Industry News

  • May
  • Article
    Candulor's Kunstzahnwerk 2025: One Singular Challenge, 62 Different Solutions

    More than 60 dental professionals from 10 countries participated in Candulor’s prestigious 14th KunstZahnWerk (KZW), each fabricating an age-appropriate, characterized, esthetic, mucosa-supported maxillary and mandibular full denture for a patient with pronounced atrophy in the lower jaw. In addition...

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  • March
  • Article
    Industry Members Honored at NADL's Vision 21

    A highlight of the NADL's Vision 21 meeting is the presentation of annual awards to companies, lab operators and educators. Here are the 2025 winners:

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    • Amy Sikes
    Amy Sikes recommends this
  • October 2024
  • Article
    DOL: New Rule for Independent Contractors

    If you hire independent contractors, this is must-read coverage to avoid fines, back taxes and other penalties.

    Maribeth Marsico
    Maribeth Marsico

    Senior Editor · Cheshire, CT

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  • August 2024
  • Article
    Seven Industry-Leading Labs Form Denbright

    Seven well-known, U.S.-based dental labs recently joined forces under one collaborative banner to form Denbright Dental Labs.

    The founding labs include Jason J. Kim Dental Aesthetics, NuArt Dental Lab, Burbank Dental Lab, D&S Dental Lab, Frontier Dental Lab, Friendship Dental Lab and Absolute Dental...

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    • Melissa Acord
    Melissa Acord recommends this
  • March 2024
  • Article
    Innovation at the Heart of Vision 21

    LMT’s Managing Editor, Kim Molinaro, attended the NADL’s information-packed Vision 21 event and brings you highlights of the three-day meeting.

    Kim Molinaro
    Kim Molinaro

    Managing Editor · West Hartford, CT

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  • September 2023
  • Article
    AI Arrives in the Laboratory

    While still in its infancy, AI has begun to make its mark on our industry as lab owners discover how this emerging technology can achieve more predictable outcomes and save production time and labor.

    Early adopters are using AI-based software such as CADflow for automatic bracket removal and model basing...

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    40 Memorable Moments

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  • Article
    Inflation Milestone Puts Spotlight on Cost-Cutting

    As the global economy began recovering from losses caused by the pandemic, inflation surged and by June 2022 it was at its highest level in 40 years, affecting everything from the price of groceries to the housing market.

    As a result of these economic pressures and uncertainty, lab operators took proactive...

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    40 Memorable Moments

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  • Article
    Model-less Workflow Becomes a Reality

    This shift in technology usage in the dental office has been welcome news among laboratories looking to reap the benefits of a completely digital workflow and an increasing number of laboratories are able to embrace the model-less concept.

    Between 2017 and 2021, for instance, the percentage of labs...

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  • Article
    IO Scanning Gains Traction

    Just as HIV did in the late 1980s, the COVID-19 pandemic brought infection control concerns to the forefront and, consequently, use of IO scanning gained notable traction. LMT’s

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  • Article
    A Global Pandemic Presents Unprecedented Challenges

    midst the rapid spread of COVID-19 and schools and businesses shutting down all over the country, the ADA announced on March 16, 2020, that it was advising dentists to limit procedures to emergencies only. As a result, laboratory workloads ground to a halt and layoffs and furloughs were rampant.

    Because...

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  • Article
    Digital Technology Hits the Denture Market

    After years of watching digital technology revolutionize C&B fabrication, the full denture market began to feel its impact around 2015. Given the labor-intensive process of conventional dentures, early adopters of digitally fabricated dentures touted them for their labor savings, fewer appointments...

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  • Article
    Proliferation of Design Services

    The proliferation of digital technology coupled with the ongoing personnel shortage helped create a new business model: the CAD design-dedicated center. The first big player in the market, FullContour—a lab focused exclusively on this concept—made its industry debut at the 2011 DLOAC CAD/CAM...

