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Latest stories, updates and announcements from the industry
Trick or Treat for Children’s Dental Health
Just in time for Halloween, the National Children’s Oral Health Foundation—also known as America’s Toothfairy—is making it easy for families, laboratories and dentists to collect donations for children’s oral health programs. Its Trick or Treat for America’s Toothfairy campaign features free Trick or Treat donation boxes (available from Patterson Dental Supply), flyers and labels (downloadable at www.AmericasToothfairy.org). The boxes can be placed in dental offices, laboratories or carried while trick or treating. One hundred percent of the donations go to children’s oral health programs.
All donations are tax deductible and should be sent with a submittal form (downloadable at www.AmericasToothFairy.org) to: Trick or Treat for America’s Toothfairy National Children’s Oral Health Foundation, 4108 Park Road, Suite 406, Charlotte, NC 28209; credit card donations can also be made at the website.
NCHOF’s mission is to eliminate pediatric oral disease and promote overall health and well being for millions of children from vulnerable populations. Since its inception in 2006, the NCHOF network of affiliates—including non-profit dental centers, dental schools, community clinics and volunteer dental professionals—has provided oral health services to over one million children. The Foundation offers a variety of programs including Tomorrow’s Smiles®, which provides free care and education to at-risk teens; Oral Health Zone Program™, which helps community leaders address local oral health crisis; and The America’s Toothfairy Dental Home Program™, which provides pro bono dental services to underserved youth.
To learn more about the NCOHF, visit www.NCOHF.org.
Britain: After Auction, a New Owner for Churchill’s Wartime Dentures
A specialist at one of Britain’s leading medical museums called them “the teeth that saved the world,” and a private British investor who bought a set of Winston Churchill’s wartime dentures at auction on Thursday appeared to agree. The anonymous buyer paid the equivalent of $23,750, more than three times the pre-sale estimate, after bidding at an auction house in Aylsham that recently sold one of Churchill’s half-smoked cigars for the equivalent of $6,130. The dentures were sold by the family of Derek Cudlipp, the dental technician commissioned by Churchill to make them, and had been kept for years in a drawer in the Cudlipp family home. Mr. Cudlipp’s son Nigel told the BBC that his father had told him that Churchill would flick the dentures out and “throw them across the room” when he was angered by setbacks to the Allied cause, and that the prime minister tore up Mr. Cudlipp’s enlistment papers at Downing Street, telling him “he would be more important to the war effort if he stayed in London to repair his dentures.”
By John F. Burns, The New York Times, Friday, July 30, 2010
CMP Has New Owner
The Board of Managers of CMP Industries LLC has approved a plan of merger with the company's current President and CEO Devon Howe. The transaction was completed on July 30.
"We have an excellent group of employees, customers and suppliers,” says Howe. “Our expansion into new products and new markets over the past few years has fueled our growth and we are excited about our future.”
For more information, visit www.cmpindustries.com.
NADL Announces Intertek is authorized to Conduct DAMAS Certification for Dental Laboratories in North America
The National Association of Dental Laboratories (NADL) has approved Intertek as an NADL-authorized third-party certification body for dental laboratories.
Intertek is a globally-recognized management systems registrar, offering auditing and certification services to a broad portfolio of standards such as ISO 9001, ISO 13485, and ISO 14971. The NADL has brought Intertek on board to offer third-party certification to the Dental Appliance Manufacturers Audit System (DAMAS) to dental laboratories in North America.
DAMAS is a voluntary, third-party auditing specification for dental laboratories. Based upon the ISO 9001 standard, DAMAS is designed to specifically address quality management principles in the dental laboratory setting. The requirements introduced by DAMAS closely mirror the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Quality System/Good Manufacturing Practice (FDA QS/GMP) specifications, which any dental laboratory conducting business in the United States must meet.
Intertek was part of the industry partnership that developed and launched the DAMAS specification in the United Kingdom in 1998.
“We are pleased to have Intertek as an option for dental laboratories to choose from for third-party certification. Their global reach and experience make the company an excellent resource for laboratories that are seeking to adhere to the highest quality systems standards,” says Bennett Napier, CAE, co-executive director of NADL.
“Intertek is excited to partner with NADL on DAMAS in the North American market,” says Calin Moldovean, president of Intertek’s Systems Certification group. “Third-party auditing and certification gives dental laboratories the assurance that they are going above and beyond industry requirements to proactively incorporate best practices in quality management.”
For more information on Intertek visit www.intertek.com/systems-certification, and for information on quality systems for dental laboratories contact NADL at www.nadl.org.
