NZIDT Conference 2025
We regret to advise that we have had to cancel our conference 2025. We gratefully thank our loyal supporters, members and trades. Please support our members, presenters and trades particularly those below.
Grateful thanks to many particularly our loyal supply companies:
Ivoclar
Dentech Lab Supplies
Oraltec a division of Pharmaco
Kulzer
Vecodent
Dental Store
AMS
Henry Schein
Pacific Dental
Dentaurum
Prime Practice
Conference Presenters
Challenge Yourself, Think Big and Get More: Professional Development and Reflective Statements Can Be More than an Obligation.
Think big, think outside the tick box, and amazing things can happen. In the pursuit of personal excellence, meeting recertification requirements is not just an obligation, it can help you be more efficient, more productive, and happier in your career.
In this engaging session, John Aarts will guide attendees through developing a professional development plan that aligns with regulatory expectations and personal aspirations.
Beyond checking the necessary boxes, cultivating a reflective mindset, critically examining your learning experiences and articulating your insights through reflective statements, you can unlock surprising personal growth.
Attendees will gain practical tools to enhance their self-assessment, refine their reflective writing, and approach recertification as an avenue for continuous improvement rather than mere compliance. Through examples and expert insights, this session will empower you to embrace reflective practice as a driving force for skill enhancement, career advancement, and deeper professional fulfilment.
Join us as we transform recertification into a powerful process of self-discovery and growth.
Mr John Aarts Profile
As Coordinator of the Dental Technology and Clinical Dental Technology programmes at the University of Otago, John has played a pivotal role in shaping the Dental Technology profession. With three decades of teaching experience, governance roles in the NZIDT executive and the Dental Council, and a Health Science Degree and a Bachelor of Education, John offers a rare perspective on education for health professionals.
John’s commitment to advancing dental technology extends into research, with more than 40 peer-reviewed publications spanning material science, aesthetic dentistry, and education. Through his expertise in education, professional growth, and reflective education, John provides thought-provoking insights into how practitioners can develop their professional profiles.
Lecture– Dental Technology in a Digital World – Ivoclar
-Where dental technology began to where we are now
-Combining both analogue and digital.
-Saving time with accurate results.
-Showing design workflows from start to finish. Dentures, Trays, Splints
-Printing, milling and combining both.
-moving with the times.
Mr Kurt Boyd profile
Kurt started his career in the dental industry in 2003 at a commercial dental laboratory, after completing his Diploma in Dental Technology in 2006 he went on to complete his Advanced Diploma of Dental Prosthetics at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in 2008.
Kurt has since worked in both public and private clinics. Now his time is spent at Smile Care Denture Clinic that his father started over 40 years ago. Kurt has a special interest in Digital and runs private training courses at his Digital Studio in Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
Jen Cox – Prime Practice
Welcome to “Building Your Stress-Resilient Mindset: 9 Essential Skills for Thriving.”
In today’s fast-paced world, stress is an unavoidable part of life—but it doesn’t have to control us. Resilience is more than just bouncing back; it’s about growing stronger, adapting well, and maintaining your wellbeing even during challenging times.
This session will introduce you to 9 practical, science-backed capabilities that help you manage stress more effectively and build a more resilient mindset. These skills aren’t abstract theories—they’re proven tools you can apply immediately in your personal and professional life to stay calm, clear-headed, and empowered.
Jen will explore with you how to regulate emotions, stay optimistic yet realistic, solve problems proactively, and care for yourself in meaningful ways. By the end of the hour, you’ll have a practical action plan and the confidence to face stress with greater balance and strength.
Let’s get started on building your stress-resilient mindset!
Bio
Jen is a dynamic Business Coach, Consultant, Facilitator, and Speaker with over 13 years of experience, including 8 years specialising in the medical industry. Her passion for behavioural and psychological growth underpins her dedication to helping businesses and individuals achieve their full potential. With qualifications in Business Coaching, Consulting, Neuro-linguistic Programming, counselling, conflict management, and strategic communication, Jen excels at crafting effective growth strategies and inspiring transformative change. Her diverse skill set and innate ability to motivate and guide clients make her invaluable in driving success and fostering development.
