Virtual by design

Full Contour is a business that exists in the cloud and other digital spaces. Just five years ago it would have been extremely difficult to create a Web-based digital design service, but today Full Contour is thriving thanks to the rapid expansion of cloud computer and a world connected via the Web.

“In general Full Contour is a design center. We do digital design for laboratories and milling centers around the world. Our focus is on North America because it has a big dental industry, but we do have customers in Europe and Australia,” said Rob Laizure Jr., who along with his three brothers, helps run the company founded by their father, Full Contour’s CEO, Rob Laizure Sr.

Labs with an overflow of digital work can create an account on the Full Contour website, fullcontour.com, create a prescription for the case and upload the corresponding scans as an STL file. Full Contour downloads the files to its design center, completes the design and reuploads the file to the customer account where it can be downloaded and sent for production.

The entire company operates in virtual spaces with online invoicing, credit card payments and data accessible from anywhere a customer can access the Internet. Laizure Jr., said his family built the business because they saw a need for experienced digital designers and understood that technology had advanced enough to make such an operation possible.

There is a standard 24-hour turn around for designs, but 2-hour rush services also are available. Laizure Jr., said some labs might add a scanner without much desire to learn to use the design software, but most Full Contour customers are labs experiencing rapid growth in their digital caseloads. The service helps them keep up with their expanding business.

“We really shine by being their scale up strategy,” Laizure Jr. said.

The company provides its service over the Internet and that means any customer with Web access can log into their account, submit cases, check case status, and view and approve restoration designs created by Full Contour’s designers. An iPhone app provides mobile users with a scaled down dashboard of their account for on-the-go updates.

While the company might live and work in the cloud, Laizure Jr., said it is founded on the same sound business principles that have always been successful. That means this virtual company strives to connect with every customer and provide the service people expect from anyone they bring in as a business partner. Laizure Jr.,  said being accessible via the phone is a key part of how he and his brothers run the business, so their customers know they can always reach the real people behind the virtual workflows.

“Relationships are still vital in any business and we want to stay close to our customers and we’re there to serve them,” Laizure Jr., said.