Dental Laboratory Technicians

Read prescriptions or specifications and examine models or impressions to determine the design of dental products to be constructed.

Apply porcelain paste or wax over prosthesis frameworks or setups, using brushes and spatulas.

Test appliances for conformance to specifications and accuracy of occlusion, using articulators and micrometers.

Melt metals or mix plaster, porcelain, or acrylic pastes and pour materials into molds or over frameworks to form dental prostheses or apparatus.

Create a model of patient's mouth by pouring plaster into a dental impression and allowing plaster to set.

Prepare metal surfaces for bonding with porcelain to create artificial teeth, using small hand tools.

Place tooth models on apparatus that mimics bite and movement of patient's jaw to evaluate functionality of model.

Load newly constructed teeth into porcelain furnaces to bake the porcelain onto the metal framework.

Fabricate, alter, or repair dental devices, such as dentures, crowns, bridges, inlays, or appliances for straightening teeth.

Build and shape wax teeth, using small hand instruments and information from observations or dentists' specifications.

Remove excess metal or porcelain and polish surfaces of prostheses or frameworks, using polishing machines.

Mold wax over denture setups to form the full contours of artificial gums.

Rebuild or replace linings, wire sections, or missing teeth to repair dentures.

Prepare wax bite blocks and impression trays for use.

Train or supervise other dental technicians or dental laboratory bench workers.

Shape and solder wire and metal frames or bands for dental products, using soldering irons and hand tools.

Fill chipped or low spots in surfaces of devices, using acrylic resins.