CAD/CAM Technology: Implementation and Training Strategies

Once you've selected a CAD/CAM scanner or milling system, phase two is implementing the equipment into production and training your technicians.

When an experienced technician is handling scanning and design and you're working with ideal preps, introducing a stand-alone scanner can be fairly straightforward. Manufacturers have made improvements to their software, decreasing training time, and a technician can usually master simple copings within a few days, while more complex cases like bridges or Hader bars take longer. The key is to select a technician who is computer oriented and can visualize in 3-D, meaning he can take his traditional waxup skills and apply them to a digital format.

But when it comes to training a non-technician, there's a consensus among lab owners that the learning curve is longer; you can't just "feed" a prescription into the unit and produce copings. "Can I hire a high school kid off the street to scan and design?"...