November/December 2012

When 15-year-old Adam Mieleszko moved to New York from Poland in 1990, he didn't speak any English and never dreamed that, 20 years later, he'd publish a book in his new language. But that's exactly what happened.

After graduating from an intensive English as a Second Language high school in...

In 1988 when the Soviet Union collapsed, eight-year-old Alexander Mouradov was forced to flee his home in Baku, Soviet Union to the Northern part of the country. Today, the 32-year-old has overcome his turbulent childhood to become a successful laboratory owner in Connecticut.

Mouradov moved...

Fabricating and matching anterior cases is challenging enough, but ceramist Alwyn Naraine does it in a matter of hours. An in-house technician at Gallery 57, a New York City-based dental practice, Naraine specializes in all-ceramic implant restorations and same-day smile makeovers using CAD/CAM technology.

He's...

Announcing the American College of Prosthodontists 2012 Awards of Distinction

Honors Presented at AS12 Annual Awards & President's Dinner

BALTIMORE, Nov. 9, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The American College of Prosthodontists, through its awards program, formally recognizes individuals...

Billy Goddard once met a man and helped change his life. The man&mdas;who drove from western Tennessee to a Mission of Mercy (MOM) event in Virginia—had lost his job and, with several decaying and missing teeth, knew his prospects for getting a job interview were slim.

When he left that event,...

In just two years, Brad Stevenson has made significant changes at Stevenson Dental Technology, Inc., a full service lab in Crystal River, FL, owned by his parents, Tim and Linda Stevenson.

He's established a CAD/CAM department and stepped up the lab's marketing efforts, including creating a...

Brandon Dickerman never planned to join the family business, Dickerman Dental Prosthetics which was started by his grandfather, Myron Dickerman, CDT, nearly 50 years ago. "Everyone outside my family always assumed that's what I was going to do so, naturally, I decided to go the other way," he...

If the staff members at Renstrom Dental Studio need something done, they call Brian Nagle.

While Nagle mainly focuses on the lab's CAD/CAM restorations, he can pitch in wherever he's needed in the laboratory. "I'm able to do a lot of different things—trim dies, waxups, technical troubleshooting,"...

Every CAD/CAM department needs a Brin Vogel.

Throughout the past five years, Vogel has been instrumental in implementing Knight Dental Group's CAD/CAM and advanced technology initiatives. But he's also proven to be a dynamo in computer networking, troubleshooting, material evaluation, process...

They say a goldfish will grow commensurate to the size of its fish bowl; if you want it to get bigger, then give it more space. So after Christian Saurman joined his father's orthodontic laboratory—then with 12 employees—he told him, "Dad, all you've got to do is give me a bigger fishbowl....

Many in our community have been inspired by Christian Scull and his remarkable combination of technical, teaching and business skills. For example, NaRae Free, Model Technician and Stain and Glaze Specialist, who worked with him at Esthetic Alliance in Las Vegas for two years, says "Besides fabricating...

The CNC Group—a group of 31 laboratories that share knowledge and group purchasing activities—are participating in a CNC Goes Pink campaign through the fourth quarter of this year to raise money for breast cancer research.

Whip Mix Corp. has manufactured pink articulators exclusively...

In 2000, Edgar Munoz was planning to be a dentist, but fate had different plans. While on the waiting list for dental school, he took a job at a large production lab to make extra money. Since he was certified as a dental assistant he already understood anatomy, and he was able to jump right into...

Heather Pear grew up with a lab in her home and knew from a young age that she wanted to be a technician. At age 15 she worked with her mother—Carol Ruset, CDT, MDT—helping with model and die work and learning every aspect of the lab. "I remember watching her build up a crown and longing...

Hollie Spencer joined New West Dental Ceramics shortly after high school graduation and has climbed through the ranks, from the training department to her current position of Production Manager in just 10 years.

She oversees the scheduling and metal departments; assists the General Manager,...

