How to select a CAD CAM operator for a dental laboratory?

Advantages of the CAD/CAM system compared to the “classical” production of structures.

The undeniable advantages of the system include:

1. High precision in product manufacturing - no shrinkage or deformation of the material, ensuring the highest quality finished product that fully complies with the specified parameters;
2. The ability to take into account the needs of any patient - The ability to manufacture objects of any complexity and configuration, including hollow ones;
3. Possibility of manufacturing prostheses from zirconium dioxide;
4. Minimum production time for dental structures - visualization of intermediate and final results, their agreement with the patient allows you to start the manufacturing process in the shortest possible time;
5. Fully automated manufacturing process, eliminating the human factor;
6. Compact installation dimensions.

What is the technology

The main advantage of the CAD/CAM system in dentistry is that the types of prostheses produced are highly accurate compared to conventional prosthetics. The use of a computer also ensures the speed of production and high convenience of the product for the patient.

This technique requires the following tools:

• intraoral camera;
• directly the computer;
• milling machine.

After selecting the required elements, you can proceed to creating prostheses, which includes several stages:

1. An orthopedic dentist prepares teeth for prosthetics. Using a drill, he grinds off some of the enamel and dentin from the tooth - this is necessary to create space for the future prosthesis. This stage is no different from conventional orthopedic preparation.
2. The doctor takes a virtual impression of the patient’s teeth using an intraoral camera. Its use has a huge advantage for prosthetics for people with an increased gag reflex, for whom taking conventional impressions with impression material on trays is a difficult and sometimes insoluble test.
3. At the end of the appointment, the prepared teeth are covered with protective varnish or artificial crowns. This is done to prevent pain and increased sensitivity.

Taking an impression
The further process of creating a prosthesis occurs without the participation of the patient and is carried out on a computer or laptop on which the CAD/CAM program is installed:

1. Information from the intraoral camera is transferred to computer media.
2. Using a special program, the doctor creates a virtual three-dimensional sketch of the future prosthesis. The patient’s teeth, located symmetrically on the other side of the jaw, serve as a standard for the simulated teeth. If there are none, the program itself selects the optimal result. The advantage is that you can select several different options (shape, inclination of teeth), adjust and discuss them with the patient. The duration of this stage can vary from several minutes to 1-2 hours, depending on the complexity of the initial situation.
3. After determining the final version, its 3D sketch is saved. The information is sent to the milling machine on which the frame is manufactured. The material can be cobalt-chromium alloy or zirconium dioxide. The metal block is processed with special cutters in the sequence specified by the computer, and the frame of the future prosthesis is obtained. Then it is ground and polished. The turning process lasts approximately 10-15 minutes.
4. To increase the aesthetic effect, the metal part is coated with ceramic mass in a special oven.
5. The finished prosthesis is transferred to the dental office and tried on by the patient. After fitting, the artificial teeth are fixed to the jaw.

Orthopedic structures manufactured using CAD/CAM technology

CAD/CAM technology makes it possible to produce removable and fixed models of prostheses, as well as products of other types, in particular, surgical templates. However, despite the presented functionality, CAD/CAM is most widely used to create permanent orthopedic models:

• veneers;
• tabs;
• crowns made of solid ceramics and zirconium;
• bridge structures;
• telescopic crowns;
• temporary crowns that require production in the shortest possible time.
• individual abutments for implantation.

Types of manufactured prostheses

The CAD/CAM system in dentistry makes it possible to produce almost all types of dental prosthetics. These include the following:

1. Metal-ceramic crowns and bridge implants. This is the most common type of jaw defect replacement. The disadvantage of traditional prosthetics is that it occurs in several stages, taking time and forcing the patient to wait. Using this system, it is possible to reduce the production time for metal ceramics from a week to a day. First, the frame of the future prosthesis is modeled on a computer, then it is covered with ceramic mass using conventional technology.
2. Frames of clasp dentures. The difficulty of their manufacture lies in the fact that they often have a very complex design, which is difficult to manufacture in a dental laboratory. Often during the metal casting process, deformations in the shape of the structure occur, which negatively affect its quality. The production of the frame using the CAD/CAM system ensures its high accuracy even in complex clinical cases.
3. Telescopic crowns for clasp dentures. They are attached to a metal frame and secure the prosthesis to the teeth in the jaw. Kad Cam helps you virtually plan the location of the crowns on the prosthesis frame and manufacture them with maximum accuracy.
4. Fillings, inlays and veneers made of ceramic or porcelain. The computer allows you to accurately predict the type of restoration and select the required shade and color. After the planning stage, a product of the required shape is turned from a ceramic block on a milling machine.
5. Inlays made of cobalt-chrome alloy, zirconium dioxide. If the inlay is intended for multi-rooted teeth, using CAD/CAM it is possible to design the location of the pins in each channel, which will improve its retention in the tooth.
6. Abutments for titanium implants. They are a head that fits onto an implant installed in the jaw. In complex clinical cases, when it is necessary to use several titanium rods to support a bridge, CAD/CAM will help to accurately calculate the distance between them and produce an individual abutment for each implant.

