Zfx Dental - One CAD/CAM system for 12 different implant systems

Zfx has brought to Australia an open CAD/CAM system that has the flexibility to cater for many of the major implant systems. Unlike some CAD/CAM systems on the market that are restricted to a specific implant system and therefore only offer a limited scope for abutment and prosthetic designs, Zfx allows you to scan and design abutments and crowns on any size platform for all of the 12 different implant systems available in its database.

Zfx provides unique prosthetic and material options, which even the original manufacturers of the implant cannot provide.

Zfx milling offers the dental technician a broader range of restorative options than they have had in the past. For all abutments, there is the option of milling in Zirconia, Titanium or Chrome-Cobalt. Abutments can be milled to be engaging or non-engaging (required for implant supported bridges) down to the fixture level whilst, for those situations when you wish to avoid an abutment fitting directly to the fixture, Zfx also provides the technician with an option to design and mill abutments to fit to a titanium implant interface instead.

The prosthetic options that are unique to Zfx and which are not offered by the original manufacturers include:

* Full zirconia abutments for Straumann SynOcta, all platforms, without the need for any metal interface;

* Full zirconia implant-supported bridge on any size Astratech implant, without the need for any metal interface; and

* Full zirconia, titanium or chrome cobalt abutments milled directly to fixture on any size BioHorizon's implant.

All materials - all indications

With its industrial-strength, state-of-the-art, simultaneous 5-axis DMG Ultrasonic 20 milling machines, Zfx milling centres are able to offer a wider range of products and materials to cater for all different indications. One such material is Milled IPS e.max CAD from Ivoclar Vivadent.

Over the past year, Zfx has been successfully milling full contour IPS e.max CAD restorations for technicians in Europe with great results. Due to its high aesthetic value, it is often the material of choice for all anterior restorations, especially for anterior veneers. The milling centre in Sydney is currently the only local milling centre capable of milling out full contour IPS e.max CAD veneers.

A virtual wax-knife

Other materials that are available include burn-out waxes and plastics, giving the technician the flexibility to cast or press the final restoration without ever picking up a real wax knife. The Zfx CAD software enables the technician to design a case that requires different materials, and with different indications, quickly, efficiently and simultaneously, just the same as you would do if you were working on a solid model while occlusion and proximal interferences are automatically adjusted at the click of a button.

Maintaining the relevance of the dental laboratory

The goal of Zfx is to ensure that the dental laboratory stays competitive and relevant in the midst of today's increasingly global market. The Zfx milling centre is precisely that - a milling centre. Because Zfx is not a laboratory, it will never experience any conflicts of interest with dental laboratories. Zfx has no interest in doing direct business with dentists, thus technicians using Zfx are comforted in the knowledge that they will always remain an integral part of the Zfx supply chain.

The Future....

In 2011, Zfx will be introducing its range of intraoral scanners and digital impression product line. The first wave of these will be launched in March at the IDS in Cologne. Zfx will be posting regular updates in eLaborate so make sure you keep watching this space!