Dental Lab Equipment Basics
So you want to set-up a dental lab at your practice, but don't know the essential equipment needed? It is important to address the needs of your lab space. What do you plan on accomplishing in this space? Your workstation needs to be designed for efficiency and include the essential equipment for what you hope to accomplish, but also allow room to expand if your needs grow.
Lab technicians and other dental professionals make adjustments to prosthetic and therapeutic devices, such as dentures, crowns, bridges, retainers, and implants. This area needs proper shelving, lighting, surface space for adjustments, and a dust collector. The dust collector uses a suction hose and protective face shields to help contain debris. Make sure to also consider the designated space. Lab areas run the gamut from storage closets, to break rooms, and to small back room areas. This Practice Tip elaborates on basic in-house lab space that an average dental office might need to get up and running.
Getting Started
A basic lab space usually consists of a smaller space for an in house lab technician. The equipment needed consists of a dental lathe, two splash hoods, a dust collector, a model trimmer, a lab handpiece, an articulator, and a vibrator to get the bubbles out of plaster mouth models. Additionally you will need the supplies to create and modify these appliances. These basic pieces of equipment run about $2,500 from American Dental Accessories.
- Foredom Bench Lathe (#31-006)
- Splash Hood With Shield and Light (#31-024)
- Dust-Inn Dust Collector (#31-020)
- Model Trimmer (#31-008)
- Medicool Lab Handpiece (#69-743)
- Denture Articulator (#21-232)
- Vibrator (#21-22)
Additional Equipment
A next step-up from the basics, would be to add a vacuum former for creating various night guards, splints, mouth guards, bleaching trays, etc. It would also be helpful to have an etcher to help with creating appliances and prosthetics. This, with an upgrade of a slightly more powerful vibrator and all the other previously discussed equipment, would be considered a median lab. If all items were purchased together at one time, it would run an extra $1,000 - $1,500.
- Pro-Form Vacuum Former (#21-095)
- Danville MicroEtcher II (#60-62)
- Buffalo Heavy-Duty Lab Vibrator (#21-229)
The design you implement in the laboratory should be somewhat flexible and should support the current needs and technologies if at all possible. Even though the lab you may be planning is a small space, it should have sufficient circulation that optimizes accessibility and safety. Keep in mind the humidity, temperature, airflow, and dust, while still providing a sterile environment.
This is just the basic equipment. When you have established your dental lab, then it is time to purchase things to make the appliances and the mouth models. Things such as silicone teflon spray (#21-046) for the models, vacuum forming materials, grinding wheels, polishing wheels, and buffing wheels (#21-076) for your lathe. You also need polishing discs, burs, and polishers for your micromotor, including lab grinders and discs.
With the advancement of technology, there are always new and improved pieces of equipment to integrate into your laboratory. It also depends on your budget and the purpose of your lab. So many things can be done in your lab to add to your dental practice. Hopefully this Practice Tip helps you with establishing the essential equipment needed to customized your in-house dental lab.
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