For cleaning products in the lab, use the same care as you would at home
Cleanliness in the dental laboratory, always stringent, is now even more robust. You will have put enhanced hygiene processes and protocols in place that are well established, that everyone is clear about, that run smoothly and keep the team safe and protected at work.
Depending on how many technicians there are in the lab, you may still have things like a one-way system in place, or the workforce divided into “bubbles” in order to limit the amount of people in the space at any one time. With practices tackling hefty treatment backlogs, you are likely to be busier than ever, so you can meet the demands of supplying dentists on time. The dental lab industry isn’t just back in business, it is getting on with business and cleaning must be effective, to minimise the risk not only to people, but of any need to halt operations. All your measures must be flexible too, so that they can be adapted as and when required – for example, if you need to expand your team to meet your increased workload.
No two are the same…
Outside the laboratory, no two cleaning products are the same, and will have your own personal preferences for what to look out for, and what you favour when you’re buying them. As well as effectiveness, you will choose products that are comfortable and pleasant to use. Fragrance is more important to some than others, but nearly everyone will want something that doesn’t irritate the skin and leave it feeling and looking dry and sore.
In the laboratory, you should have a similar list of requirements for all your cleaning products – highly effective, will neutralise unpleasant smells rather than being the source of them and are kind to skin. Cleaning products that can multi-task also make them better value, which is always of great benefit.
Various essential items will require a deep clean – in the dental laboratory, we must think far beyond surface cleaning. The dental pumice and pumice tray, for example, and good protocols will include regularly changing the pumice and having a separate one for “new work” and “repairs”. Pumice will produce splatter and aerosol too, and with your polishing lathe constantly in use in a busy laboratory, a high-quality liquid cleaner must be the mixing medium.
Because items are being regularly sent to practices, which will then be fitted into the patient’s mouth, effective cleaning of pumice and the pumice tray is an absolute priority and should be key part of your protocols.
For the busy technician
The ideal cleaning product will be ready to use and in a solution that effectively neutralises any unpleasant smells from the pumice tray. It will also have been formulated with the technician in mind, and therefore be kind, and not irritating to skin. Even better if it is a multi-purpose product that can also be used as a bench cleaner, and even for soaking lathe brushes to reduce the risk of burning the acrylic during polishing.
PumiceSafe Universal Cleaner is highly effective and alcohol free, with a fresh and pleasant mint fragrance, also containing glycerine and emollient to look after technicians’ hands. The universal cleaning product is available in a handy spray and large 5ltr container, offering excellent value in one no-nonsense, multi-use product. PumiceSafe is available from Kemdent, joining its other premium lab solutions including PlasterSafe, an alcohol-free solvent that enables the swift and safe removal of dental plaster and stone from the fitted surface of dentures and Plaster Separator, a reliable medium that will impart a clean, smooth surface to the cured denture. Kemdent offers a comprehensive range of essential products for laboratories of any shape and size to utilise, all of which are made in Britain.
The products you choose can make a huge difference to hygiene in the dental laboratory. Just as is the case in the domestic setting, when a solution is pleasant to use, neutralising unpleasant odours as well as being kind to hands, full compliance to your processes will be supported. A safe laboratory, where technicians can work in the knowledge that they are using cleaning products which keep everything from surfaces to lathe brushes to pumices scrupulously clean, will continue to be productive, profitable and be able to grow.
Find out more about Kemdent's PumiceSafe Universal Cleaner, PlasterSafe Solvent and Plaster Separator or call 01793 770 256
