TENQuestions

38 dentallabproducts June 2015 dlpmagazine.com

01.Zahn Dental has announced

some signif cant partnerships

in the early months of 2015. Can you

tell us more about some of these?

As the leading distributor in the industry,

our team looks at all products, services

and equipment that may add value to our

customers. As 3D printing continues to grow, we

recently began offering new printing solutions

from Bego USA and 3D Systems. We feel these

new offerings will help meet laboratories

diverse needs, and each printer offers different

solutions for laboratories looking to enter or

add to their 3D printing technology. In addition,

we have entered into an exclusive partnership

with Glidewell Laboratories to distribute BruxZir

Zirconia and Obsidian Lithium Silicate, as well

as BruxZir Anterior. Given the rapidly evolving

area of guided surgery, we are also now offering

360imaging, which enables dental laboratories

to penetrate the guided surgery f eld quickly,

more eff ciently and with more conf dence.

02.When Zahn is considering

what next products to offer,

what is your selection process?

Before we offer new products and services to

our customers, our team reviews what kind of

impact they will have on the laboratory: Will it

improve production time? Does this enhance

connectivity to their clients? Can a laboratory

now offer more products and services to

clinicians?

To best understand the potential effect of

innovative solutions, we organize focus groups

and work closely with our extensive education

and technical support departments that help

us uncover how these new opportunities

may improve our customers prof tability and

product offerings.

03.How have you seen the lab

world change in 2015 so far?

The dental laboratory industry has seen a

huge change in the past few years, and 2015

is no different. Laboratories that have adopted

technology are able to offer more products by

partnering with production centers, such as

Custom Milling Center (CMC). Labs that have

increased their production now have affordable

solutions for milling and printing in house.

04.How do you see denta l

laboratories changing in the

rest of 2015?

We foresee the need for d ig i ta l - ready

laboratories to continue to grow. As dental

practices begin to accept digital impression

systems, we foresee the need for properly

trained laboratories capable of receiving digital

f les to continue to grow. The future of digital

dentistry is now. Clinicians are just starting to

embrace the workf ow, and laboratories that

have already invested in digital technology will

be a valuable resource in the near future.

05.What, in your opinion, is the

main challenge presented to

labs by digital technologies?

We feel that the main challenge in the digital

workflow is support. When a laboratory

integrates a CAD/CAM system into its workf ow,

that is just the beginning of the process. There is

an installation, training and learning curve that

is different for each laboratory and technician.

To ensure our partners get the support they

need, we recently launched a specialized North

America CAD/CAM technical support team. This

team consists of CDTs, RDTs and experienced

repair technicians available by phone and email

to support laboratories.

06.Flipping the question: What is

one of the main opportunities

afforded to labs by digital technology?

The main opportunity for laboratories in regards

to digital technology is entering at comfortable

stages for each laboratory. Not every laboratory

can justify adopting all of the technology on

the market; it is a process of understanding

the benefits of each system and what that

technology is currently able to do to improve

the laboratorys workf ow. Laboratories can get

started by outsourcing to CMC to offer materials

they are not able to produce in their lab. When

a lab has enough volume, we have trained

consultants to advise on printers and milling

machines that would make it more prof table,

but ultimately the laboratory can continue to

follow the workf ow that is comfortable for its

business model.

07.How does technology allow

labs to better work with GPs?

Laboratories that have embraced an open

architecture scanner are already equipped to

take the next step with their clients. Clinicians

are beginning to embrace digital impressions

and the need for digital-ready labs that are

trained and comfortable with providing support

will be in high demand. We feel that clinicians

will view the laboratory more as a consultant

and partner when it comes to working within

the digital workf ow, and we are excited about

the opportunity of connecting digital-ready

laboratories to digital-ready practices. In addition

to entering the digital space at a comfortable

pace, labs that embrace digital practices have

an opportunity to f nd new dental customers.

By working with Zahn, customers have a unique

opportunity to also benef t from Henry Schein

Dental, which not only promotes our brands of

digital materials but helps connect our digitized

lab customers to these dental customers.

08.How does Zahn Dental help

labs achieve this goal?

Digital materials and equipment continue to

enter the market at an accelerated rate, and

being able to offer materials like Zirlux and

services from CMC enables our customers to

have access to leading products.

09.How does Zahn Dental help

labs of every size meet the

challenges of 2015?

We have solutions for every size laboratory.

What works for a production lab with 100

technicians wont work for a one- or two-man

lab. CMC is the f rst step for laboratories that

want to access some of the leading materials on

the market without making investments in CAD/

CAM equipment. CMC can receive traditional

models, as well as STL f les, help with design

services and manufacture the latest materials

and custom abutments/bars.

10.Anything else youd like to

add?

The landscape in our industry continues to

evolve. New products, technology and services

are introduced at a rapid pace, and we pride

ourselves on making these products available

to our customers. We look forward to partnering

with our customers as we connect laboratories

and clinicians to improve workflow and

ultimately improve patient care.

Rita AcquafreddaVICE PRESIDENT AND GENERAL MANAGER OF ZAHN DENTAL

PHOTO COURTESY OF ZAHN DENTAL

Q+A

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