State of the Union: Inside the Zahn-Darby Integration

It's been more than a year since two of our industry's biggest suppliers - Zahn Dental and Darby Dental Lab Supply - merged into one. LMT visited Zahn's Melville, New York headquarters to hear about the newly integrated company and its plans for 2008.

When you hear of a merger or acquisition, it's often a larger company purchasing a much smaller one and folding it into its current operation and systems. That's what Zahn Dental's Richard Miranda would call a "plug-in." But last August, when Zahn's parent company, Henry Schein, purchased Darby Dental Lab Supply, the scenario was much different.

"These were two very big, very successful companies so the challenge for us was to combine them in a way that would keep the best parts of both," says Miranda, president of Zahn and vice president of dental business development at Henry Schein. "Acquisitions like this aren't necessarily smooth at first, but when it works, it's fantastic."

Because...