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TCA Voters Showcase: Dentistry's Most Innovative

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Dentaltown Magazine 

We asked Townies which companies are best at developing and introducing the products they need most. These three came out on top.

Last year, when we asked Dentaltown readers which companies were best at developing and introducing the products that dentists need most, Townies nominated more than two dozen companies. Out of all the names that were submitted, three were the faraway winners, receiving between three and five times the votes of any of the nearest competitors.

While all three companies provide solutions for many different clinical situations, each has its own unique approach to product development, informed by its history of creation and growth. Here, Dentaltown Editorial Director Dr. Thomas Giacobbi shares his insights as to why these companies would be at the top of the list for the dentists in our survey and provides a customer’s point of view of their businesses.

Innovative Companies

3M Oral Care
The global giant of game-changers

3M Oral Care, the top vote-getter, is a component business of 3M, the global conglomerate with a market cap in excess of $67 billion and 95,000 full-time employees worldwide. Those big numbers mean the company has tremendous resources for research and development at its disposal—in fact, many of its well-known businesses are innovators in areas near and dear to dentists, including adhesives, abrasives, polishing and ceramics. 3M’s periodic table of technology platforms includes 51 different topics. (If Willy Wonka had majored in STEM, he would’ve been working at 3M.)

One of the more interesting new products to hit the market is the 3M Filtek Matrix, a digitally designed matrix custom-made to each dentist’s specifications to provide a predictable path to anterior composite veneers. Patients who want to close spaces, correct peg laterals or have more symmetry in their smile are great candidates.

How it works: The dentist’s digital scan or impression is sent to the 3M lab for digital design. Once the design is approved, a custom-printed matrix is sent to the dental practice to complete the procedure. The clever design includes doors that are opened to allow placement of composite on the teeth; when closed, the composite is formed to the contours of the matrix’s digital design. You won’t miss the tedious process of hand-sculpting an entire smile in composite!

Innovative Companies

Dentsply Sirona
Technologically speaking, it’s tops

Dentsply Sirona, another publicly traded dental juggernaut, is the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup of dental companies: In 2016, Dentsply International and Sirona Dental Systems combined to become Dentsply Sirona. This merger of equals resulted in the union of Dentsply’s extensive materials and small-equipment portfolio with Sirona’s successful Cerec and Orthophos imaging solutions—which meant dentists could find pretty much anything they needed under one brand banner.

Today, Dentsply Sirona’s digital platform, DS Core, connects the company’s growing portfolio of solutions, including implants, clear aligners and a 3D printer. The complete product roster includes 100-plus brand names, which should give you a clear sense of the breadth of its offerings. In addition to its robust portfolio, the company has focused on the development of its DS Academy locations as centers for clinical education.

Innovative Companies

Ultradent
Real working solutions inspired by dentists

Ultradent’s success sprang from humble beginnings; when dentist Dr. Dan Fischer founded the company more than 40 years ago, he was still developing and working on products in his kitchen. That core ideal is deeply rooted in the culture of the company, which has continued to solve problems for dentists for four decades.

Ultradent’s product portfolio is extensive, with solutions for whitening, endodontics, restorative and hygiene, to name a few. The new Valo X curing light is a great example of Ultradent’s innovative approach, because it includes many features beyond simply curing materials—there’s a bright white light with different diagnostic tips for transillumination, as well as a black light mode that’s helpful for visualizing residual composite in a tooth. The Gemini EVO, meanwhile, is a dual-wavelength diode laser that includes three tips for photobiomodulation, an effective therapy to speed healing and provide pain relief.
Dentaltown Magazine
September 2025
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