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Dental Tribune Middle East & Africa Edition

DENTAL TRIBUNE Middle East & Africa Edition | Jan-Feb 2013 by Dental Tribune Middle East & Africa D ubai, UAE: Dental Tribune Mid- dle East & Africa: From the 3M Innovations Center in Dubai we are interviewing Dr. Samer Aouad minutes before his lecture which he will be giving on impression materials dur- ing the Veneers workshop of Dr. Munir Sil- wadi. Everyone is very excited, today's work- shop is the continuation of the 4th Dental Facial Cosmetic International Conference, Dr. Samer did you manage to visit the con- ference over the weekend and how did you experience it? Dr. Samer Aouad: Well we’ve followed that conference for the past few years and it has been growing in reputation and scale ever since. I think dentists are looking really at the quality of the lectures happening there at the workshops apart from everything else. I think the event has now earned the reputation of being one of the biggest con- ferences in the region. Speaking about the region, what can you say about the Middle East Dental market? Well the market in the Middle East is a lit- tle bit mixed, or heterogenous, because you have a lot of dentists moving from one country to the other: you have different backgrounds, different nationalities, dif- ferent schools of thoughts so it is challeng- ing, it is diverse, and it’s quite interesting to be working here. Different interactions and different feedback is enriching, it’s kind of like a melting pot even for dentistry. The Middle East and Africa as a region is con- sidered, for all industries, as a growth re- gion so I think there are a lot of opportu- nities, business wise, and if you look at the age of the population it’s young, it’s dy- namic so a lot of dentists graduating, peo- ple are more aware about their health. Even the governments are spending so I think it’s a good place to be in: growing region, young population, high dynamic, I think everyone wants to be here. What about 3M ESPE? You have been here for a while, opened the Innovations Center about a year and a half ago, could you tell us a little about the background and where 3M ESPE is looking to go to in the future? Well our mindset, our strategy, is to be close to our customers and close to our partners. So when we opened the Innovations Center in Dubai we only had one thought in mind, we aimed to be close to the customers and give them an experience where we can pro- vide some high quality training and for these reasons we invested in this center, not only for dental but also for the other busi- nesses we are involved in. We are present in most countries in the region and through our offices our team is close to the leaders, to the dental schools and to the customers as well as the practicioners offering better interaction overall. What is the impact 3M ESPE has had on the market here in the Middle East? Well to talk about the impact I think you just need to go and see it everywhere for yourself. I think it’s in the vision of our new CEO, "3M technology, enhancing ev- ery company (especially in the b2b busi- ness), 3M products, enhancing every home and 3M innovation, improving every life". This is the new vision of 3M with our new CEO and we are applying it, whether we’re dealing with companies or customers we’re applying it everywhere. It is the innovation that we’re bringing, it is really the blood- line of our company. Nowadays customer feedback is very im- portant, through your Innovation Center I am sure you have many sessions where you provide Q&A, product after sales and dealing with general questions regarding your products? It is a place where we can have a small gath- ering to discuss the products (even the ones that have not been launched in the mar- ket), relaunch activities, roundtables, brain- storming of general ideas as well. Along- side with gatherings it is a good opportuni- ty to see the big picture of 3M and not just the dental business. In dental we have a ful- ly equipped facility where we can have lec- tures, hands on discussions and many oth- er activities. What about the future plans in the region, are you planning to expand more, will you improve further your support for your cli- ents? Yes, the vision of our VP, Mr. Irfan Malik, is to be readily available and accessible to our customers. And the company has al- ready announced some expansion plans and opening of new offices at key locations. Recently we opened an office in Kenya, an- other office in Nigeria and additional offic- es will be opened in Saudi Arabia. We wont keep you any longer Dr. Samer, you have a very interesting workshop to lead in a few minutes. To close off, please inform our readers what exactly will they be missing out during your workshop to- day here at the 3M Innovations Center? I think they will have a chance of attending it another time because we conduct these on a regular basis, They will miss the work- shop of Dr. Munir Silwadi. The