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  • Article
    In-House Lab Business Model On the Rise

    Industry pundits have long predicted growth in the number of in-house labs and, in recent years, LMT’s circulation data confirms this trend, showing about a 20% increase in the number of in-house laboratories in the U.S. Some expect this trend to continue to flourish, largely driven by the increasing...

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  • Article
    Industry Gets First Laboratory Podcast

    The year 2018 marked the launch of the industry’s first laboratory-focused podcast: Voices from the Bench. Hosted by the ever-entertaining dynamic duo of Derby Dental Lab’s Elvis Dahl and Leixir’s Barbara Warner, CDT, AAACD, the hour-long weekly episodes feature people in our profession...

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  • Article
    Manufacturers Celebrate 100+ Years

    By constantly adapting to market challenges and innovating to meet the needs of laboratories, a handful of manufacturers and suppliers have achieved milestone anniversaries many businesses can only dream about. Here’s a sampling of members of this exclusive 100-plus-years club: GC, Handler Mfg.,...

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  • Article
    The Clear Aligner Trend

    When Align Technology launched its Invisalign clear aligners in 1999, it transformed the production process by using software to digitally reset the teeth and then printing instead of pouring the models, making the fabrication process faster and more accurate than the traditional method. And, for consumers...

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  • Article
    CDT Program Gets a Digital Update

    NBC has long been working to integrate digital technologies into its examination process for the CDT credential. In 2017, it conducted one of its biggest overhauls ever, launching tests with new and revised questions for all six specialty exams and revamping several of the hands-on practical exams to...

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  • Article
    DSOs Attract Increasing Number of Dentists

    Corporate dentistry continues to penetrate the market, driven primarily by younger dentists who are burdened by student debt and/or who don’t want to take on the traditional responsibilities of running a practice. For example, according to the ADA’s Health Policy Institute (HPI), 13% of dentists...

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  • Article
    Community Building Via Social Media

    Despite being competitors, the camaraderie in our close-knit community is strong—and online groups have fostered connections even more. From LMTmag.com to Facebook’s 3Shape Study group, Dental Technician’s Guild (DTG) page, Ladies of the Mill group and Dental Laboratory Technicians...

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  • Article
    Manufacturers Partner Up

    The explosion of digital technology and the trend towards more open systems has led to the widespread creation of strategic partnerships among manufacturers and suppliers. Companies are increasingly joining forces to create compatibility among their materials, equipment and software in order to give...

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  • Article
    3D Printing: Dream Becomes Reality

    The buzz at the Dental Laboratory Owners Association of California’s CAD/CAM Symposium in November 2005? Rapid prototyping technology. First developed in the 1980s and used in the automotive and aerospace industries, the technology had laboratory owners enthusiastic about what was called the “next...

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  • Article
    The Metal-Free Tipping Point

    Since their introduction in the 1950s, PFM restorations had been the bread-and-butter of C&B and most full service laboratories. However, with the proliferation of metal-free materials and technologies, in 2015—for the first time ever—metal-free work eclipsed metal based, representing...

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  • Article
    "Full Z" Goes Full Speed

    The full contour zirconia trend began in 2009, with the launch of Glidewell’s BruxZir® Solid Zirconia crowns and bridges, marketed as a “virtually unbreakable” option for bruxers and grinders. Other manufacturers began to follow suit and introduce their own solid zirconia options...

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  • Article
    Lead Scare Brings Lab Work into Public Eye

    An investigative report about lead found in restorations made in China was the talk of the industry when it aired in February 2008 on Ohio’s WBNS 10TV. The story covered an Ohio woman who experienced pain and infection in her jaw after her dentist placed an ill-fitting, three-unit PFM bridge the...

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  • Article
    IPS e.max: Unprecedented Market Penetration

    Thanks to its physical properties, esthetics and ease of use, Ivoclar Vivadent’s IPS e.max—the first lithium disilicate on the market—penetrated the marketplace with unprecedented speed. Introduced in 2005, an estimated 170+ million IPS e.max restorations have been fabricated worldwide.

    Also...

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