When Lee Culp, CDT—one of the most respected technicians in the world—wants to recognize you for excellence, it would be easy to let it go to your head. But Jack Marrano, CDT, is as modest as he is accomplished.

For instance, ask Marrano about his success—at age 34 he runs the multi-million-dollar...

As a kid, James Grady never envisioned working at his father's laboratory; he wanted to "do his own thing." But then he grew up.

"It was when I was in college that I realized the opportunity I'd be passing up. How many people can graduate and get involved in an established business at the level I would...

When Jerry Giuliano Jr. opened his CAD/CAM-based laboratories on New Year's Day 2011, he had no employees, one scanner, one milling machine and an 800-sq-ft office space. Today, he has 14 employees, three scanners, four mills and a new 5,000-sq-ft space, and Giuliano says his business is on track...

Confident and passionate, Jessica Birrell believes there's no limit to what she can accomplish in the dental technology field. Since starting her laboratory three years ago, she's developed a successful niche for high-end smile design cases and now she's eager to branch out as an educator and...

Jerry Kaizer, Owner of Murray Kaizer, Inc., once had to kick John Finn out of the lab. "It was late and he said 'I'm not leaving until you leave,' but I wouldn't because I wanted to finish what I was working on," recalls Finn with a laugh. "He finally made me leave with him, but I had a key, so...

At first, you wouldn't know John Hodgkins considers himself an introvert. He's friendly and outgoing during a conversation, but admits he changes when there's a crown in front of him. "I love immersing myself. I'll have my headphones on and get totally lost in the work, only to look up and see that hours...

Josef Kolbeck has accomplished a lot in his 12 years in the industry. He received his dental technology degree from the Universidad Latina of Costa Rica, served as Academic Coordinator in dental technology at that same university, owned his own lab and is currently the managing director of a five-person...

You might say his brother's loss was his gain. When someone at church offered Jose Martinez's brother a job at a local laboratory, his brother wasn't interested. But Martinez was.

"It was supposed to be in the model room, but when I got to the lab, I was told I'd be in the finishing department....

Joshua Polansky hasn't had just any mentors. Although initially intending to become a dentist like his father, he worked in several laboratories during college and 'fell in love' with dental technology. However, it was in 2003 when he had a one-on-one apprenticeship with Master Technician Olivier...

From a family of educators, Julian Infante, CDT, has both a love of learning and a gift for teaching.

He earned his Associate's degree from Bates Technical College and eventually joined Modern Dental Lab—then called Northwest Labs—in Bellevue, WA in 2006. Since then, he has earned his CDT...

In 2007, Becker Dental Lab was doing well, but the business was about $170,000 in debt, including delivery cars, an equipment loan from a supplier, a business renovation loan, credit cards and a line of credit. Ken and his two brothers, Dan and Ryan, all worked at the lab—owned by their...

"Most of the other students were taken by the 'glamour' of ceramics, but I was drawn to dentures," says Krista Hartley, CDT, referring to her experience at Indian River State College's dental technology program. "I love the challenges of the denture specialty, setting the teeth and establishing...

Age: 32

Production Manager at My Dentist, Inc.

Oklahoma City, OK

Lauri Steffen has something to prove. While she's had plenty of opportunities to branch out from removable prosthetics during her 12-year career, she's opted not to. Why? "With so much emphasis being put on fixed restorations,...

"IF I WON'T put the restoration in my mouth, I won't deliver it to my client or the patient." This is Maged Mohareb's guiding principle, and the one he applies to his quality control responsibilities every day at Glidewell Dental Laboratories in Newport Beach, CA and imparts to the many technicians...

Tommy Zhu had laid out a detailed plan for becoming a dentist. First, to gain a background in the profession, he enrolled in the Restorative Dentistry program at the New York City College of Technology. After graduation in 2003, the next step was to work as a denture technician to save money for dental...