partnership with Dr. Munir has been proven great over the past year. This is the first workshop we are making together, the main advantage is the experience that Dr. Munir brings in and the way we conduct it: Dr. Munir covers one part and I cover the impressioning part just to give the dentist a feeling of the different material and the different tips and tricks to make Veneer restoration successful. Thank you Dr. Samer, we wish you good luck at your workshop and hope to see you again soon. Wishing you the very best with 3M in the future. Our strategy is to be close to our customers, close to our partners W ith the acquisition of Wieland Dental, Ivoclar Vivadent strengthens its position in the field of all-ceramics. Ivoclar Vivadent, headquartered in Schaan, Liechtenstein, announced the acquisition of Wieland Dental today. The acquisition is planned to be completed in the fourth quar- ter of 2012. The transaction is still subject to approval by the German Federal Cartel Office. Ivoclar Vivadent will acquire the shares of BWK holding company and of the Wieland founding family. Wieland Dental, which employs 190 staff, achieved a sales volume of around 60 million euros in 2011. Ivoclar Vivadent is one of the leading den- tal enterprises in the world with a compre- hensive range of products and systems for dentists and dental technicians. All-ceram- ics is one of the core competences of the company. With the takeover of Wieland Dental, the enterprise strengthens its posi- tion in the field of all-ceramic product sys- tems. Robert Ganley, CEO of Ivoclar Viva- dent, comments on the takeover: “Wieland Dental is a leading European manufacturer in the field of dental products with market leading brands and a strong sales team. We are very pleased to have them join the Ivo- clar Vivadent Group.” Wieland Dental, domiciled in Pforzheim, Germany, is one of the leading suppliers in the dental technology market. With the wide array of products ranging from CAD/ CAM materials to dental alloys and veneer- ing ceramics up to electroplating, the com- pany offers individual laboratory concepts and systems solutions. The products of Wieland Dental will repre- sent an important addition to the product portfolio of Ivoclar Vivadent. Wieland Den- tal is to continue operations under its exist- ing name and management. Ivoclar Vivadent to acquire Wieland Dental By Dr Samer Aouad Scientific Marketing Manager Middle East and Africa saouad@mmm.com Contact Information S onicare AirFloss is proven to re- move up to 99 per cent more den- tal plaque from between teeth than brushing alone Dubai, United Arab Emirates – Phil- ips, maker of the Sonicare toothbrush, is pleased to unveil the revolutionary Philips Sonicare AirFloss, an easy, effective way to clean in-between teeth. Flossing on a reg- ular basis can be time consuming as well as painful and it’s with this in mind that Philips created Sonicare AirFloss. With its breakthrough microburst technology, Soni- care AirFloss is specially designed to make cleaning in between teeth easy while maxi- mizing plaque removal and ultimately im- proving gum health. During Philips con- sumer testing, 86 per cent of users found Sonicare AirFloss easier to use than string floss and Sonicare AirFloss removes up to 99% more plaque in-between teeth than brushing with a manual toothbrush alone1. Sonicare AirFloss works by using a rapid burst of air and water droplets to thorough- ly fill up the interdental area between teeth and force plaque and bacteria out. This rap- id burst is directed using a nozzle guidance tip that ensures targeted cleaning between teeth and the point and one-button opera- tion cleans the entire mouth in less than a minute1, while using less than just one tea- spoon of water for two full cleaning ses- sions. Sonicare AirFloss helps users experi- ence the difference of a whole mouth clean. zlem D zen Fidancı, Vice President and General Manager, Philips Consumer Life- style META (Middle East, Turkey and Af- rica): “Time is of the essence and we’re aware how difficult it is for consumers to find time to floss. Sonicare AirFloss was de- veloped to improve oral health and is very The latest breakthrough innovation in interdental cleaning is here - Philips introduces Sonicare AirFloss Philips Sonicare AirFloss also has an ergonomically designed handle and angled nozzle to access all ar- eas of the mouth. easy to use, so consumers don’t have to compromise on dental hygiene due to lack of time.” Philips Sonicare is the #1 recommended sonic toothbrush brand by dental profes- sionals worldwide and is backed by more than 175 clinical trials. The Philips Soni- care goal is to create and develop mean- ingful, easy-to-use oral health innovations that are designed to achieve and maintain oral health throughout a lifetime, like Phil- ips Sonicare AirFloss. The Sonicare AirFloss retails at AED 499 and is available at leading pharmacies and retail outlets. 10 INDUSTRY

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