By Anne Hemingstreet, Special for Dentaltown Magazine

Quality Glove & Infection Control Products at Affordable Prices

“Over the years, our loyal glove customers have asked us to carry other infection control products, so we have added and will continue to add key non-glove products for our customers and do it at attractive prices”
— Deepal Wannakuwatte, Owner and President, RelyAid

Former Davis Cup tennis player and National Lawn Tennis Champion of Sri Lanka, Deepal Wannakuwatte vacationed in Sacramento, California after receiving his Undergraduate Degree in Business from the University of Georgia in 1972. While there, he fell in love not only with Sacramento, but also with his future wife and business partner, Betsy.

Instead of returning to Sri Lanka and his family’s century-old rubber plantation, he stayed in Sacramento and was the first tennis professional at Rio Del Oro Racquet Club. In 1989 he and Betsy began International Manufacturing Group, Inc., better known to its customers simply as RelyAid in Sacramento.

For more than 16 years now, RelyAid has served dental professionals nationwide with examination gloves, infection control products and other supplies. Their creation, in partnership with Medline Industries, of Aloetouch Ease left/right fitted gloves in late 2003 has made RelyAid is one of the fastest growing glove and infection control companies in America.

“From the knowledge we’ve gained over the years, we’re continuing to develop new products, like Aloetouch Ease, that are better suited to the needs of dentists,” said Senior Executive Vice President of RelyAid, Gary Coraggio. “One day, we will look at the powdered, latex, ambidextrous gloves still common to our industry with the same amusement we look at the clunky, oversized cell phones of yesterday. Dentists are especially prone to glove-related problems, and RelyAid is committed to protecting a dentist’s most valuable instrument––the hand.”

Manufacturing Aloetouch Ease gloves is similar to the production of surgical gloves. This process allows the thumb to be placed in line with the natural configuration of the hand, about two inches in front of the other digits. This manufacturing design allows the glove to fit the hand and fingers more comfortably and ergonomically. Ambidextrous gloves are produced with the thumb aligned with the other fingers, exerting a continuous force against the thumb that constricts movement and causes additional stress on the thumb muscles. This can lead to fatigue and impaired dexterity.

Technological innovations exclusive to RelyAid have set them ahead of the pack of examination glove manufacturers. RelyAid and Aloetouch Ease gloves were recently featured on the nationwide television program World Business Review’s Health Journal Television, hosted by General Alexander Haig and the Pankey Institute’s Christian Sager. RelyAid was one of a select few dental companies chosen for a segment called Innovations in Dentistry.

“Health Journal TV educates viewers about the latest technologies, procedures, studies and strategies in medicine,” said Christian B. Sager, Executive, The Pankey Institute for Advanced Dental Education. “Topics include recent advances in dentistry that are the result of dentists and specialists working closely with members of industry to improve public health. Consumers can rely on Alexander Haig’s unquestioned integrity and expertise to publicize meaningful information about evolving science.”

The reason RelyAid was chosen for the CNBC television piece is simple––popularity. The rising popularity of Aloetouch Ease fitted gloves among dental professionals brought RelyAid to the attention of the show’s producers. Aloetouch Ease gloves are unique and innovative, because they answer the two most troubling issues for glove wearers–contact dermatitis and hand fatigue. Coraggio represented RelyAid during filming of the Innovations in Dentistry segment, which can be viewed at www.relyaid.com.

Gloves have been part of infection control in dentistry for just the last 15 years. Besides protecting both the patient and the dentist, several unforeseen problems have surfaced from the use of latex, powdered, ambidextrous gloves; including contact dermatitis, hand fatigue and injury.

To address the problem of contact dermatitis, RelyAid selected aloe vera. For centuries, aloe vera plants have been used in the treatment of human burns and skin wounds. More recently, aloe vera has been used in the treatment of leg ulcers, seborrheic dermatitis, acne vulgaris and alopecia areata. In short, there is something amazing about the healing power of aloe vera. All Aloetouch Ease gloves are powder-free and use a patented manufacturing process that applies the aloe vera to the entire interior surface of the gloves. When the gloves are worn, the user’s body heat activates the aloe, coating the hands and fingers with a concentration of aloe vera.

Other problems related to wearing ambidextrous gloves are repetitive motion disorders of the hand and wrist, including carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), tendonitis and chronic pain. Thousands of workers are affected each year, costing employers millions of dollars in lost workdays and workers’ compensation claims. In 2001, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported almost 27,000 cases of CTS. These cases resulted in an average of 25 lost workdays per case, more than any other work-related injury. In addition to lost workdays, California figures show the average cost per workers’ compensation claims for CTS to be more than $37,000.

