I have had the pleasure of working with several wonderful dental technicians and laboratories and during the past three decades. Since it has always been our goal to provide excellent dental care for our patients, selecting the right dental laboratories to be our partners was critical. In the process of advancing our dental techniques and treatment planning, it was incumbent upon us to find dental laboratories and technicians who shared the same philosophy and passion to do great work. In that regard, to find a good fit, we depended upon word of mouth from our peers. Such has been the case since the late 1980’s and several labs with whom we have worked deserve our sincere thanks.

Back in the late 80’s and early 90’s, the use of gold for fine dental restorations was still common. So, to learn how to provide excellent gold inlays and onlays, I took advantage of an opportunity to become a member of the exclusive Richard Tucker Gold Study Club. Members of this club met in dental offices and brought actual patients on whom to practice their technique.  These doctors were very particular; Tucker trained doctors used only Tucker trained technicians.  As a result, I was fortunate to have met a man named Dale Jones who handmade the finest gold restorations I had ever seen. Times have changed, and patients no longer wished to have gold visible in their mouths. So we began doing a similar service using modern dental ceramics for beautiful restorations. The problem was that Dale did not work with porcelain, but I asked him if he knew someone who was as good with porcelain as he was with gold. That is how I was introduced to Krisann Shaler and her lab called Porcelain Designs.

Kris and I began working together in the early 90’s and we still work together today. Her lab is in California, but we were able to spend some quality time together around the year 2000.  We arranged to meet while I was taking a course at the Las Vegas Institute and it was then that Kris, Dale and I, along with our spouses, went to dinner and got to know each other on a personal level. Kris actually made the restorations for my wife, Liz, that were being prepared while I was attending courses at the Las Vegas Institute. When I inserted these restorations, the other doctors with whom I attended classes and the teaching doctors commented on how beautiful the porcelain work was. Kris is still providing beautiful restorations like those for my patients today.

As I learned more about restoring patients with major bite problems, the need arose for more complex restorations using increasingly difficult techniques.  As a result, I was introduced to larger laboratories that had both the necessary equipment and knowledge to produce these complex cases.  The two labs which have provided this fine service deserve to be thanked as well and their names are Aurum Ceramic Dental Laboratories and Microdental Laboratory. Each of these labs have several outstanding technicians, but I’d like to call out Ulf from Aurum and Gloria from Microdental who have acted as integral members of our team during the production of many of our larger cases.

There are several other laboratories with which we have worked over the years and they deserve our gratitude as well. Many times, it is these laboratories who make us look good because they allow us to provide excellent care and service for our deserving patients. So in closing, I’d like to give a huge Thank You to Dale, Krisann and all of the lab technicians who have taken such great care of us for the last 30 years.