3D printing is redefining dentistry, bringing precision, speed, and accessibility that traditional methods can’t match. From cutting patient visits to addressing the global shortage of dental technicians, digital manufacturing is reshaping how dentures are made and delivered.
To understand this transformation, I spoke with Chris Kabot, the new VP of Dental at 3D printer OEM Stratasys, who shared the company’s differential value proposition and its vision for the market in the coming years.
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From Analog to Digital: Fewer Appointments, Better Fit
Before joining Stratasys, Kabot led R&D and production at Affordable Care, a major U.S. dental provider specializing in tooth replacement therapy. There, he observed the inefficiencies of analog workflows. “Typically, a conventional dentist needs about seven appointments to complete a denture,” he said. “With digital dentures, it’s down to two or three.”
Beyond speed, digital dentures also offer superior precision. While traditional dentures have tolerances of around ±400 microns, DLP or milled versions improve that to ±200 microns—and jetting technologies, such as those from Stratasys, can achieve tolerances as fine as ±100 microns.
Kabot explained that the process begins when a patient arrives at the dental office. Intraoral scanners have replaced traditional impressions, making the first step faster and more precise.“When a patient comes in to replace a denture they’ve worn for five to seven years, it’s usually because the fit is still good but the appearance has worn down over time,” Kabot said. “They want a denture that looks fresh and natural while maintaining the same shape, size, and positioning of their original teeth. No one wants their friends or family to notice they have a new denture—it’s about preserving confidence and comfort.”
The existing denture is scanned and uploaded to the cloud, where a technician designs a new denture based on the original, adjusting shade and color as needed. The denture is then 3D printed, pumiced, polished, and prepared for delivery.
“What sets Stratasys’ jetting technology apart is that we no longer need to bond teeth into a denture base,” Kabot said. “This allows us to deliver a denture that closely matches what the patient expects, with precision and fit. Milling or DLP technologies still require extra steps, which can affect accuracy.”
Kabot stressed that while material costs may be slightly higher—ranging from $10 to $25 per denture—the reduced labor and fewer appointments can lower overall expenses. “Moving from a seven-appointment analog denture to a two- or three-appointment digital denture drastically cuts labor and chair time. This makes the overall cost lower for the patient, and as doctors become more comfortable with the workflow, they can deliver high-quality dentures more efficiently and competitively,” Kabot said.
Meeting Demand Amid a Shrinking Workforce
A key need Stratasys is addressing stems from a demographic shift: as populations age, the demand for dentures continues to rise, even as the number of trained dental technicians declines. “Roughly 60% of Americans over 60 are candidates for tooth replacement,” Kabot noted. “Yet fewer technicians are being trained each year.”
Kabot said 3D printing is helping address this gap by enhancing technicians’ capabilities rather than replacing them. “Even the best technicians can only produce 8 to 10 dentures per day by hand. With the Stratasys J5 used for our TrueDent denture, we can print 40 dentures in about 10 hours. This doesn’t replace the technician—it makes them more efficient and allows them to focus their expertise where it matters most.”
Kabot stressed that Stratasys’ focus isn’t limited to developing advanced machines—it’s about transforming lives. “If you’ve ever seen a smile reveal, there’s nothing more powerful,” Kabot said. “You’re restoring not just teeth, but confidence, nutrition, and human connection.”
Streamlining Dental Workflows
A major advancement in digital dentistry is overcoming the “shade bottleneck”—the challenge of producing multiple colors or materials in a single production run. “In analog workflows, teeth are embedded manually,” Kabot explained. “Early digital systems could print only one color. With Stratasys, we can produce all shades and materials simultaneously.”
Stratasys’ dental lineup—which includes the J3, J5, and DentalJet XL—addresses a wide range of applications, from highly accurate models to full-color dentures. Each system uses PolyJet technology, which blends multiple materials and colors to closely replicate the natural look of gums and teeth.
“The J3 is ideal for high-precision dental models and surgical guides,” Kabot said. “The J5 is the workhorse for denture production, capable of printing all denture colors in a single run, and it’s the only FDA-cleared system for multi-color dentures on the market. The XL is a larger-format printer for full-color models, surgical guides, and prosthetics that demand the highest accuracy.”
