Ashley Byrne shares how to digitalise your lab as pain-free as possible, and why making the transition is critical to survival.
I regularly write about digital workflows, and in my laboratory, crown and bridge and implant workflows now involve at least one digital stage in 100% of cases.
From IOS (intraoral scanning) to model printing, milling frames and bars to full-contour zirconia, I estimate that about 75% of all lab work stages are digital. I take it for granted that this is now the normality of the workflow, and I simply can’t imagine going back to the days of pouring models, waxing diagnostic cases, or casting metals.
The evolution is mind-blowing, and I absolutely love it. Over 95% of my posterior restorations are full-contour zirconia, and my fracture and failure rates are at an all-time low. There couldn’t be a better time to be almost fully digital. In fact, I forget sometimes just how far we’ve come – so much so that the struggles of digitising our workflow many years ago are now a distant memory.
Why change?
However, that challenge is back in full force at my lab as we embark on digitising dentures. It’s a stark reminder of how difficult it can be to transition from analogue to digital, especially after years of doing things the traditional way. I almost forgot the struggle of implementing digital crown and bridge workflows, and now we’re tackling all stages of dentures.
It’s not easy to change something that’s been working for years. You encounter failures, resistance from your team, outdated methods that aren’t mainstream, limited materials, and frustration all around – even from clients. Then, you hear the classic, ‘Why change something that already works?’
Maybe we don’t need to change dentures. Perhaps we can continue flasking, using stock teeth and processing with heat-cured PMMA. But consider this: we’re facing a dwindling number of skilled technicians while denture wearers are on the rise.
Do we really think gen Z will be content flasking and packing when computer-based solutions are on the horizon? If we resist change, we risk becoming like Kodak, Blockbuster and Blackberry – companies that thought they didn’t need to evolve and suffered the consequences.
Digital means survival
When I first started printing digital dentures, I experienced a staggering 54% fracture rate within the first year. My clients, team and even my accountant were asking, ‘Why are you doing this? The old method has always worked!’. But now my fracture rate on printed dentures is just 0.9%, compared to 2.1% with traditional PMMA.
Digital dentures have become more successful, fast, clean, lean and use fewer toxic materials. My clients love them, patients appreciate the option of ordering spares, and guess what? My gen Z team enjoys making dentures again.
Like crown and bridge, we must change this process if we want to survive.
Start small
This article isn’t just about digital dentures, milled zirconia or IOS scanners. It’s about navigating change as smoothly as possible. Change can be daunting – people naturally resist it – but minimising the pain of that transition is key to achieving a successful outcome. I’ve gone through it with crown and bridge, implants, and temporary and copy dentures, and trust me: the positive results make the struggles worth it.
The key to successful change lies in small, measured steps toward a clear long-term goal. I see labs that are still 100% analogue trying to overhaul everything at once – implementing IOS, designing their own work, and then milling or printing. It’s too much at once.
Instead, start by designing cases from either an IOS or a model, and outsource the printing or milling initially. Perfect that, then consider bringing in your own printer. Once that’s mastered, move on to milling. Start with single teeth or small dentures rather than diving into complex cases. The saying ‘rome wasn’t built in a day’ holds true here.
It’s not all smooth
At my lab, we live by the motto, ‘fail hard and fail fast’. What that means is starting with cases that have time.
Don’t switch over on rush or critical cases. If something fails, you’ll still have time to fix it manually – but fail quickly. Always have a backup plan, because things will fail. Software crashes, machines break down, trained staff get sick, and materials don’t always perform as expected.
As you embark on these changes, talk openly about failures. Everyone has been through it. If you’re reading this and you’re still 100% analogue, don’t hesitate to reach out. Labs are always willing to help each other during the transition. I’ve learned through my own mistakes, and I’m happy to help others avoid the same pitfalls.
Celebrate milestones
Finally, celebrate the small wins along the way – whether it’s your first IOS case, your 100th milled crown, or your 200th printed denture. Celebrate these milestones. Bury the failures and focus on the positives, and you’ll find that your team will ultimately thank you for the changes.
The pain of transition will soon be long forgotten.
Catch up with previous columns from The Lab Expert:
- The challenge of driving change in the dental lab
- Is it time to eliminate the model room?
- Dental technology is changing fast – are we ready?
- Is it time to embrace the printed digital denture?
- What will 2024 bring to dental technology?
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