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Corporate Profile: Dolphin Imaging Benjamin Lund, Editor, Orthotown Magazine

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Dolphin Executive team, from left: Todd Blankenbecler, Otto Colette, Chester Wang and Sonya Lester-Rowe.

An interview with Dolphin Imaging & Management Solutions, one of the orthodontic specialty's major imaging and practice management frontrunners, explains how this company is anything but a fish out of water.

By Benjamin Lund, Editor, Orthotown Magazine

Dolphin's first foray into the orthodontic specialty began in the late 1980s when the DigiGraph®, its inaugural sonic digitizing imaging product, hit the market. For more than 20 years, gradual yet steady growth and development and implementation of up-and-coming digital technologies have turned Dolphin into one of the orthodontic profession's leading imaging, case presentation and practice management software companies. To find out more about Dolphin, Orthotown Magazine interviewed Managing Director Chester Wang, who has been with the company since its inception. Mr. Wang says he is responsible for "minding the future, developing products, and making sure that Dolphin customers are well taken care of."
Can you please tell me how Dolphin was started?
Wang: Dolphin was founded in 1988 by New York-based orthodontist Dr. Marc Lemchen, who in 1985 conceived our inaugural product – a non-radiographic three-dimensional facial and intraoral imaging device. He and a colleague spent a couple of years researching the idea and soliciting investors, which allowed them to introduce the DigiGraph at the 1989 American Association of Orthodontics (AAO) Annual Session in Anaheim, California. Shortly after, Dolphin was featured on the cover of the June issue of the Journal of Clinical Orthodontics. This is historically significant because it made Dolphin the first company to envision the end of film-based images. The impetus for developing the DigiGraph was to provide a more accurate and efficient diagnostic imaging tool for dental specialists. It turned out to be the first digital imaging solution in dentistry. This Dolphin system provided the first accurate 3D measurements of the face and teeth and allowed the first practical ability to do accurate predictions of facial changes resulting from growth, orthodontic treatment and orthognathic surgical correction. It was this vision of the future that launched the Dolphin we have today.

Dolphin was acquired by Patterson Dental in December 2008. What was the motivation behind the acquisition?
Wang: We wanted to expand our reach to the customer in a broader range of dental specialties. We had a long-term vision, and had to face the fact that a small private business like ours simply would not be equipped to effectively bring these projects to fruition. So, we spent the last two years searching out options such as credit lines, loans, investors, etc., and in the end we found a perfect partner in Patterson.

What were/are the short-term implications for the new change in ownership?
Wang: The immediate changes have involved internal company infrastructure transitions that include employee benefits, accounting systems and lots of communication between the various Dolphin and Patterson teams. On the other hand, there has been absolutely no change in the way we serve our customers.

What are the long-term goals for the new ownership?
Wang: Dolphin will become the dental-specialist core for Patterson, allowing its customer base to benefit from our advanced technologies. Dolphin has stable and comprehensive platforms to introduce all our products. In turn, Patterson will provide Dolphin with the appropriate channels and resources to deliver these technologies to the customers.

What benefits have been immediately apparent to existing Dolphin customers?
Wang: Within the first three months, with Patterson's assistance, we expanded our support and training services with Live Chat and Webinars. The biggest benefit is in the form of financing and rebate incentives, making it very easy for customers to obtain Dolphin products, especially in these times of economic turmoil. In addition, our affiliation with Patterson allows users to see Dolphin demonstrated at more conferences and events than ever before.

Can you tell me a little about the rise and eventual fall of your first product – the DigiGraph? How did that affect the growth of the company and what did you learn from it?
Wang: The early years were spent learning our strengths and weaknesses, which helped us properly position ourselves in the marketplace. We had a slick concept and financial backing that allowed us to start. Eventually, it became clear that our strength was in software development, so we made the major strategic decision to refocus on that. We continued to develop the digital imaging part of our software, de-emphasizing the development of our cutting edge sonic digitizing. Because responsive support had always been our backbone, we were able to make this turn without compromising the trust of our customers. So in short, between 1988 and 1995, the company was finding its legs.

Around 1996, digital cameras were entering the scene. I frequently traveled to Japan, where digital technology was most advanced, to import some of this new technology for Dolphin's customers. We designed software to integrate with orthodontic practice management systems. Once we found our niche, we never looked back. The pivotal point in the history of Dolphin occurred at the 1997 AAO in Philadelphia, where we experienced overwhelming sales of these software packages. It was the beginning of a new era for Dolphin and for orthodontics.

What was the market like in the early years and how did it respond to Dolphin? When did Dolphin finally receive some acceptance within the orthodontic specialty?
Wang: We believe we earned respect from the profession right from the start. Remember that the DigiGraph was accepted by the community (nearly 200 practices utilized the unit daily all over the world for several years), and when we turned to software, we maintained the same quality without the complexity. There is no doubt in my mind that we have been able to move forward with each one of our development visions because of the trust we established early on.

