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Corporate Profile: IMTEC Benjamin Lund, Editor, Orthotown Magazine

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IMTEC Co-founder and Chairman of the Board Dr. Ronald Bulard shows the ILUMA Cone Beam CT manufacturing area.

by Benjamin Lund
Editor, Orthotown Magazine

Implants are becoming more and more standard in orthodontic treatments, and companies like IMTEC Corporation are leading the charge. Orthotown Magazine recently interviewed IMTEC Co-founder and Chairman of the Board Dr. Ronald Bulard about the company's history, advancements in orthodontic implants and direct bonding, digital solutions and some new products on the horizon.

Dr. Bulard, tell me about IMTEC Corporation and how it got its start.
Bulard: IMTEC Corporation is well known for designing and manufacturing a wide variety of dental specialty products such as mini dental implants, root form endosseous dental implants, guided tissue and bone regeneration systems, surgical drills and instrumentation and an extensive line of implant prosthetics.

Our company was founded in 1989 with a mission to provide quality, cost effective dental implant solutions at a time when implant dentistry was too cost prohibitive for most clinicians to adopt. This mission hit a chord with the general dental community, and with the launch of the MDI Mini Implant System in 1999, IMTEC's growing customer base raised the company to be the market leader in mini implants that it is today.

Because of IMTEC's well-known expertise in mini implants and the company's progressive outlook, orthodontists worldwide approached IMTEC requesting a mini implant adapted for orthodontic anchorage, and that is what led to IMTEC's introduction of the ORTHO Implant in 2003.

In March 2007, IMTEC merged with HYTEC, Inc., a technology and engineering company based in Los Alamos, New Mexico. With the addition of that technology, IMTEC focuses on five product lines: dental implants, ILUMA cone beam CT for craniofacial imaging, digital dentistry, FlashCT technology and engineering services.

Please explain how IMTEC got started developing orthodontic implants.
Bulard: As the popularity of IMTEC's MDI system grew, more orthodontists began to inquire about using MDI implants for anchorage purposes in their practices. This led to orthodontists using the Mini Dental Implants suggesting changes that would adapt the MDIs for orthodontic anchorage, such as a smooth surface that would not promote osseointegration. As a result, IMTEC eventually developed the ORTHO Implant.
Can you explain a little bit about the R&D behind the IMTEC ORTHO Implant?
Bulard: Extensive data on the MDI implant gave IMTEC the information necessary to ensure the ORTHO implant would be the most predictable temporary anchorage device (TAD) to date. Thorough studies were conducted by doctors at both the University of Oklahoma and Baylor University, confirming the implant's efficacy and versatility as an orthodontic anchor. Currently, research is taking place at multiple universities in the United States and abroad, and research at Baylor done by Dr. Carmen Briceno on the ORTHO Implant was just honored with the Milo Hellman Research award by the American Association of Orthodontists. Also, as more and more clinicians adopt the ORTHO Implant, valuable customer feedback is helping IMTEC continue to offer a superior product to orthodontists.
Compared to other TADs on the market, what makes the
ORTHO Implant unique?
Bulard: The ORTHO Implant offers a design proven with decades of research and with more versatility than any other TAD design. The ORTHO Implant is a direct adaptation of the MDI implant design. The MDI implant went through 25 years of research and development before it was introduced to the market in 1999. Today, the MDI implant has proven to be the world's favorite and most trusted mini implant system. This is the age of evidence-based dentistry, and orthodontists should settle for nothing less than an evidence-based implant. With the ORTHO Implant, that is what they receive, and that is unique.

Versatility is the second most distinguishing characteristic of the ORTHO Implant. The system consists of one implant design, which includes an O-ball head with intersecting attachment holes, available in three different lengths as opposed to other systems that require clinicians to stock different implant designs each only useful for limited types of attachments. The fact that IMTEC developed a design that meets all attachment needs makes implant selection simpler with the ORTHO Implant than with any other TAD system, and the three different lengths facilitate placement in almost any location based on gingival thickness and bony depth.