Marisa Birnbaum doesn't back down from a challenge. In 2007, she and her brother David—who both learned about CAD technology at the Bronx High School of Science—opened a mobile laboratory operation with little laboratory or business experience, using the CEREC inlab system to make...

When you're a ceramist at a lab known as the "Lab to the Stars" in Beverly Hills, CA, you know you're going to have some exacting clients. But Martin Martinez's painstaking attention to detail and artistic talents—he's also a painter and illustrator—make him the man for the job.

"Our...

Working at her parents' lab was the last thing Megan Gardner thought she'd be doing when she graduated with a graphic design degree. But when the company she worked for went under and she needed a job, her parents had an opening in the model room. It was when she moved into waxing, though, that...

There are technicians attracted to the artistic side of dental technology, and then there's Mike Wandling. "I love the math, science and biology that's involved," he says. "This field has a little bit of all of those things and I enjoy using them to enhance a person's look and function."

Since joining...

Monica Daniel didn't know what a dental laboratory was until she was hired as a bookkeeper at YDL in 2008, but her lack of industry experience has actually given her a leg up.

"My outside perspective has been extremely beneficial to me because I'm able to look at things in the lab with a fresh eye,"...

Open system providers Datron Dynamics, exocad, Imetric and Sescoi have formed a partnership to provide a comprehensive, turnkey CAD/CAM solution, including the Imetric scanner line, exocad design software, WorkNC® CAM software and the Datron D5 milling machine. The solution can be used for all C&B...

Since everyone's been expressing concern about what will happen to our field when thousands of Boomers retire, we've been taking a hard look at the new generation of dental technology leaders to get a handle on what will become of our community.

As you can tell from this month's cover feature--

Paul Simpson turned his life around after he discovered dental technology at age 20. Still trying to shake off the consequences of growing up in a bad neighborhood and dropping out of school a few years earlier, he applied for a job at a local laboratory. "I had no car, no high school diploma and was...

Like many young artists, Rebecca Wade found joy in expressing herself on canvas. Now that canvas is a crown.

An aspiring painter and sculptor who was working toward a degree in computer graphics in 1997, Wade responded to an ad for a part-time position at a dental laboratory only because it mentioned...

Reed Nunnally spent five years building his own highly successful construction and real estate business buying, renovating and flipping properties in Louisville, Kentucky's historic Highlands area. But after a couple of years nursing a bad back, he knew he needed to switch gears.

His father,...

To say Ryan Napolitano made some changes to his father's laboratory is an understatement. In 2003, Precision Craft was a 17-person, "mom-and-pop" operation in a 3,500-sq-ft space. Today, it has doubled in size—in terms of staff and dentist-clients—and operates in a $3.4 million, 14,000-sq-ft...

Specializing in implant borne prosthetics, Midwest Dental Arts has discovered a technique to improve soft tissue management that we want to share. This is the first of a 2-part article that illustrates how to create a soft tissue model, using an iTero milled model with the Straumann Repositionable Implant...

On October 11, Henry Schein employees commemorated National Breast Cancer Awareness Month by wearing pink and generously contributing their own funds in support of cancer research and care. Through the end of the year, the Henry Schein Cares Foundation will donate a portion of the sales of its special...

Born and trained in Germany, Thomas Sing is the youngest member of the world-renowned Oral Design Group, established in 1982. The Group is comprised of almost 100 highly skilled technicians worldwide who are hand picked by Founder Willi Geller and devoted to teaching and practicing the highest...

In 2004, New Image/Laboratory Solutions became the first 3M ESPE Lava Milling Center on the East Coast. Victor Harp, an up-and-coming waxer/finisher, learned the system and wowed everyone with how quickly he picked up the digital process. "He was like a kid in a candy store playing with the machine...

Marketing maven Walter Orellana has gone back to basics; in today's changing landscape, he believes face-to-face sales and personal relationships are the real keys to success.

That's proven true at Excel Dental Studios where he was hired last year to help rebrand the laboratory, broaden its...