Metal ceramics

Veneer

Abutment

Tab

Classification of CAD/CAM technologies.

All CAD/CAM systems are divided into two types:

• "Closed systems";
• "Open systems"

“Closed” systems include equipment that can only work with certain consumables, usually produced by one company.

Open CAD/CAM systems have a number of advantages for users:

• Selection of any CAD/CAM materials from the range available on the market for milling the finished restoration;
• The scanner for digitizing the impression or remaining tooth substance, as well as the milling machine, are selected by the operator. That is, images obtained by a clinician using an intraoral scanning camera of one open CAD/CAM system can be freely used for modeling in the software of another open system and milled on a machine of a third open system from another manufacturer.

According to the second main classification, all CAD/CAM technologies are divided into:

• medical;
• laboratory

The best companies producing CAD/CAM systems.

Dyamach - Modern design from an Italian manufacturer. It is distinguished by increased accuracy and the ability to work and combine various materials. A milling machine that grinds products in a continuous mode reduces the operation time. The disadvantage of the system can be considered its high price in comparison with analog versions of other manufacturers of competing brands.

Roland is a product of Japanese developers, the main advantage of which is the absolute silence of the milling machine during the process of turning a product. There is also increased precision in processing and giving the required shape to prostheses made from materials of increased hardness, for example, zirconium crowns. The disadvantage is the high price of the equipment, which limits its use in domestic dental clinics.

Sirona Dental Systems is a representative of German manufacturers. Like everything made in Germany, it is distinguished by high quality and compliance with all standard requirements. Refers to equipment of the middle price group. The devices are widely used in Russian dental centers. An ideal solution for clinics with low traffic and the presence of modern laboratories.

Zirkonzahn - Has the highest productivity - about 1000 units of models per month. Compatible with intraoral scanning devices. Processes any materials. Refers to a product in the mid-price segment. On the European market since 2009. Product from Swiss manufacturers.

WIELAND - The Wieland milling machine has a massive chassis and a durable granite work surface. Designed for use in large laboratories and milling centers. The main advantage is the built-in high-quality liquid crystal screen, which allows instant display of the image during the process of turning the material. Equipped with an independent exhaust mechanism.

How to select a CAD CAM operator for a dental laboratory?

Many dental technicians, taking a course on virtual modeling at our cad cam academy “Stakhanovets”, ask us how we found technicians who understand this?

And this question is really relevant! After all, many of the first trainees are owners of dental laboratories who understand that it will be difficult to develop a new direction on their own, and that this requires a separate person. And preferably reliable! But here the questions arise: Who should it be? What qualities should this person have? Should I hire one of my own technicians or hire a new one? Is it possible to find an experienced one? We can give you a couple of tips so that all this chaos will settle down a little in your head, and you will understand that all this can be solved! So: who is the best candidate for a CAD/CAM position in a dental laboratory?

Many business team builders believe that the best and most loyal employees are those who are nurtured within the company, and I completely agree with this! We will build on this, especially since it is very difficult to find an experienced CAD/CAM operator.

You can count such specialists on your fingers, and they all work somewhere and are valued. So, most likely, you will have to raise your own! Let's look at what a candidate for this position should be like before we start “raising” him?

1) Of course, the most important thing is that he must be a dental technician by training! This is an important point, and we want to focus your attention on this! The future CAD/CAM operator will perform work where this knowledge is simply necessary. Even if he is given an already modeled wax work, which only needs to be scanned, calculated and sent for milling - in such work there are always points not taken into account in the wax that need to be corrected in the program during virtual modeling, otherwise the result may be defective or incorrectly completed work ! And the question arises: “Will a person without education and without experience as a dental technician be able to adequately correct, add or remove something, without understanding what can be removed and what cannot?”

Don't joke with such things! Otherwise, you will have real problems associated with dissatisfaction of your customers and rework of work. It is also desirable that the future CAD/CAM operator have experience working as a dental technician, and not be hired immediately after college. By the way, many CAD/CAM centers have operators without a dental technician background, and even promote the idea that this is not necessary. But I think that’s why many of us have heard reviews that, they say, CAD/CAM, and until you do it yourself, no one will do it properly for you... Don’t repeat these mistakes, hire a dental technician for this position, at least with a 2-year-old experience in removable and non-removable.

