Dentatus president explains why sales are ‘never the focus’

Weissman, president of Dentatus USA, knows what he’s talking about: During his 60-year career, he has patented nearly 100 dental devices, some of which have sales in the tens of millions.

Again, though, according to Weissman, sales were never the focus. “I never allowed myself to project sales on paper or even in thought,” Weissman said in an interview on the exhibit floor of the recent Greater New York Dental Meeting. “The only thought that matters is: ‘Will it improve dentistry?’ If it does, and everything is correct, the profit will come.”

Weissman’s career began in the 1940s when he opened a dental lab in Brooklyn. His reputation for high-quality work grew rapidly, and soon he was serving some of the top dental practices in the area. One of those practices was owned by the dean of the New York University College of Dentistry, which led to Weissman being talked into a professorship with the school, a position he held for 20 years.

Through it all, Weissman kept inventing to improve what he calls the “art craft” of dentistry. Among the highlights are TMS screws patented in the ’60s to enable reinforcement of damaged enamel and the Pindex system patented in the mid-’70s, which is still considered the gold standard for creating highly accurate cast models.

Weissman sold Whaledent International, the dental company he founded in 1956 to what is now Coltène/Whaledent in 1977. But the inventive thinking never stopped; and, in 1988, he acquired the Stockholm, Sweden-based Dentatus, establishing the North and South American headquarters in New York City the following year.

At Dentatus, the flow of Weissman’s patents has continued at a steady rate, including the Profin Reciprocating Handpiece and the assorted line of Lamineer Tips for finishing and polishing. “Our products cover the full spectrum of restorative dentistry,” Weissman said. “Our factory in Stockholm produces products that are considered by dentists to be the most innovative and useful available.”

In the ’90s, Weissman’s attention turned to making implant technology available to a broader range of patients, especially those with compromised bone structure. First came the MTI, the first narrow-body implant for temporary restorations, which removed the lengthy delays between implant placement and restoration. That has been followed by introduction of Atlas implants for stabilizing overdentures and Anew implants, the only system with screw-retained restorations for crowns and large fixed restorations.

All of the systems are on display here on the GNYDM exhibit floor, and if you time your visit right, Weissman might be available to chat with you.

But don’t expect him to reveal too many details about what he’s planning next. The ideas are still flowing, and he always has something big in the works, always guided by the same philosophy: Make sure it’s going to help dentists perform better work and help patients enjoy better outcomes — and be affordable enough that both can actually take advantage of it.

And don’t worry about sales until a proven, safe, beneficial function is ready for dentists to confirm as “correct.”