Some duties of a dental laboratory technician may include:
• Reads prescriptions and examine models and impressions to determine the type of dental restoration to be made or repaired.
• • Uses impressions (molds) of the patient’s teeth or oral soft tissues to create full dentures, removable partial dentures or fixed bridges, crowns, and orthodontic appliances and splints.
Dental Laboratory Technicians
• Creates orthodontic appliances and splints to help straighten and protect teeth
• Works with materials such as waxes, plastics, precious and non-precious alloys, stainless steel, a variety of porcelains and composites or polymer glass combinations
• Works with models and impressions of patient’s teeth or mouth to make and repair
dentures, braces, crowns, and bridges based on dentist’s prescription.
• Casts various dental alloys for fabrication of crowns, bridges, and removable partial
dentures.
• Selects and mount replacement teeth using color charts and tooth illustrations.
• Builds and fire dental porcelains.
• Polishs metal, plastic and porcelain surfaces to the specified finish.
• Bends and solder wire to construct orthodontic retainers
Dental laboratory technicians generally work in clean, welllighted, and well-ventilated laboratories. They have limited contact with the public. Salaried laboratory technicians usually work 40 hours a week, but some work part time.
At times, technicians wear goggles to protect their eyes, gloves to
handle hot objects, or masks to avoid inhaling dust. They may spend a great deal of time standing. Dental technicians usually have their own workbenches, which can be equipped with Bunsen burners, grinding and polishing equipment, and hand instruments, such as wax spatulas and wax carvers.
Some dental technicians have computeraided milling equipment to assist them with creating artificial teeth. A high degree of manual dexterity, good vision, and the ability to recognize very fine color
shadings and variations in shape also are necessary for dental technicians. An artistic aptitude for detailed and precise work also is important
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