Why Dentists Switch Laboratories

There's a 50/50 chance your clients will switch laboratories in the next five years. Want to know why they might jump ship? Read on.

The landscape of the dental profession is in transition. Dental school graduates are facing mounting debt. Reimbursement models are changing. Competition from corporate group practices is squeezing the solo practitioner. Capital expenditures to accommodate high-ticket digital technology are on the rise. But what isn't changing is what dentists look for from their laboratories: consistency is still king.

Since LMT began surveying dentists more than 25 years ago, they've repeatedly said that, by far, the most common reason for changing laboratories is inconsistent quality. Unpredictable work hits them where it hurts the most: it increases their chairside costs and negatively impacts their relationships with their patients.

The most troublesome technical issues are poor occlusion, open margins and long seating times. When...