10 Questions: Warren White, Chief Operating Officer of KOMET USA

Dental Products Report, Dental Products Report-2011-10-01, Issue 10

01 Can you explain how KOMET USA is unique within the rotary instrument market?

01 Can you explain how KOMET USA is unique within the rotary instrument market?
KOMET USA is distinctive in that we are truly a direct organization. The products we sell are shipped directly from our own factory in Germany to the end-user, who receives the order within three days. We conduct our own research and development, we do our own manufacturing, and we have a highly sophisticated operations system that enables us to maintain inventories for the worldwide KOMET family of companies. We are a family-owned company that has found the ideal formula for providing users around the world with the highest-quality dental rotary instruments.

02 What does KOMET USA do differently from other companies?
Some companies define themselves as “direct” because they skip the dealer network, but many purchase products from other companies and simply repackage them. So for them, “direct” actually has a different meaning. Our instruments carry the KOMET name because they are, in fact, engineered and manufactured by KOMET.

03 Why do you think KOMET customers are so loyal to the products and the company as a whole?
Most dental professionals have tried countless products over the years, always searching for just the right combination of quality, reliability, ease of use, and company support. When doctors use KOMET instruments, they immediately notice the tremendous difference in quality. That in turn makes them want to use the products again and again.

04 Can you elaborate on what “customer service” means at KOMET USA?
It begins with a commitment to excellence and a drive to maintain and nurture the level of quality that was envisioned by our founder in 1923. Our team is made up of instrument experts who specialize in these products.

05 KOMET instruments have been manufactured in the Lemgo, Germany facility for decades. How has the company maintained that continuity in an ever-changing world?
The KOMET credo is and always has been to make the finest dental rotary instruments in the world. To remain true to that charter, we took on the role of innovators, responding to and foreseeing changes within the dental community. We’ve evolved directly with dentistry by partnering with dental experts, industry leaders, educators and our customers.

06  Why is it so important to sell direct to customers? Wouldn’t it be easier to partner with a large-scale distributor?
While in some ways it might be easier to distribute through a dealer, it would be a disservice to our customers and to the heritage of KOMET. To make educated, informed buying decisions, doctors need to know that real science backs up the products they’re using, that the quality promised is proven by strict testing protocols, and that the relationship between supplier and buyer is more than simply a transaction.

07 You’ve mentioned the importance of heritage, tradition and the way things are done at KOMET USA. Just what is the “KOMET way?”
The KOMET way is ensuring that doctors have the right instruments for every procedure, every single time. It is using our people, our products and our delivery protocol with an emphasis on customer service and satisfaction. Most of all, the KOMET way is never selling out, always acting with integrity and continually working to improve our instruments.

08 How is that important to today’s dental professionals?
Value-minded professionals respect quality-driven companies. Doctors want to know the products they’re using are backed by real science and engineering expertise.

09 Can you explain the type of value your dentist-customers can expect from KOMET?
Value is achieved through innovation. For example, advances in high-strength ceramics have been extraordinary, with the downside  being that dentists struggle to cut through the materials, going through bur after bur. But the KOMET ZR-Diamond™ is a game-changing innovation in bur design. One bur changed a 90-minute procedure into a 30-minute one, freeing up treatment time, not to mention the savings in instrument costs. That’s the type of value KOMET customers have come to expect.

10 Is there anything you’d like to say to anyone reading this who has not yet tried a KOMET bur?
KOMET is a historically proven, worldwide leader in dental rotary instrument innovation. We are committed to helping you find the perfect combination of instruments for your practice. We’ll even offer you a money back guarantee. Our equation is quite simple: Do things the right way, and the rest will follow. At KOMET, that means a KOMET-labeled instrument was designed and tested by KOMET experts, and ultimately it comes to you direct from the KOMET factory.