What kind of affiliations has Dolphin had over the years and how have these alliances affected the company image, and success?
Wang: Throughout our history, Dolphin has affiliated with various industry experts in the belief that combining their ideas with our technologies augments the value of our products. A byproduct of these alliances has often been increased recognition and acceptance within the community. An example of an alliance that proved to be a real turning point for Dolphin's reputation was with Drs. Bill Arnett and Rick McLaughlin, whom we met through an affiliation with 3M Unitek. More recently, we've teamed up with marketing expert Dr. Ron Roncone, financial guru Paul Zuelke, and well-respected practice management consultants Karen Moawad and Charlene White.

Why did Dolphin enter into practice management?
Wang: In the early 2000s, many of the players in practice management were being consumed by mergers and acquisitions at the expense of quality and customer service. This created a need for an efficient system backed by a dedicated team, and our customers urged us to develop in this area. Of course, we were up until now an "imaging company," so we sought out a candidate with the appropriate experience in practice management to lead the product development and sales. That person was Todd Blankenbecler.

There are many practice management software companies currently in the dental and ortho market today. How are you managing to maintain your share of the market and what does Dolphin do that makes it stand out from the rest of the crowd, especially in this economy?
Wang: Our decisions and actions are not derived from analyzing our market share, but from seeing how happy our customers are and what they want.

We introduced Dolphin Management with an established reputation in the orthodontic community. Our customers were eagerly anticipating our entry into the arena, so Dolphin Management was an instant hit. In retrospect, we might have jumped in too enthusiastically, and as a result we ran into some bumps in the road early on. Our early adopters continued to support us as a reciprocation of the dedication and loyalty we have shown them over the years. Within a couple of years we had ironed out the issues with Dolphin Management, and then the next phase of customers jumped on board with the same trust. We see this as a very typical process for any new product introduction and growing business. The key to our success is to never take our eyes off of our customers. In addition to product development, we consistently keep high quality service and efficient operations. To do that, we rely heavily on our Director of Operations, Sonya Lester, who runs our day-to-day operations while keeping morales positive throughout the team. And, we have an army sergeant for a Technical Support Manager, Eric Millan.

As a result, 2008, which was one of the worst years for world economy in our memory, was actually Dolphin's best year in its 20-year history.

Dolphin is gaining a stronger international presence. Tell me how you've responded to this growth and what Dolphin has done to accommodate its overseas users.
Wang: Dolphin's Vice President, Otto Colette, has traveled the world in search of best-fit distributors for our products in local areas. While we can service these customers ourselves, we believe that local culture, and the access to local training and support, is in the best interest of these customers. We continue to expand internationally, with emphatic growth in South America, Western Europe and Australia and New Zealand.

Tell me about Dolphin 3D. Why did you create it? How was it developed? What does it do differently from other imaging software on the market? What sort of reaction have you seen so far?
Wang: Dolphin 3D is our most technically sophisticated product with the simplest interface. We created it in response to customer need for 3D technology, actually originally as a pet project. Our concept was presented at the 2005 Moyers Symposium at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. It received an overwhelming response, so we proceeded with development and officially introduced Dolphin 3D the following year. Dolphin 3D sets itself apart from other software in its category by having the most comprehensive tool set, making it relevant to a wide range of specialties.

Dolphin also recently became involved in developing case presentation and patient education software. Why?
Wang: Our customers brought it to our attention that products in this category were not being developed in step with current technology. Since it seemed like a natural next step for Dolphin and fit in nicely with our existing product line, we went ahead and developed Aquarium, one of our most popular software packages to date.

If you were to meet an orthodontist on the street who didn't know what Dolphin was, how would you explain it?
Wang: Dolphin is actually one of the most recognized names in orthodontics. We provide high-quality software for dental specialists worldwide. We're very aggressive at developing and improving our products, and are involved in imaging, diagnostics, practice management and case presentation. Our products integrate with virtually all technologies within an office: management systems, digital X-ray units, CBCTs, communications and Web-based applications. Headquartered in Southern California, we also have offices around the world to support and train our customers round-the-clock. Thousands of private practices, hospitals and schools currently use Dolphin.

What is your personal favorite option in the software that you produce?
Wang: I would view this as a trick question! My absolute favorite feature is always the next cool thing in the pipeline! It's exciting to have a product in the development stage, because it embodies connection with customers, research, artistry and vision. The anticipation of introducing our next "baby" to the world is a rush for our entire team.

So, that kind of begs the question, what new developments is Dolphin working on for the future?
Wang: At any given moment we have a dozen big projects in the works. On the imaging side, we're working on animated morphing, image annotations and new improvements to our ceph tracing software, plus several major 3D products. For management, we have worked closely with Karen Moawad of Hummingbird Associates to add many extremely useful practice reports. We also will introduce a new product created in collaboration with the well-known practice management consultant, Ms. Charlene White. It will be the latest addition to our Legend Series of modules.

As we speak, the next edition of our popular newsletter, Echoes, is in production, and our Web site is constantly being updated with the latest Dolphin news. We continue to improve our team with ongoing technical and customer service training, plus team-building seminars to help us learn how to work better with each other. It's a labor of love for everyone here at Dolphin!

For more information about Dolphin, visit www.dolphinimaging.com,
e-mail info@dolphinimaging.com, or call 800-548-7241.
Orthotown Magazine
September 2025
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