10 Questions: Atlantic Metals

01. How long has Atlantic been in business and how did the business start?

Don Mappin, Jr., U.S. Air Force veteran and former dental lab technician, started Atlantic Precious Metal Refining in a shed on his father’s property in 1988. Since its humble beginnings, Atlantic has grown into the market leader in dental scrap refining housed in a 15,000 square  foot state-of-the-art facility.

02. How long have you been involved in the dental industry and with Atlantic?

I’ve been in the dental industry for more than 27 years and associated with Atlantic for more than 20 of those years. I’ve held my current position of Vice President of Sales for Atlantic since 2009.

03. How important is it for lab owners to get to know their refining company?

It is critical for lab owners to get to know their refining company. Sending scrap material with an unknown value can be intimidating, and lab owners must find a refiner they trust that provides honest returns and accurate results.

04. How does Atlantic educate lab owners on the benefits of its offerings?

Our website is a great resource for lab owners who are interested in learning more about Atlantic, and our sales reps and staff can answer any questions they might have. We also exhibit at many dental industry events.

A QUICK VIDEO LOOK AT ATLANTIC'S TECHNIQUE FOR MELTING AND POURING GOLD:

05. What differentiates Atlantic from other scrap processors?

We’re a full-scale refinery. Most scrap processors must outsource their refining services, but Atlantic processes dental alloys including gold, silver, platinum, and palladium from scrap to pure all under one roof at our refinery in Pittsburgh.

06. What types of technologies does Atlantic use in its processing procedures?

Atlantic uses a custom-designed software package that tracks each scrap lot as it moves through the refining process, proprietary antioxidant mixtures to aid in smelting and metal recovery, Inductively Coupled Plasma Spectrometers to perform no less than three separate assays per lot, and chemical digestion and extraction processes that produce .9995 elemental materials for sale back into the industry.

07. How do Atlantic’s processes allow for the most accurate return on dental scrap?

Our focus is dental and our business is refining. As a full-scale refinery, we process precious metal from scrap to pure with no outsourcing and no middleman. This allows us to triple verify our results and provide our customers with the most accurate returns in the industry.

08. I’ve heard of companies offering a 24 hour turnaround on results. How long does it take Atlantic to process scrap?

Be very wary of the company promising a 24 hour turnaround time on your results. Legitimate assay results only can be achieved if processed properly through a scientific facility like Atlantic and that process takes time. With most scrap lots, Atlantic’s clients can expect results within 10 business days.

09. What is the best way for labs to learn more about refining?

There are many online resources claiming to explain refining and some do a pretty good job, but we suggest lab owners go to a reputable refiner’s website. Dental scrap is notoriously difficult to process, and lab owners should deal exclusively with an organization specializing in this type of scrap.

10. What can we expect from Atlantic in the future?

Atlantic will continue to pursue the most advanced technologies to achieve the most accurate results for our customers. We will continue to run a transparent organization that is accessible to our clients, offer a clearly stated fee structure, and in turn, raise the ethical standards of the industry. 

This article originally appeared in the March 2013 issue of Dental Lab Products. For more great industry insight, you can subscribe to DLP by clicking here.

Josh Daab

Atlantic Metal Refining Vice President of Sales