The undercut beneath the o-ball can also be used for direct attachment of ligatures, elastics and power chains and a removable stainless steel O-cap that locks in place around the O-ball can be soldered to custom appliances or placed to prevent mucosal overgrowth and prevent patient discomfort.

What are other ways your TAD system makes orthodontics more effective?
Bulard: Anchorage is the most illusive element of orthodontics. The ORTHO Implant provides a simple way for clinicians to gain dependable, compliance-free anchorage, maximizing tooth movement within the planned treatment time and in many cases decreasing the amount of time necessary to complete treatment.
Also, because the ORTHO Implant is designed to be immediately loaded, it is easily integrated into existing treatment plans.

   What is the Grobé Tray and how does it aid orthodontists with bracket placement?
Bulard: The IMTEC Grobé Tray is a direct bonding tray based on a patented hinge mechanism. The tray is designed utilizing digital models that eliminate the need for plaster models. The Grobé Tray benefits the clinician by providing a guide that facilitates accurate placement in a clean and quick method, ensuring success for every patient.

The process begins with the dentist taking an impression, which is then scanned in a digital lab. Software is used to virtually straighten the teeth of the virtual model, and based on that ideal model, bracket location for each tooth is determined. With the click of a button, the virtual model returns to reflect the actual geometry of the case, and the tray is then manufactured to guide bracket placement to precisely reflect what was represented in the software. Each guide can be customized to accept specific brands and styles of brackets, and those brackets are snapped easily into the guide.

Due to a patented hinge mechanism, precision bracket placement is guaranteed. The fit of the tray to the occlusal surface of the patient's teeth prevents movement, ensuring that the brackets will stay in place as the resin cures. After light curing the resin, the hinged arms of the tray are simply pushed to release each bracket. The tray can also be broken down into small jigs that fit on a single tooth offering flexibility and accuracy in the event that a bracket comes off during the treatment.
How would you describe IMTEC to an orthodontist meeting you
for the first time?
Bulard: IMTEC is a visionary company poised to offer the orthodontic field a complete range of practice-building technology today and in the future. Implants are becoming more and more standard in contemporary orthodontics. We are the company orthodontists can trust to provide the most dependable and scientifically sound implant solutions for the orthodontic practice, and we are the company to watch when it comes to revolutionary digital solutions like the Grobé Tray and TAD guides.

In the realm of orthodontics, what does the future hold for IMTEC?
Bulard: IMTEC has always enjoyed providing creative and progressive implant solutions, and the orthodontic community continues to give us great opportunities to do that. We plan to become even more valuable to orthodontists as we introduce new digital dental solutions. Look at what the Grobé Tray has done for bracket placement, and that's just one way technology can improve the way clinicians practice their art. IMTEC will soon introduce DigiGuide TAD software, which will enable doctors to evaluate a patient's anatomy three-dimensionally through manipulation of a CT scan, virtually place implants and send data to IMTEC to manufacture a surgical guide.
What other orthodontic products have IMTEC developed that are on
the market today?

Dr. Jason B. Cope 		Bulard: IMTEC has teamed with Dr. Jason B. Cope to introduce a full line of custom TAD attachments to maximize the effectiveness of the ORTHO Implant. Dr. Cope is one of the most inventive clinicians we've met. He really understands what orthodontists need to maximize success with TADs. The constant force Locking Closed Coil Springs launched last year are the line's premier group of products. They include a patent-pending locking mechanism, which does away with the need to ligate the spring to the implant unique power arms. Application-specific attachments are soon to follow.
Are there any other topics that you wanted to talk about that I haven't addressed?
Bulard: Yes, IMTEC has developed an effective training program to help the orthodontist better understand how to maximize the effectiveness of the ORTHO Implant. Those industry-leading seminars cover key issues including surgical placement, treatment planning, and TAD selection and use. Dr. Cope is the keynote lecturer for these informative courses.

IMTEC has also partnered with 3M Unitek to sell the ORTHO Implant to the orthodontic community. 3M Unitek's experience in orthodontics should facilitate growth in this expanding market, and their excellent rapport with orthodontists worldwide makes Unitek the ideal partner.
Orthotown Magazine
September 2025
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