PS By the way, if you are not satisfied with the work of any CAD/CAM center, try to find out whether the CAD/CAM operator who is milling your work has a dental technician education? Ask him a couple of things that the dental technician can definitely answer, and then everything will become clear ;-)__

2) So, we figured out that the candidate must be a dental technician with experience, but what else should you pay attention to? Look for a dental technician who loves everything computer related! This could be an avid computer game player, a person who can easily install Windows or another program... You might think, why is this necessary? According to statistics from our CAD/CAM Academy, and we have already trained a large number of dental technicians from Ukraine and other countries, it is precisely the guys who are interested in computers who are very easy to understand the program for virtual modeling! It's like their element! For them, this is just another “program” that needs to be sorted out. And we would like to add that they usually figure it out very quickly!

Let me give you an example from our practice that happened to us recently. Our administrator Tatyana lost her work laptop with all the information for her work! Well, can you imagine Tanya’s shock and horror? All her work and client data disappeared in an instant! To try to restore the data, the guys called some specialist, but he was able to recover only part of the information, saying that the rest, alas, was lost. And then our Tanya, being in a state of despair and “there is nothing left to lose,” remembers that one of our technicians, who is engaged in casting flexible removable dentures (this is our separate direction), once mentioned that he repairs computers! Surprisingly, even we did not know about these abilities of Roman (that’s his name). As a result, in literally 20 minutes Roman restored absolutely all the lost files on the damaged laptop! The story could have ended there if we had not been “hunting” for such dental technicians! )))))

We know that people like Roman are the best candidates for the position of CAD/CAM operator. Dental technician + let’s call him “computer geek”. It will take the least amount of time to train such a person in the necessary dental programs, and you can quickly get an excellent specialist! A specialist who knows what the design should look like and knows how to implement it using the necessary 3D programs and equipment! Naturally, after we learned from the modest Roman about his abilities, we immediately began to train him at the CAD/CAM center for the position of another (already the 5th) CAD/CAM operator. And you know what? This is surprising, but just 2 days of internship, and Roman is already independently modeling his first works in the Exocad virtual modeling program! To my question: “Well, Roma, is it difficult?” Roma makes round, surprised eyes and answers with a smile: “No, of course! What’s so complicated about it?!” So, friends, your task as the head of a dental laboratory or milling center is to find Romanovs like these. Sometimes they are very secretive and taciturn, and their additional skills do not become obvious immediately, but once you have discovered them, do not miss the chance. Offer him development in a new direction and train him to become a CAD/CAM operator!

3) And the last piece of advice, when it's time to train a candidate, investing money and time into it - make sure that this person is reliable and will not leave you anytime soon, for any reason! If you choose one of your technicians for the role of a CAD/CAM operator, then it is advisable that this is one of the “old-timers”, someone who has established himself as a stable employee. It’s better to either conclude a contract with the rest, or agree on training 50% to 50%, or if there are several people in your laboratory who want this position, then invite them to study on their own and the one with the best results will get the position. In the end, it is their knowledge, and you need to invest money in your knowledge. But this is all at your discretion. Each laboratory decides the issue of employee training individually. Personally, in our center we have created a special fund for training our CAD/CAM operators. The money for this fund comes from courses offered by our CAD/CAM Academy. And to ensure that employees do not leave us, we adhere to 3 rules:

1) Decent salary.

2) Care and respect for employees is no less than for the client.

3) No scandals or psychological suppression!

Try it - it works great

Let's summarize. The best candidate for a CAD/CAM operator position is a dental technician with experience as well as computer programming skills. And if this is also your time-tested employee, then you are generally lucky and lucky! Of course, if a person does not have computer skills and programs, he can also be trained in a dental virtual modeling program - it will just take more time. The main thing is not to hang your nose and understand that nothing is impossible! Anyone who wants to will learn. Just some earlier, and some later. But if you have the desire, you will definitely succeed!

And if you need help with training, feel free to contact our CAD/CAM Academy “Stakhanovets”. We have not yet met anyone whom we could not train. Good luck to you, colleagues! And we wish that only those people who will always work with you will be a single team, collectively moving towards success and prosperity.

Sincerely, Tatyana Moiseeva – Director of Personnel and Personnel Training, CAD/CAM, Kiev
Author: “Stakhanovets” -

3Shape Review

The 3Shape brand produces intraoral (intraoral) and laboratory scanning devices.

Intraoral scanners

This category of 3Shape devices includes models TRIOS 3, TRIOS BASIC, TRIOS 3 Move+, TRIOS 3 Mono. All these devices are demonstrated in operation:

• high speed - scanning takes less than a minute;
• the process takes place without powder or spray, distortion due to materials is excluded;
• error up to 7 μm;
• economical - sterilizable attachments are used.

The difference lies in the color aesthetics of the digital impressions. The TRIOS 3 and TRIOS 3 Move+ devices provide a color palette, the Mono modification provides a black and white palette.

Control systems programming training program:

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