National Dentex Completes Merger with GeoDigm
National Dentex Corporation, one of the largest owner/operators of dental laboratories in North America, announced that its shareholders adopted and approved the Agreement and Plan of Merger (the "Merger Agreement") among GDC Holdings, Inc., a Delaware corporation ("Parent"), Royal Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation ("Merger Sub") and an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Parent and a direct wholly owned subsidiary of GeoDigm Corporation, a Minnesota corporation ("GeoDigm"), and National Dentex. Pursuant to the terms of the Merger Agreement, Merger Sub was merged with and into National Dentex, and as a result National Dentex continues as the surviving corporation and a wholly owned subsidiary of GeoDigm, a technology based manufacturing and laboratory company and a portfolio company of Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe ("Welsh Carson").
Under the terms of the Merger Agreement, National Dentex's shareholders will receive $17.00 in cash for each share of National Dentex common stock they hold, representing a premium of approximately 70% over National Dentex's closing share price of $10.02 on April 1, 2010, the last trading day before the Merger announcement.
"We believe that the Merger with GeoDigm provides an attractive all-cash valuation to our shareholders," said David L. Brown, Chief Executive Officer of National Dentex. "We look forward to partnering with GeoDigm and its ICON(R) platform to transform dental lab operations and create clear value for our dental clients," says Brown.
"We look forward to working with National Dentex's strong management team and broad laboratory network, which are vital to extending ICON(R) technology's benefits to dental clients everywhere. Welsh Carson's financial sponsorship greatly increases the National Dentex—GeoDigm combination's acquisition capacity. This capacity offers unaffiliated laboratory owners an opportunity to acquire fundamentally transformative technology through joining an industry leader," says Andrew Hofmeister, Chief Executive Officer of GeoDigm.
With the closing of the Merger, National Dentex's common stock will cease to trade on Nasdaq at market close today and will be delisted.
BB&T Capital Markets served as financial advisor to National Dentex and Signal Hill Capital Group LLC provided a fairness opinion to National Dentex's Board of Directors. Posternak Blankstein & Lund LLP served as legal counsel to National Dentex. Parent and Welsh Carson's legal counsel is Ropes & Gray LLP.
3i incise Copings and Frameworks Now Available from BIOMET 3i
Building on its portfolio of patient-specific CAD/CAM restorative products, BIOMET 3i is collaborating with Renishaw plc to offer comprehensive digital solutions to dental professionals. Using the Renishaw Scanner and 3i incise CAD software, BIOMET 3i and Renishaw now offer labs 3i incise copings and frameworks. Laboratories using the Nobel Biocare ProceraForte® Scanner can also benefit from these options using the 3i incise CAD software.
“This partnership will provide our mutual dental customers with access to the latest in digital dentistry technology,” says Maggie Anderson, president of BIOMET 3i. Sir David McMurtry, chairman and chief executive of Renishaw plc adds, “Renishaw is thrilled to be combining its innovative engineering and CAD/CAM capabilities with BIOMET 3i’s renowned clinical excellence and international sales and marketing expertise.”
For more information call BIOMET 3i at 800-342-5454, or visit www.BIOMET3i.com.
Noritake Sponsors Clinical Study on Posterior Zirconia Crowns
Noritake Dental Supply Co., Limited sponsored a study to evaluate and compare the clinical success of single posterior porcelain-fused-to-zirconia and porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns in private practice. Cusp Dental Laboratory in Boston handled the laboratory work, Gerard Chiche, DDS, served as lead clinical consultant and 22 dentists and over 2,000 patients participated. The results of the study were presented at IADR 2010 Barcelona in July by Markus Blatz, DMD, PhD. For complete details, visit www.noritake-dental.co.jp
U.S. Technicians Invited to Enter IDS KunstZahnWerk® Competition
For the first time, U.S. technicians are invited to participate in the KunstZahnWerk (art of prosthetics) competition at the IDS 2011 in Cologne sponsored by Candulor and CAMLOG. This year’s challenge is to make a complete implant-based prosthesis.
Candulor provides you with detailed information about the case, plaster models and Candulor Composite NFC denture teeth, along with the bar construction, bar abutment und screws from CAMLOG (the teeth and implant parts are free of charge courtesy of Candulor and CAMLOG). Participants must use the Gerber lingualized set-up technique and the finished prosthesis must be submitted on the Candulor Articulator.
A panel of specialists and practitioners will judge the entries and the winners will be named at the Candulor IDS press conference on March 25, 2011. Prizes are as follows: first prize, $1,500 euros; second prize, $1,000 euros; third prize, $500 euros; additional prizes are awarded for documentation. All entries will be displayed at Candulor’s IDS booth and published in various journals.
For a registration form, visit www.candulor.com or call 800-436-3827; the registration deadline is October 29.