Real Time ROI: Argen’s Argenco Y+

The Lab

Dental Arts Laboratories (DAL) Inc. serves dentists nationwide from locations throughout Illinois (Lincolnshire near Chicago, Lansing, Peoria, Galesburg and Springfield) and in St. Louis. DAL is a complete service laboratory resource providing traditional layered /pressed PFMs, pressed and milled all-ceramic restorations, premium full and partial dentures, implant prosthetics and a variety of specialty products. Scott Clark is the Executive Vice President of DAL.

The Product

Argenco Y+ delivers the beautiful, gold hue laboratories desire at a price they can afford. With only 2% gold, the material brings all the qualities of a yellow alloy at 50-70% less cost per ounce. Featuring stability, warm hue and economic pricing, it is said to be the fastest growing crown and bridge alloy on the market today. Argenco Y+ is a Type III Noble Yellow alloy with 2% gold, 34.9% palladium and 30% silver, suitable for full cast crowns and short span bridges.

The Results

As an established leader in the dental laboratory industry since 1934, DAL has the unique distinction of being one of the oldest established group of dental laboratories in Illinois. Family owned and operated, it takes exceptional pride in providing the dental community with the most advanced technologies, precise laboratory techniques and comprehensive product selection available.

With eight facilities and more than 280 trained technical staff, the DAL family of laboratories provides the unique capability of offering the necessary production capacity, disciplined service schedules and the individual personalized attention necessary to ensure a successful prosthetic rehabilitation. The  highly experienced, professional staff is certified and trained in all phases of ceramics/crown and bridge, metal-free esthetic alternatives, partial denture, full denture, orthodontic, snoring/sleep apnea appliances and implant prosthetic services.

In an effort to offer dentists an affordable option to more expensive yellow alloy restorations, DAL began offering Argen’s Argenco Y+. Clark, the EVP of the laboratories, said the results produced by using the material have been great  for both the company and its customers.

“Dental Arts Laboratories has been providing the Argenco Y+ full cast gold crown and bridgework for over three years to our customer base,” Clark said. “Offered as an alternative to our traditional High Noble 40% and 60% Yellow Gold, Argenco Y+  has become extremely popular with our dentists as it provides both the dentist and the patient with a gold colored (versus white) noble crown that is flat-rate priced for predictable price quotation, regardless of the weight of the crown.”

According to DAL customers, Argenco Y+ presents very similar performance attributes comparable to high noble yellow gold alternatives with the added benefit of fixed cost.

Clark said many patients prefer the warm gold hue color as compared to the white gold coloring of many of the lower white gold content alloys,
Additionally, customers have pointed out the product’s other benefits.

“We have received great feedback from our customers over the past three years with no indication nor complaints of discoloration over time,” Clark said. “The laboratory technical staff is very pleased with the fact that the crowns cast clean and with no porosity-finishing and polishing to a high luster.”

Other comments from happy dentists touch on the easy adjustment,as the product adjusts and polishes very similar to gold, and on its kindness to opposing dentition.

Adding Argenco Y+ to its product offering has helped DAL increase its bottom line while keeping its customers content by offering them a lower cost, high-quality crown and bridge alloy.