Innovator Profile Zirkonzahn's marriage of dependable hardware and great software

Learning about a truly start-to-finish solution.

This article originally appeared in the July/August issue of Dental Lab Products. For more great articles about what's happening in the dental lab world, click the issue below:

Zirkonzahn has become known around the dental lab world for marrying cutting-edge technology with a commitment to esthetics. Offering CAD/CAM solutions from start to finish, Zirkonzahn is a true innovator.

We recently spoke with Zirkonzahn’s Wilfried Tratter, MDT, about Zirkonzahn’s commitment to the entire laboratory workflow.

Q: Dental technology is becoming more and more digital. In the field of dental software engineering, especially, there has been enormous progress during the last years. What were the most significant milestones? What will the next few years bring,and where is this development heading?

A: Nowadays, virtual planning and designing of dental prostheses has become indispensable in dentistry and dental technology. A few years ago, the ability to create a restoration on your computer was revolutionary. The digitization of the individual working steps will be the next stage. Not only does it increase the productivity, it also presents another step toward a holistic approach in dental technology. For instance, the Face Hunter 3D facial scanner scans patient faces in just 0.3 seconds, allowing it to work based on the patient’s physiognomy and enable  better teamwork between dentists and dental technicians. This makes it possible to create even more patient-specific, natural-looking and healthy restorations.

Related: Zirkonzahn's new, super translucent zirconia

Q: What characterizes good dental CAD software?

A: Good dental CAD software is complex and easy-to-handle at the same time. It should be adequate for both the expert as well as the beginner. In the Zirkonzahn software, the beginner is led by the so-called “Wizard,” an assistant who helps the user through the different steps of the elaboration of a dental prosthesis with a lot of automatic mechanisms. On the other hand, the expert can maneuver freely in the software and use special menus and tricks to further hone his or her skills and perfect his or her work.

Q: Zirkonzahn is a developer of both software and hardware. What advantages does it bring to produce everything on your own?

A: This is obviously a great advantage. Our software is perfectly adjusted to our milling units and vice versa. Our software and hardware developers collaborate on a daily basis and constantly exchange ideas, which helps to optimize the workflow. If something is stuck or does not work smoothly, we have the solution to the problem right in our house.

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Q: What new solutions can we expect from Zirkonzahn?

A: We are going to launch a new nesting software, which sets itself apart from standard software solutions with its ability to perform several calculations at once or by commencing the milling process immediately after the calculation has started. Also, we recently updated our software user interface. We provided our software with an entirely new design to standardize all the different interfaces, thus making it even easier for the user.      

Featured Products:

Compact Line Milling Unit M1

The compact line is available in several models designed to match the needs and budget of any-size dental laboratory looking to take advantage of computer-aided manufacturing. The M1 Soft, M1 Wet and M1 Wet Heavy Metal models are provided with intelligent five-axis orbit technology to deliver the ultimate in versatility. This means milling is possible in any conceivable plane--even undercuts and diverging abutments are processed simply and quickly. Thus, besides crowns, bridges, inlays, onlays and telescopic crowns, full zirconia abutments, screw connections, attachments, bars and full prostheses can be created.

FACE HUNTER-3D digitization of patient’s faces

With the Face Hunter 3D facial scanner, it is possible to work on the basis of physiognomy, which allows axis-related positioning of the facial scan data with the models in the virtual articulator. This way, even the facial arc can be “controlled virtually” and, if necessary, readjusted in the mock-up software. While the technician is allowed to create the restoration on the basis of the face, the dentist gets an almost photo-realistic preview of the final result. Not only does this serve as a marketing tool, but it can also be used for counseling so patients can get a more concrete idea of what the final work will look like.

For more information call 678-441-9419 or visit zirkonzahn.com.

Editor's note: Innovator Profiles are part of a special advertising section in the pages of Dental Lab Products and are paid for by advertising partners. The opinions in these profiles are not necessarily reflected by Dental Lab Products, its editorial team or UBM Medica.