A Look Inside Dental Laboratories
It was an end to an amazing yet hectic 2012. Since the year had been so hectic, why not make the last trip of the year the most hectic. The second to last week of December, I planned on heading out to California to meet with Bob Winter at the Winter Lab in Laguna Beach. Bob is just an amazing guy to be around and his knowledge of everything dental is just out of this world. I needed to make 1 last flight this year and took advantage of being able to head out to the Winter Lab and have Bob take a look at a case that is near and dear to my heart...my mom's. What a nice facility the Winter lab is! I got a tour from my rep Amanda and she introduced me to all the technicians and people who work behind the scenes there. The lab is impeccable and the craftsmanship I was able to observe was mind blowing!! I then got to talk with Bob about my mother's case. It is amazing how people like Dr. Winter see things in a case so differently than the masses. It was inspiring to just be able to discuss how to plan the case to set things up for long term success. If you have not used the Winter Lab before, I would tell you to give them a try, they are absolute perfectionists.
I had flown in that Thursday morning and had planned to fly back the same day. Wouldn't you know that a huge winter storm comes through Chicago and I get stranded in California. I didn't even bring extra clothes. I scrambled to make a new flight and ended up having to drive to San Diego to be able to get out on Saturday. That was the earliest flight. What was I going to do for the next 24 hours? I know most people would shop or sight see, but not me. I decide to stop by some other labs I have used that are in the Orange County area.
I first stopped by Glidewell. What an operation. It is the most overwhelming place. I could never imagine the size of it. I got tour from my friend Corey who has worked for years for Glidewell. She showed me the different departments and how things flow through their lab. It is so impressive. Jim Glidewell even built a full gym with exercise classes and a medical facility to treat employees. I could not believe all that was going on. Truly amazing to see.
I then stopped by my good friend Shaun Keating's lab Keating Dental Arts. I got an incredible tour from Jim of the entire facility. The Winter Lab is a smaller operation. Glidwell is the largest lab in the world. Keating is a pretty good sized lab that falls in between the two. I was able to see all the uses of CAD/CAM they do in their facility. It is just amazing how automated labs are these days. I asked if using Cad/Cam design for coping and crowns has helped with their accuracy and remake rate. He told me this was a huge reason for their efficiency and quality. I was really impressed with the quality control at Keating. They showed me how they automate the mixing of the stone for models to take out the human error and even test the boxes of stone to make sure they are up to their standards. It was very eye opening to see how much goes into making a lab efficient and successful. I then had to drive to San Diego to fly back Saturday morning so I called my good friend Eddie Corrales to meet for dinner. Eddie has a lab in San Diego called Downtown Dental Designs and uses CEREC to produce his restorations. Last year he started an amazing company called CAD Smiles. For those that want to do large cases in office with their CEREC but don't have the confidence to do it, you can hire Eddie to come to your office and make that happen. You plan the case out with Eddie ahead of time and then on the day of the case he comes to your office, you prep and Eddie takes care of all the design and characterization. You just cement the final case in and the patient gets that smile they want in one visit and you don't have all the stress of making it perfect. Eddie does that for you. We had a great dinner and talked about this awesome business model. It had been a long few days and I was ready to get home to the family for the holidays and do some skiing, but this was a very memorable trip for me. If you are using a lab and you get the chance to take a trip to their facility, I would strongly recommend it!! You will get some fantastic insight as to how they perform their daily tasks and how your cases are handled. I can promise you that the lab will appreciate it!
We all loved having you! You are still a topic of discussion around here... I know you are used to that. Thank you for sharing your visit on this forum and for your confidence to fabricate your mom's case. Quite a compliment. Looking forward to seeing some before and after photos!
I sent out the wax up today so get ready for some fun with this case. I most definitely appreciated the help from Bobon the case. I had a such a good at the lab meeting all the people there. Fantastic facility and thanks for being a such a great rep!
