Editors’ Note: The Dentist-Lab Connection’s sister publication, PROOFS, conducted this interview with Emily Bradley of Core3daCADemy recently. Here are the company’s thoughts on dental labs in the digital age.
Most businesses are “going digital” to take advantage of the many technological advances produced over the last few years. Many dental labs are included in this growing list of providers who want to capitalize on the different technologies and platforms being released.
As dental labs join the digital age, they face certain challenges, such as deciding which new piece of technology to buy, and then learning how to use new equipment efficiently.
That’s where Core3daCADemy comes in. Based in Las Vegas, Core3daCADemy, a division of Core3dcentres, offers multiple solutions for dental labs transitioning into the digital age.
PROOFS talked with director Emily Bradley about Core3daCADemy, the future of dental labs, and the pros and cons of the digital age.
PROOFS: Tell us a little about Core3daCADemy.
EMILY BRADLEY: I envision Core3daCADemy as THE platform for advancing dental technology through digital innovation, resulting in better quality laboratory restorations and, ultimately, advancing patient care.
PROOFS: What is the future of dental labs?
EB: Embracing the dental lab’s role in the digital workflow is paramount to a laboratory’s success. Pricing on the technology will drop slightly. However, I see a leveling-out period just around the corner, and labs that choose not to adapt will have a hard time keeping up. I often hear from dental technicians that they feel they are betraying the craft and artistry of the field by going digital. However, the digital technology does not replace the artistry of the individual. In fact, in some cases it allows you to focus more on artistry by saving a great deal of time on the laborious steps of creating a restoration. It also offers a faster, streamlined workflow and ultimately offers the technician the opportunity to focus on the details and artistry, resulting in a more esthetic result in less time.
PROOFS: What are the pros and cons of the digital age?
EB: Right now the pros — added materials, precision, and laboratory offering — already vastly outweigh the cons of going digital, all within the same or similar workflow. A technician doesn’t have to learn different ways of getting results for different materials. For example: Designing a full-contour restoration is the same, regardless of how that design will be processed. Designing a full-contour zirconia is the same as designing an e.max® CAD; you just click a different material. Suddenly one technician can cover many different departments, thus increasing production.
The biggest con of digital in the dental lab field is the support offering. We talk about this all of the time — there are so many different ways to get the same product that the lab ends up making their choice based on price. Sometimes that lower price ends up costing the lab more in the end, as they often don’t get the training and support to actually start using the newly purchased technology effectively. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gone into a lab and seen the latest, greatest new gadget in digital dentistry collecting dust because they never really learned how to use it. Digital technology should be another weapon in the lab technician’s armamentarium. But if it doesn’t allow them to offer a new service or a faster way to get to the end result, then it was wasted money.
To combat this, we created the Core3daCADemy. We are excited to train people, no matter where they are in their digital experience. We get attendees who have purchased from the vast number of distributors on the market. We feel that we are contributing to success of the laboratory industry and, ultimately, helping labs provide a better product, resulting in better patient outcomes.
PROOFS: How will Core3daCADemy help dental labs and their employees succeed in the future?
EB: We help by staying at the forefront of digital dentistry and burdening ourselves with the inevitable growing pains, so our customers don’t have to. Let us test the new software and tell you whether it is worth updating or not. When we can, we want to teach it to you and your staff so that you can not only get the return on your investment, but also build your business. We want to be your educational partner.
PROOFS: Is Core3daCADemy the first of its kind?
EB: We may not be the first, but we are the first to take dental laboratory education to this higher level. We have a support team on call at all times, ready to help with any issues that come up. We also offer Core3daCADemy bimonthly in Las Vegas at the CAPE (Center for Advanced Professional Education) center (LVI campus). Students travel to us and spend two days learning the most up-to-date techniques while getting hands-on experience.
Dental labs can also arrange to have Core3daCADemy come to them. For a couple of days, we send our experts out. They offer courses that are specifically tailored to the dental lab — basically the lab is in complete control of everything they are learning.
We also offer monthly webinars that cover a wide range of topics from who we are partnering with, while bringing to light different ideas and new technologies.
Our goal is to provide courses for everyone, from those needing the base fundamentals of Scanning and Designing, to Advanced Bars and Smile Design. We strive to accommodate a wide variety of situations. We really try to cater whatever we are doing to give the maximum benefit to our partners.
PROOFS: Is Core3daCADemy targeted toward certain dental lab professionals? Can recent graduates/hires and veteran employees both benefit from the academy’s offerings?
EB: We have a background in comprehensive esthetic and implant dentistry. We certainly are comfortable helping with anything. In the end, if the person who purchased a system isn’t using it, no one benefits. We teach everything, from the fundamentals to the most advanced techniques. We really hope to bring new life into our partners’ labs, showing them how they can stay within their comfort zones, but also start to offer new products and services to their dentists. We also try to teach techniques and material handling, so the ultimate beneficiaries are doctors and patients both. We understand that everything we teach ultimately has a person attached to it. Ultimate patient care is paramount in our philosophy.
As Ms. Bradley said, Core3daCADemy offers multiple ways for dental laboratories to learn about, use, and provide cutting-edge technology and ideas to their clients. Courses at their Las Vegas base are offered a few times a year. If you or a representative of your dental lab are not able to attend the Las Vegas courses, Core3daCADemy can come to you. Additionally, take advantage of the webinars they offer to improve your business offerings between sessions. Core3daCADemy will lead your dental laboratory into the digital age.
The next courses in Las Vegas will be offered on March 14 and 15 and May 9 and 10.
For more information about Core3daCADemy, its course offerings, registration, or scheduling a time for their representatives to come to you, contact Emily Bradley at 888-750-9204 or by email at [email protected].
