Bill saurman
President
Over my many years in this industry – from my beginnings as a dental tech in the early 1960’s to the establishment of our lab in 1976 and our continuing business today – I’ve seen this industry really grow. Unfortunately, those years haven’t seen the establishment of any industry standards for labs or a formalized education process or certification for technicians. Creating my own lab – with complete control over all aspects of the business – was the only way of ensuring that I could produce the top quality appliances and service I wanted to offer orthodontists. Our drive for quality has also meant that we’ve trained “from scratch” each technician we’ve hired. We’ve created our own standards of excellence and best practices. And we’ve developed innovative orthodontic solutions.
In fact, we have a long history of working with orthodontists to create better ways of addressing patient needs. Before even opening the lab, I worked for many years with Dr. William L. Wilson to help develop an innovative method for straightening teeth. The result was the still-popular Rocky Mountain Wilson Modular 3D appliances. As a co-contributor to this design, I traveled the US extensively with Dr. Wilson in an effort to teach others how to create these appliances. Because really, what this industry needs is a solid knowledge base on which to build.
And to this end, I still travel and lecture to contribute to the growth of our industry’s knowledge and excellence. To my mind, in an increasingly efficient, automated, and digitized world, the trick is finding that key balance point where the human element -the art of knowledge -isn’t lost.
It is with great fatherly pride and joy that I look on my son Christian, as he travels and lectures – often with me – to see in him that same passion for learning and teaching. In but a few short years, Christian has come to be recognized and respected on a national scale for the depth of this knowledge, as well as his ability to grow our business while maintaining exacting standards of both product quality and service. He has utilized his keen business know-how and sense of the industry to find that successful balance between technological advances and human expertise. And while he may be exceedingly busy running the business, he’s never too busy to personally check every appliance that leaves our lab. Because that’s precisely where the end of each day finds one of us – verifying and ensuring the quality of that day’s shipments.
I’m so very proud of my son, this lab and business we have built together, the knowledge we seek to both grow and share, and the relationships we’ve forged along the way. This has been a labor of love and one I will continue to work at – always. Looking back, I wouldn’t change a thing.
