Heraeus and 3Shape to present new intraoral scanner at IDS 2011

In March 2011, Heraeus Dental and 3Shape will present a patient-friendly high-performance intraoral scanner at the International Dental Show (IDS) in Cologne, Germany. The renowned dental manufacturer and the leading provider of 3D scanners and dental CAD/CAM solutions are extending their joint portfolio to offer new medical care options and new ways to economize for patients, dentists and dental laboratories.

For years, Heraeus and 3Shape have formed a successful cooperation, working together on the cara CAD/CAM system. cara combines high-performance 3D scanner technology and the innovative and user-friendly software solutions from 3Shape with Heraeus' competence in prosthetics.

"Heraeus has decades of experience in impression technology," said Dr Martin Schuster, Head of Division Prosthetics and Novica Savic, Head of Division Dentistry at Heraeus Dental, in a joint statement. "We believe this is the ideal partnership for new digital options. Our solution opens up completely new prospects for patients, dentists and laboratories, which are less invasive and more economical than before. It is a strong addition to our portfolio of oral impression techniques and materials. The dentist can choose from a wide range of suitable solutions."

Convenient, fast, precise and cost-saving

With the intraoral scanner, dentists can scan the intraoral situation very quickly, using a procedure that is especially convenient for the patient. From impression taking to production in the laboratory, the digital process eliminates sources of errors and offers consistent high quality. Intraoral scanning minimizes the risk of errors in the preparation or impression, of environmental impact, inaccuracies of fit, reworking or expensive repetitions of impression-taking. This benefits all parties - the dentist, the dental technician and especially the patient.

The state of the art in user-friendly scanner technology

Heraeus and 3Shape have worked closely with dentists and dental technicians during the development of their new intraoral scanner and many of their requests have been incorporated directly into the final solution. The result is state-of-the-art technology offering a truly full digital solution starting with the patient's visit and ending with completed treatment.

"The unique and user-friendly scanning process delivers very fast and highly accurate 3D scans that bring huge benefits to both dentist and patient," said Flemming Thorup, President and CEO at 3Shape. "Labs will be able to process these 3D scans directly, expanding their business opportunities and building closer relationships with their dentists."

The digital workflow is an opportunity for dentists and labs

"The dental field is becoming increasingly digitized," Dr Schuster said, "and this offers completely new opportunities for dentists and technicians. Digital workflows require close collaboration between dentists and technicians while at the same time, collaboration is becoming easier and more efficient. Software guided procedures help to avoid errors, reduce processing time and allow users to concentrate on the main aspects of added value. As a reliable partner of both laboratories and dentists, we will support them with our experience and application expertise. We will enable both parties to actively benefit from the opportunities offered by the digitalisation of the dental business."

Heraeus is conscious that many technicians are critical of the introduction of intraoral scanners. "At Heraeus, we take these concerns seriously and understand them," Dr Schuster said. "But we don't share them. In the digital future, it will be even harder than today to produce high-end, aesthetic treatments without the professional skills and individual on-site services of qualified dental technicians."