General Terms and Conditions
These General Terms and Conditions apply to all orders of cultures, cultivation media and related services provided by the Culture Collection of Autotrophic Organisms, CCALA.
Orders
- Orders may be submitted using the CCALA online order form. We also accept signed CCALA order forms sent by post or scanned copies sent by e-mail. Original institutional purchase orders are accepted as well.
- By submitting an online order form or sending an order by e-mail or post, the customer confirms that they have read and accepted these General Terms and Conditions, including the applicable prices and charges.
Order Processing and Delivery
- The standard delivery time is approximately three weeks. Delivery time may vary depending on the size of the order, the availability of the requested strains and any specific requirements related to the ordered material.
- Delivery to countries located far from Central Europe, for example in Eastern Asia or South America, may take up to one month or longer depending on postal and customs procedures.
- The maximum order size is 20 items or 8 kg per order. Larger orders may be divided into several shipments.
- Standard shipments are sent by regular postal service. Express delivery orders are sent by priority mail. Delivery by courier, EMS or other shipping services is available on request, and the price will be calculated individually according to the provider’s current price list.
Prices and Charges
- Prices are listed in the current CCALA pricelist. Final charges may include the price of ordered cultures or services, postage, packaging, express delivery surcharge, additional packaging or other individually agreed costs.
- Customers from the European Union who provide a valid VAT registration number, and customers outside the European Union, may be charged prices excluding VAT where applicable.
Use of CCALA Strains
- By ordering strains from CCALA, the customer agrees not to resell, redistribute, lend or otherwise transfer CCALA strains to any third party without prior written permission from CCALA.
- The customer also agrees to cite the original strain code, including the collection acronym “CCALA” and the strain number, in all publications, patent applications and other outputs resulting from work with the supplied strains.
- Customers are kindly asked to provide CCALA with a PDF copy of any publication resulting from research in which CCALA strains were used.
Quality and Identification of Strains
- All CCALA strains are clonal and unialgal. CCALA does not guarantee the axenity of strains. Cultures may contain small amounts of bacteria and, exceptionally, fungi.
- The number of cells in cultures is not quantified before shipment. However, culture quality is visually checked before dispatch, including growth opacity in liquid cultures and the amount of biomass on agar surfaces.
- Strains are usually identified by the depositor. Although CCALA periodically revises strain names and updates them according to current taxonomic knowledge, CCALA cannot guarantee that all strain names are correct or up to date. Suggestions regarding taxonomic corrections are welcome.
Complaints and Replacement Cultures
- If cultures arrive in unsatisfactory condition, the customer must inform CCALA within 14 days of receipt.
- If the complaint is justified, CCALA will provide a replacement culture free of charge on request. Claims submitted after this period may not be accepted.
Special Requirements
- When ordering cultivation media, mixed cultures or other services, customers should specify their requirements in the “Additional notes / Special requirements” field of the order form.
- Special requests are subject to availability and may affect the final price and delivery time.
Contact
- For questions regarding orders, delivery, prices or special requirements, please contact CCALA at: ccala@ibot.cas.cz