Delcam launches complete 'open implantology' dental system

Delcam has extended its range of software and equipment for the design and manufacture of dental implant restorations so that the company can now offer a complete implantology system. Delcam is the only company able to offer a complete solution to dental manufacturers, from accurately capturing the implant position and orientation, through to the high-precision, multi-axis milling of customised abutments, implant bridges and dental bars, with a management system to track every stage of the process.

This launch is the latest step in the trend within the dental industry to replace "closed” manufacturing methods, in which the user is restricted to the use of a limited range of equipment and materials, with "open” systems, in which manufacturers can combine their own choice of equipment and software, and then use a broad variety of materials. Even though Delcam can supply a complete system, customers also have the option to use Delcam software with any combination of scanning and manufacturing equipment.

The key to the Delcam process is a new range of scan adaptors that are compatible with the leading brands of dental implant. Once the scan adaptors have been fitted to the model of the jaw, the scanner can accurately capture the positions and orientations of the implants, together with the shape of the remaining teeth. The precise fit of the scan adaptors, coupled with the latest generation of white-light 3D scanning technology used in the Delcam scanners, ensures the highest possible accuracy in the data collected.

Starting with high-quality data makes it possible for users of Delcam’s DentCAD design software to produce the restorations to the highest levels of accuracy. This is important for all types of restoration but is essential for inlays and onlays to give a good fit with the remaining portion of the natural tooth, and for dental bars, which may need to match as many as six implants.

Furthermore, the same manufacturing data that is used to produce the scan adaptors is incorporated into the templates within the DentMILL CAM system that generate the milling instructions to manufacture the implant interfaces on the restorations. Again, the resulting high accuracy is absolutely essential for bridges and dental bars that need to align with a number of implants.

As well as providing the individual components needed for a dental design and manufacturing system, Delcam offers the Delcam Dental Manager to manage the entire process. This enables laboratories to track and access all files and transactions from the initial dental scan, through CAD modelling and manufacturing to delivery to the customer.

The laboratory’s customers don’t need to install any software as the complete system is Internet based. A secure log-in system allows orders to be placed through an order screen that allows customers to identify the required restorations and, based on the prescription, select the material, colour and any extra details.

The Delcam Dental Manager then allows laboratory staff to monitor the progress of the order, highlighting any outstanding steps so that the overall workload can be monitored. Customers can be allowed to view the status of their order, and can be notified by email when orders are received and dispatched.

In a similar way, the system can be used in milling centres to manage the manufacturing process, from the receipt of the design data, through manufacturing and dispatch.