First-time Aloetouch Ease glove users are often amazed at how much better their hands feel with the less restrictive, fitted examination glove. According to Coraggio, “This glove will revolutionize the dental community. Aloetouch Ease is the perfect answer for every dentist who suffers with dry, chapped hands or the thousands who complain of hand fatigue due to wearing an ambidextrous glove. The combination of reducing stress on the ligaments in the hands along with the moisturizing benefits of aloe vera, makes Aloetouch Ease the perfect glove for every dentist.”

Originally available only in latex, RelyAid will introduce Aloetouch Ease, left/right fitted gloves in a nitrile version this August, with the Aloetouch Universal 3G vinyl model being introduced in the Fall of 2005. “Much of the popularity of the Aloetouch Ease line is the fact that we are trying to offer the most cost effective line of fitted gloves ever on the market,” said Wannakuwatte. “Many of our competitors offer fitted gloves that cost $4 to $5 more per box than ours––without the key benefit of aloe vera.”

As it enters its 16th year, RelyAid’s success only seems to be picking up momentum. The company currently has just over 35 employees between its home office in Sacramento and an office in Phoenix, Ariz. "In Sacramento, RelyAid is working to employ people from economically challenged backgrounds and areas,” Wannakuwatte said. “Many of the workers at the West Sacramento location are from neighborhoods recognized by the Federal Government as Historically Underutilized Business Zones. RelyAid has qualified as U.S. HubZone business, which is certified by the Small Business Administration. This opens up opportunities for RelyAid to do business with the Federal Government. RelyAid is ideally positioned to serve both the private and public sectors. In fact, RelyAid has a department specifically devoted to providing its products to the government."

Moreover, there are large expansion plans in the works for this year. One of which includes working with other glove manufacturers on distribution opportunities for the Aloetouch Ease line of gloves, as well as looking for independent sales representatives.

However, RelyAid is more than just a glove company. “Over the years, our loyal glove customers have asked us to carry other infection control products, so we have added and will continue to add key non-glove products for our customers and do it at attractive prices,” Wannakuwatte said.

The RelyAid product line includes some of the lowest priced infection control products in the dental industry from companies such as Crosstex, Medline, All-Pro, Zirc, Beutlich Pharmaceuticals, Richmond, Deepak Products, Nu Radiance, and Gelato. Private label products offered by RelyAid consist of personalized toothbrushes, facemasks and take-home bleaching kits.

Coraggio sees the price point as the reason customers purchase these products from RelyAid. “We don’t have thousands of outside sales reps we have to pay commissions to, so we pass that savings along to our customers in the form of lower everyday prices for the same products carried by our competitors,” said Coraggio.

Over the years, RelyAid established relationships with dental associations and societies across the country. Six have chosen RelyAid as the exclusively endorsed glove company.

Plus, RelyAid created an innovative dividend program, with the help of Dr. Herbert H. Hooper, a trustee of the California Dental Association, for the members of the of Illinois State Dental Society, Colorado Dental Association, Idaho State Dental Association, Arkansas State Dental Association, Louisiana Dental Association, and the Tennessee Dental Association. As the members of these dental associations and societies purchase RelyAid products, dividends are earned for their associations. Plus, association/society members receive an 8% cash-back rebate on all product purchases from RelyAid at the end of each year.

“RelyAid and the Illinois State Dental Society have had a very good working relationship over the years and the RelyAid Rebate Program allows the membership to see real benefits in being a member,” says Gregory A. Johnson, director of professional services at the Illinois State Dental Society.

Since 1988, RelyAid has paid more than $3.5 million in dividends to the participating professional organizations. RelyAid is looking to the future and believes one of the best services it can offer dental professionals is information at a quick pace. RelyAid is developing video programs and live e-conferences on its Web site that will help move information to the dental industry.

The RelyAid vision includes education programs for CE credits, seminars, product trainings, and other live topical presentations. “My goal is that in the next 9-months, our Web site becomes one of the key resources for dental professionals to receive and exchange information. It is our belief that video presentations and live on-line seminars is the best way to communicate to the dental community,” said Coraggio.

While RelyAid continues to make improvements to meet the needs of the industry, the core component for the company’s success is a strong family foundation.

“One of the best things I have learned from watching Deepal,” Coraggio said, “is how he always puts his family as his number one priority. I am very lucky to work for someone who not only understands I want to take my kids to school each day, but encourages it.”

The Wannakuwatte and the Coraggio families have melded into one big extended family. The two families vacation together each summer and frequently spend time together throughout the year. Wannakuwatte puts it into perspective: “Our daughter Sarah and the Coraggio kids are all like brothers and sisters. It has been really fun to watch them grow close over the past few years. I always tell Gary that our kids are the reason that we work hard each day.”

For more information on RelyAid and its catalog of products call 1-800-775-6412 or visit them online at www.relyaid.com.