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I industry report _ DENTSPLY Implants 48 I CAD/CAM 2_2015 _A dental implant system consistsofhundredsofcompo- nents.Itincludeseverythingfrom the highly advanced implant to simpletweezers.Foranoptimalfunc- tionofasystem,allpartsmustinterplay. They must fit together like cogwheels and createasmoothandwell-functioningtotality. Ifjustonecogismisaligned,theentiresystemwill suffer.Andthismaycauseunnecessaryproblems for the dental team and ultimately the patient. _Mission started Per Aringskog, R&D Director at DENTSPLY Im- plants, and his team were well aware of this. To starttheirdevelopmentwork,theyhadoneofthe mostthoroughlydocumenteddentalimplantsys- tems in the business. Decades of research in areas as diverse as mechanical loading and osseous inte- gration had created a product that functioned per- fectly,withminimalbonelossandhealthysofttissue. Withthisasafoundation,themissionnowwastocre- ate an implant system that was in every detail intuitive for the users. The set target was that the new ASTRA TECH Implant System EV should be the user-friendliest system on the market. Early on, the team realised that no matter how much they thought and testedontheirown,therewouldalwaysbeagap between what worked well on paper and in the laboratory compared to what worked in the everyday clinical reality. In the real world, one had to add unpredictable situations, users with different knowledge levels and the various needs of patients. _A smart solution The solution was obvious—let the users take part in the development work. That way you get a product that already at launch is tested and adapted to tackle the unpredictable. A product that has its origin where it will be used—the clinics. The solution is not unique, but it is smart and it works.Themethodoflettinguserstakepartinthede- velopment work exists in other businesses. In the software world they have worked with open source codeforalongtime.Somesoftwaredeveloperseven publish their software on the Internet. Users and other interested parties can then suggest improve- ments and further developments. In earlier develop- ment projects at the company, there have been smallerfocusgroupsinvolved.Thistimehowever,the team took the idea to a whole new level—a group of 47 clinicians that work with dental implants on an everyday basis was formed. They became known as ambassadors. “The response to our initial contacts was very positive. Everyone we asked was enthusiastic about taking part,” says Agneta Broberg Jansson, responsible at Global Product Management for the ASTRA TECH Implant System at DENTSPLY Implants. Per Aringskog and Agneta Broberg Jansson. How a modern implant system is developed Source_Dentsply Implants