C&B: Where We Stand After Two Decades of Digital

The C&B specialty now has about 20 years under its belt since digital technology began transforming fabrication processes and expanding material options. Today, digital technology has become mainstream for those who offer C&B services: 83% offer milled or printed C&B, up from 70% just five years ago. More of their clients are getting on board too; the average percentage of dentist-clients prescribing milled restorations increased seven percentage points since 2015 to 66%.

Though many respondents to LMT’s State of the Industry 2020 survey extoled the virtues of digital technology—citing the increased efficiency, accuracy and predictability—many also acknowledged the difficulty of managing the technology and other challenges. “It’s a chaotic time of transition. So many materials, so many protocols, so much equipment and guess what? Price pressure is still here. Go figure,” says Andre Theberge, RDT, CDT, General Manager, Drake...