What happens after a dentist sends a scan to the lab?

The scan or impression is checked for accuracy, then a digital or plaster model of the patient's mouth is produced. The appliance is designed on that model, fabricated in the material specified, then finished, polished and quality-checked before it's dispatched back to the practice.

Do dental labs use 3D printing or is everything done by hand?

Most labs, including ours, use both. Digital design and 3D printing produce highly accurate models and some appliance components, but finishing, polishing and quality checking are still done by hand by a qualified technician — craft skill hasn't been replaced, it's been combined with digital tools.

Why do dental appliances need a model of the mouth at all?

An appliance has to fit precisely against a patient's teeth and gums, and that can only be checked and adjusted on an accurate model — never in a computer alone. The model is what the technician builds, seats, and refines the appliance against at every stage.

How is a dental appliance checked for quality before it's sent out?

A qualified technician inspects the fit on the model, the finish, and that it matches the prescription exactly, before it's cleaned, packaged and dispatched. In an accredited lab, this quality process is itself audited annually as part of the accreditation.

Does digital scanning make dental appliances more accurate?

Generally, yes. A digital scan avoids the small distortions that can occur with a physical impression, and produces a precise 3D model to design and check the appliance against — though a well-taken traditional impression still works perfectly well.

Why does the material a lab uses matter?

Different appliances need different properties — flexibility, rigidity, wear-resistance, clarity — so the material has to be chosen and handled correctly for the job. The wrong material, or the same material poorly processed, is one of the most common reasons an appliance under-performs.

How a Dental Lab Makes a Custom Appliance, Step by Step

By Bridge Dental Laboratory · 9 August 2026

Between a dentist sending off a scan and a patient wearing a finished appliance, there’s a process most people never see. It isn’t just “type it into a machine” — every stage still depends on a technician’s judgement, and each one exists for a reason. Here’s what actually happens.

1. The scan or impression arrives

Every case starts with an accurate record of the patient’s mouth — either a digital scan from an intraoral scanner, or a traditional impression taken by the practice. This is checked for accuracy before any work begins: a distorted impression or an incomplete scan means an inaccurate appliance, however good the fabrication that follows.

2. A model is built

From that scan or impression, a model of the patient’s mouth is produced — a physical plaster cast, a 3D-printed model, or a digital model on screen, depending on the appliance and workflow. This model is what everything else is built, seated and checked against. It’s a step that can’t be skipped: an appliance has to fit precisely against real anatomy, and that can only be verified on an accurate model, not in the abstract.

3. The appliance is designed

The technician plans exactly what the finished appliance needs to do — its shape, thickness, material and any specific features the prescription calls for (a particular splint design, a reinforcement, a colour, a fit tolerance). Where a digital workflow is used, this stage happens on screen before anything is fabricated; in a traditional workflow, it’s planned directly on the model.

4. It’s fabricated in the right material

Different appliances need different materials — flexible for comfort, rigid for durability, clear for cosmetics, dual-laminate for a balance of both — and each is processed differently. This is where 3D printing, milling, pressing or hand-layering come in, chosen for the appliance and the material, not the other way around.

5. Finishing and polishing

A fabricated appliance isn’t a finished one. Edges are trimmed, surfaces are shaped and smoothed, and the appliance is polished to the standard a patient will actually wear against their teeth and gums for hours at a time. This stage is still done by hand by a skilled technician — it’s the part digital tools haven’t replaced, because judging fit and finish by feel is a craft skill.

6. Quality checked before it leaves

Before dispatch, the finished appliance is checked against the original prescription — that it’s the right design, the right material, correctly finished, and seated properly on the model. In an accredited lab, this quality process is itself audited annually as part of the accreditation, not just a one-off internal check.

Digital tools and hand skills, together

The honest answer to “is it made by a machine or a person?” is both. Digital scanning and 3D printing have made models and some components more accurate and repeatable than ever — but design decisions, material choices, finishing and quality checking still rest on a technician’s training and judgement. Good labs don’t choose between craft and technology; they combine them.

How we do it

We run a full digital workflow — accepting scans from every major intraoral scanner, with free 3D-printed models on every order — alongside traditional impressions and hand-finishing, in our DAMAS-accredited, GDC-registered Christchurch lab. See how to send us a digital scan, or if you need something we don’t have a page for, see our custom and bespoke appliances service.