Ceramco 3 porcelain with Super Clear enamel and Vita 3D Master comparable shades, plus shaded CERCON zirconia core material previews were the big draw at the recent Chicago Lab Day Meeting, March 1, 2003. DENTSPY Ceramco hosted 100s of dental technicians in their day-long Technical Education Center (TEC) road-show, demonstrations in the Sheraton Hotel, Mayfair Room, and in their CERCON suite in the Hyatt Regency Hotel. “I tried three of the all-ceramic system options,” said Bob Anderson, of Anderson Dental Studio, Inc., Edina, MN; “I wanted one that offers in-house processing control and technical support right in my lab; the CERCON System from Ceramco does all that. Plus, I like the people I’m dealing with!” (see photo #39 attached.) In Chicago, Ceramco previewed to attendees the next generation of CERCON system materials. These include “pressable” dentin ingots, neutral shaded core materials and larger blocks of zirconia core material that will permit one-piece anterior or posterior frameworks up to 51mm in length.
After sitting with Ceramco TEC CDT, Ross Greenberg, Scott Harrison and Terry Hadd, owners of Harrison Dental Studio, West St. Paul, MN, commented on the new enhancements for their CERCON System, “the new shaded zirconia cores will help reduce the brightness of the core and enhance esthetics… and the “pressable” dentin option will save us time in build-up.” Ceramco predicts that these Cercon developments will be ready for launch in late Q2, 2003.
Ceramco 3 porcelain developments were demonstrated by Roger Picard, MDT, whose table was continually filled with curious technicians. (Ref. attached photo # 23.) Among his hands-on presentations were new illuminẻ™ bright- white shades, a Ceramco 3 Super Clear enamel and Vita® 3-D Master® comparable shades. SuperClear enamel porcelain is more transparent and can be used for either an effect powder or as an overlay to increase the depth of the restoration.
Ceramco 3 Porcelain will also contain shades comparable to the Vita® 3D-Master® shades. Technicians will be able to create Ceramco 3 restorations to maximize esthetics in combination work, to provide comparable shades for new cases, and to restore natural-like shading in repairs. DENTSPLY Ceramco estimates that over 5,000 US labs use Ceramco porcelain everyday to fabricate nearly 20-million crown and bridge units annually.² Ceramco was introduced in 1958, as the first dental porcelain for veneering metal frameworks.
For more information about Super Clear enamel, Ceramco 3 in 3D-MASTER®1 comparable shades or the entire Ceramco 3 porcelain system, visit www.ceramco.com or contact Ellen Saunders at 800-487-0100 ext. 6020.
Also of interest to technicians was the pending introduction of UltraCrown™ PG 99.8% Pure Gold Alloy. The purist gold alloy ever offered by DENTSPLY Ceramco®, UltraCrown PG contains virtually no residual oxide, presenting a lustrous and visibly more yellow-gold surface color. UltraCrown PG is refined to a very fine grain composition, reducing casting and finishing problems. It will be released from development in the second quarter of 2003.
The Cristobal+® In-direct Composite System was being demonstrated by Ceramco’s Dave Bohac, TEC, CDT (see attached photo #26). After watching Bohac demonstrate Cristobal+, John Richardson, C&B Department Manager for Ragle Laboratory, Champaign, Illinois, said, “Cristobal is less sticky and tacky, and is more stable than my current brand.” Cristobal+ is a BisGMA resin that can be used for veneers, crowns and bridges, inlays and onlays, and implants. It has long-term successful in-vivo performance and a triple bonding mechanism for strong metal adhesion. Ceramco previewed a 2-in-1 Cristobal+ curing unit at the meeting that will reduce the overall investment cost for laboratories.
The 19th annual Lab Day exhibit draws an international crowd of dental professionals looking for the latest laboratory products, techniques and educational clinics sponsored by manufacturers world-wide. In conjunction with the CDS Mid Winter Dental Meeting, which runs concurrently, Lab Day Chicago traditionally heralds the start of the new dental product and dental exhibition season.