Posted in Posts
‘I’ve never been this excited about the future of our profession’: With Corus expanding into the UK market by joining forces with Byrnes Dental Lab, Ashley Byrne discusses what the partnership really means and how he plans to disrupt the dental landscape. Ashley, your lab has just joined forces with Corus. Can you tell us…
Posted in Posts
‘It’s our time to really step up’: this month, Ashley Byrne discusses all of the things we can look forward to in 2023, calling it ‘the year of opportunity for the dental technology industry’. In my last post I spoke about the 2022 summary which, for me and my team, was stressful, manic, overloaded, successful…
Posted in Posts
Ashley Byrne, the Dental Lab Expert, reflects on the trials and tribulations of 2022 and what the industry needs to prepare for in 2023. By my own standards, 2022 was flipping hard work! As I write this, we sit in the middle of a postal strike, couriers almost collapsing under the additional volumes, and work…
Posted in Posts
Some client relationships just don’t work. This month, the Dental Lab Expert, Ashley Byrne, discusses the tricky topic of how and when to fire a client, and the benefits of doing so. I had to think carefully about the title for this months article, for fear of sounding arrogant or egotistical. Clients, dentists for the…
Posted in Posts
‘We all need as much help as we can get in these crazy times’: As he heads home full of new ideas and itching to get back to his lab, Ashley Byrne discusses why overseas conferences are worth the time, money and hangovers. I’m writing this on a plane heading back from several days in…
Posted in Posts
Ashley Byrne discusses the salary crisis dental technicians are facing and how to encourage people into the profession. For many years dental technicians have been poorly paid. There is a ton of evidence to back that up. With many papers and studies quoting less than £29k (in some, less than £24k) as an average salary,…
Posted in Posts
This month the Dental Lab Expert, Ashley Byrne, discusses why you shouldn’t undervalue your services when turning to digital technology. The old story of a ship engineer springs to mind. A large shipping company bought a second-hand boat on the cheap as the engine wouldn’t start. None of their engineers could get the old boat…
Posted in Posts
‘There has never been a better time to be a dental technician’ – Ashley Byrne explores the evolution of dental technology in the past 25 years, and how it has transformed from an archaic mess to aspirational art. Whilst this article is about the history of dental technology, it’s hard not to tell a little…
Posted in Posts
Ashley Byrne explains how he has built a company culture in his dental lab and why other labs need to start focusing on their culture too. Your company culture is probably the most important thing you can invest in. And yet, it’s often put to the back of lab owners’ minds because we focus on…
Posted in Posts
Ashley Byrne explains why finding the right partnerships and outsourcing could really help strengthen your dental lab. When I say ‘working partnerships’, I don’t mean your business partner (if you have one). I mean the people and companies you choose for supplies. And – for the purposes of this article – for outsourcing actual lab…
Posted in Posts
This month we hear from our regular Lab Expert columnist, Ashley Byrne, and find out more about his life away from the lab. Tell me about where you grew up and what your family life was like? Ashley Byrne: My dad was a dental technician/lab owner and my mum ran the financial side of the…
Posted in Posts
Ashley Byrne explains what dental labs can take from other areas of manufacturing to help solve dental lab challenges. I’ve spoken in this column before about the challenges our industry is facing. A lack of dental labs, scarcity of dental technicians, and a surge of dental lab work – and this is a global problem.…
Posted in Posts
Despite not offering it himself, Ashley Byrne explains why casting still has a place in some dental laboratories. I’m a digital dental lab, so casting is dead…or is it? When I set the lab up with my dad some 15 years ago, the shopping list was small with just four big ticket items; porcelain furnace,…
Posted in Posts
Ashley Byrne explores how environmentally friendly he can make his dental lab and explains the measures he’s taken. If I look back to when I started as a dental technician 25 years ago, it was a bit of an environmental disaster. But back then, the environment wasn’t high on the agenda. Gas Bunsen burners ran…
Posted in Posts
Ashley Byrne reflects on the last 12 months and, despite a difficult 2021, gets excited about what 2022 might hold. This year wasn’t the most innovative year for dental technology in my opinion. Post COVID, companies adapting to the new normal and more lockdowns has not really been the best platform for ground-breaking new technology.…
Posted in Posts
Trusting your team is the only way to run a dental lab without driving you to a nervous breakdown, Ashley Byrne says. Byrnes Dental Lab – it’s right there in the name. That’s my name, and people know I’m the owner. That brings with it a pressure to ensure that every case is correct; you…
Posted in Posts
Ashley Byrne explains why automation and artificial intelligence are helping to improve dental labs, not taking away jobs. Automation is defined as the: ‘Use or introduction of automatic equipment in a manufacturing or other process or facility’. And artificial intelligence (AI) is: ‘The theory and development of computer systems able to perform tasks normally requiring…
Posted in Posts
Dental labs need to start appealing to the younger, ‘computer gaming’ generation to ensure the industry remains prosperous. The latest GDC figures show a further decline in registered dental technicians. That means a third have now dropped off the GDC register since 2008. And yet industry papers show a rise in demand for lab work.…
Posted in Posts
With a growing number of splints to avoid tooth grinding, Ashley Byrne explores how dental labs can make designing the splints a scalable business solution. Whether it’s the pandemic, modern life, or simply greater patient awareness, we are seeing dramatic growth in patients requiring splints to help avoid tooth grinding. In the past, this has…
