(ABC 6 NEWS)--- The Mayo Clinic goes through thousands of test tubes, beakers and other assorted glassware every month, if not every week.

But not all of their glass equipment comes from a catalog.

In fact, many of the more exotic items are made right there at the Mayo.

When people see the Mayo Clinic's Gonda building for the first time many are amazed by the sheer amount of glass.

Whether it's the thousands of windows, the colored panes outside the entrance or the 13 extraordinary chandeliers hanging inside, created by world-renowned glass blower Dale Chihuly.

Deep in the bowels of the Mayo you'll find another artist at work.

And like Chihuly his medium is also glass.

“This is the first glass shop I ever saw 20 years ago.”

Steve Anderson is the Mayo's unintentional well-kept secret.

He's one of only four scientific glass blowers in the entire state of Minnesota.

“There aren't a lot of people around here that do this.”

For the past 10 years, Anderson has worked in his lab in the basement of the Mayo's medical sciences building.

Making everything from artificial bowels to aortic models of the heart.

Over the years he's created many of the glass pieces used by Mayo researchers and doctors including Dr. Scott Nyberg.  “Some of these things you just can't buy any place.” “He can do just about anything you need from scratch.”

“It's almost priceless because if you can't find someone to make it then you couldn't do experiments.”

However, the soft-spoken Anderson doesn't seem to care too much about the credit. Instead he's perfectly content to stay out of the spotlight.

"When I'm done I have a product that I've made and can take some pride in."

But when it comes to those Chihuly chandeliers hanging in the lobby of the Gonda Building, let's just say Anderson doesn't mind at least a little comparison.

“You wouldn't believe how many people have asked me why they didn't have me make those for the Mayo.”