite division.
“We believe this new instrument will play an important role in continuing to enhance our comprehensive suite of leading-edge technology for screening of synthetic or laboratory-grown diamonds right down to the smallest sizes, while making it easier and quicker for diamond businesses to assure product integrity.”
De Beers has been developing diamond screening and verification technology at its science and tech hub in Maidenhead in the United Kingdom since the early 1990s.
Its first instrument was the DiamondSure I in 1992, quickly followed by the DiamondView I. De Beers offered both for sale to the industry in 1998 after they appeared in an article in GIA’s Gems & Gemology journal.
The company has developed 11 instruments to screen loose and mounted diamonds to verify their lab-grown or natural origin to date.
De Beers expects the new instrument to begin production with pre-orders in the first quarter of 2023.
There is no pricing information yet available for the new device.
Those interested in a demonstration, which De Beers said is available for a limited time, should email contactignite@debeersgroup.com.
Editor’s note: This story was updated on Nov. 9 to include information about the screening capacity of the AMS2 and the referral rate of the new device.
Editor’s note: This story was updated on Nov. 9 to include information about the screening capacity of the AMS2 and the referral rate of the new device.
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