With standing ovations for the last two presentations—by Mark Murphy, DDS, FAGD and Gordon Christensen, DDS, MSD, PhD—it was clear that the mood among attendees of the 2013 V21 Meeting at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas was upbeat and keenly focused on everything digital.
The three-day program focused almost exclusively on the digital realm, including scan and design performance metrics, a comparison of various systems and a discussion about digital workflow process implementation.
As Christensen introduced his topic: Dentist/Laboratory Relationship Trends including Material Trends, he noted that,"this shift to digital is the fastest shift since air-driven handpieces were introduced 55 years ago." With this shift comes a lot of excitement mixed with trepidation. (For details about these presentations, watch for the March issue of LMT.)
A Thursday night reception hosted by Dentsply welcomed in NADL's new President, Henry Martin, CDT, Owner of Restorative Arts Dental Laboratory, CDL, in Charleston, SC. A past president of the Southeastern Conference and South Carolina Dental Laboratory Association, Martin also serves as a Trustee on the Foundation for Dental Laboratory Technology.
During the meeting, NADL presented its Annual Awards to recognize outstanding contributions by members of the community:
This year, the Laboratory Member of the Year award went to Nakanishi Dental Laboratory, an NBC-certified, 60-person lab based in Bellevue, WA, founded in 1953. It is also the first privately owned DAMAS-certified lab in the state.
President and Owner David Nakanishi has been a Trustee of the NBC since 2009, served as Chair of the CDL program committee and a member of the Implant task forces and was voted "an Honorary Washington State Dental Association Alumni" for his service to the University of Washington School of Dentistry.
The 2013 CDT of the Year is Charles McClemens, CDT, TE, who has donated countless hours to help develop the new Implant CDT specialty. Certified in ceramics and C&B, McClemens is the National Technical Education and Sales Manager for Nowak Dental Supplies, Inc., last year's NADL Supplier of the Year. He serves as an examiner, on several task forces, participated on the NADL Business Management Committee and also volunteers his time to local organizations outside our industry, including the Special Olympics. For the 17 years prior to joining Nowak, he owned McClemens Dental Laboratory in Bradenton, FL.
The Excellence in Education award went to Hari Prasad, Master CDT and Director of the Hard Tissue Research Laboratory, Div. of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, School of Dentistry at the University of Minnesota. He also owns MP Orthodontics and is one of the less than 5% of CDTs in the country to have completed five CDT specialties, designating him as a Master CDT.
Betty Mitchell, CDT, TE, the NADL Educator of the Year, is a professor and program director of the Dental Technology Program at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, IA and has been on the faculty since 1998. She owned her own lab for 14 years, has been a technician for 33 years and holds CDT designations in ceramics and C&B. Recognized in 2012 as one of the Top 25 Women in Dentistry by DPR, Mitchell is credited with keeping the Kirkwood DLT program open and growing and, among many other accolades, also served as President of the Iowa Dental Laboratory Association.
Heraeus Kulzer, the 2013 Supplier Member of the Year, is the North American branch of the Heraeus Group, founded over 160 years ago in Hanau, Germany. Today, it generates annual revenues of over $6 billion with precious metal trading revenues of over $25 billion.
In 2011, its Refining Division began making annual donations to the NADL's Foundation for Dental Laboratory Technology based on the value of refined scrap from NADL/FDLT-member laboratories. Heraeus also co-sponsors the Heraeus-Henry Schein Cares Transforming Lives Scholarship for second-year dental technology students.
The NADL also recognized two NADL "Vision Award" winners: Gary Iocco, Dimension Dental Design, for leading efforts in Minnesota for state-level dental laboratory standards, and Rita Acquafredda, Zahn Dental, for supporting the Foundation of Dental Laboratory Technology.