Asked whether clients struggle to integrate the technology, Kabot drew a familiar comparison: using jetting technology, he said, is like driving an automatic car. “With jetting, you don’t need to be as precise with part orientation or support strategy because the technology supports the entire part with washaway supports. In contrast, DLP requires careful support placement, which can affect the final geometry and make operator training more complex.” He added, however, that preventive maintenance—such as wiping the print heads and maintaining the rollers—is essential to ensure smoother and more reliable operation.
Discussing the system’s capabilities, Kabot highlighted that digital technologies can now handle virtually any traditional denture case. Immediate dentures, partials, complete dentures, and overdentures can all be produced digitally. By virtually simulating extractions, technicians can pre-fabricate immediate dentures, and with advanced DLP materials, even flexible partials are now within reach.
“With the advent of digital partial flexible denture materials this past quarter, we can now cover every category of denture digitally for the first time,” Kabot said. “This marks a major step forward, offering a complete, comprehensive solution for all types of patients, improving accessibility, comfort, and precision.”
The “Holy Grail” of Denture Printing
According to Kabot, one of the biggest challenges in denture 3D printing is combining multi-material capability, biocompatibility, and high-impact strength—an essential requirement for premium dentures and overdentures.
“Currently, no solution on the market brings all three together,” Kabot explained. “The last frontier is being able to print in multiple colors, produce a monolithic denture so teeth don’t break off, and achieve the strength required for every type of denture.”
He stressed that within the next one to two years, the company expects a high-impact, multicolor jettable solution to be available. “It’s our internal space race to deliver this to labs and the dental community, because it will enable better therapies and outcomes for patients,” Kabot said.
Beyond Dentures: Night Guards and Future Possibilities
Digital dentistry extends far beyond dentures, Kabot said, noting that the field offers many opportunities. Night guards, for example, have largely shifted from analog production to fully AI-driven workflows, eliminating the need for a technician to design them. “It’s simple and efficient for widespread adoption,” Kabot explained. However, most digitally printed night guards today are rigid—even those marketed as soft. He explained multi-material printing will enable hybrid designs, with soft interiors and hard exteriors, a capability that isn’t yet achievable but is actively being pursued. This advancement would expand the range of digital dental solutions and improve both comfort and patient satisfaction.
Looking ahead, Kabot envisions embedding antimicrobial or anti-inflammatory properties directly into denture resins, improving oral health, durability, and patient confidence. “We’ve long faced challenges on the labor side in producing dentures, a problem intensified since 2020,” Kabot said. “With an aging population and growing demand, new technologies not only help us address workforce limitations but also allow us to improve patient fit, comfort, and durability without sacrificing aesthetics. It’s an exciting time in the tooth replacement space.”
3D Printing Enters Wider Dentistry Practices
Stratasys’ advancements are part of a wider shift toward 3D printing in dentistry. Other companies are also exploring innovative materials and workflows to improve precision, efficiency, and patient outcomes.
In August, Boston Micro Fabrication’s dental unit, UltraThineer, treated a 36-year-old patient with aesthetic and functional dental issues using 16 no-prep 3D printed zirconia veneers. The patient had overjet, misalignment, shade variations, and wear from bruxism, and sought a minimally invasive solution. After diagnostic scans and planning, veneers were placed on the upper and lower arches using shade BL3 to achieve a uniform yet natural look, with subtle corrections to enhance symmetry without altering the patient’s unique dental character.
At LMT Lab Day Chicago 2024, Austrian ceramic 3D printing company Lithoz showcased the latest development of its lithium disilicate material, created with Ivoclar from IPS e.max powder to enable large-scale, patient-specific restorations. Using its Lithography-based Ceramic Manufacturing (LCM) process, the company demonstrated 3D printed veneers as thin as 0.3 mm and crowns designed to mimic natural translucency. A single CeraFab System S65 Medical printer reportedly delivered up to 50 restorations in one run, or 350 per day, achieving zero material waste and eight times the efficiency of conventional methods.
Last year, Formlabs Dental received FDA 510(k) clearance for its nano-ceramic-filled biocompatible material Premium Teeth Resin. With the clearance, US dental professionals are now able to 3D print temporary restorations including veneers, crowns, inlays, onlays, and bridges of up to seven units, matching approvals already granted in the EU. Compatible with the Form 3B+, Form 3BL, and Form 4B printers, the resin is designed to replicate the translucency and opalescence of natural teeth while adapting to each patient’s anatomy. In one case, a temporary onlay was produced in just 16 minutes using the Form 4B system.
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Image featured shows a fully finished denture created using the Stratasys TrueDent system. Photo via Stratasys.