An interactive session with Q and A and lively interactions from some of our best from different stages in the industry from student, to recent grad, to working, mid career to near end of career.
Experience a discussion panel with a broad range of experience, from those who have recently joined our profession to those who are almost retired (Do Dental Technicians retire?). You will get valuable insight into our profession as the panel explores career pathways in Dental and Clinical Dental Technology from their perspective.
Who will it be??? What curly questions do you have?
Online-Webinar: The perfectly designed model and how to achieve it, Withe SHERAeasy-model CAD Software. Thank you to Dentech Lab Supplies.
How to create optimal alveolar models + how digital workflows can be optimised for highly precise and efficient results.
- What is really important when creating a 3D alveolar model?
- What common sources of error can be avoided?
- How do you achieve precise and reliable results in 3D printing?
- What advantages does the optimized SHERAeasy-model CAD software offer in combination with the SHERAprint workflow?
Digital dental experts, Guido Sieker and Ralf Oppacher, will show you, live!
Profiles
Guido:
Guido Sieker is a qualified Dental Technician and graduated with a Diploma in Dental Technology from Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences in 2008. Since 2011, he has been Head of Development at SHERA Werkstoff-Technologie GmbH, where he leads innovations in digital dentistry, including milling systems, 3D printing, and material development. With a strong focus on advancing dental technology, Guido continues to shape high-quality solutions for modern dental labs.
Ralf:
Ralf Oppacher is a Master Dental Technician with decades of hands-on experience. After running his own renowned dental lab from 1996 to 2012, he founded the “Ästhetik-Lounge Oppacher” in 2008, focusing on dental excellence. As a long-time SHERA speaker and permanent member of the SHERAdigital team since 2012, he shares his deep expertise in CAD/CAM and casting technology through international lectures and courses—bridging traditional craftsmanship with cutting-edge digital workflows.
Product Extravaganza’ – each supply company gets 5 minutes to present on the product you should all be using, why it is beneficial how it can help. Plaque for ‘best product presentation at Conference 2025’.
Title: Are IPS e.max CAD crowns still accurate as diamond burs wear?
Abby (Xiaoyun) Liu is currently in her final year of her PhD program at the Faculty of Dentistry, University of Otago. Have you ever wondered if the time manufacturers set to replace a diamond bur for milling crowns is too long or too short? Abby’s research project looks to answer this question! Her research project focuses on how accurately ceramic crowns can be milled. Milling, also known as subtractive manufacturing in academic circles, is regarded as the gold standard for ceramic restorations in CAD/CAM. Despite its benefits, concerns arise regarding the accuracy of milled crowns because of the degradation or wear of milling burs over time. A misfit in crowns may result in pulpal infections, plaque accumulation, hypersensitivity, and microleakage, which may increase the risk of secondary dental caries. While manufacturers set a replacement timeframe for burs, it is actually not known when bur deterioration actually starts, compromising the accuracy of the milled crowns.
Various laboratory milling machines are available on the market, each featuring different milling strategies and hardware parameters. Therefore, Abby’s multicentre PhD research is assessing the impact of bur wear on the accuracy of milled ceramic crowns in three different milling machines (Sirona inLab MC X5, Ivoclar PM7, Zirkonzhan M1). In her talk, Abby will present the key findings regarding the accuracy of IPS e.max CAD crowns in relation to diamond bur wear and will compare the performance of different milling machines. The results will provide comprehensive insights for dental technicians who currently mill ceramic crowns or are contemplating investing in one in the near future. Her talk will offer recommendations and guidelines on bur replacement timeframes for the best outcome for patients.
Presentation Title:
Creating an Aesthetic Denture in an Asymmetric Mouth
Presentation Description:
This presentation explores the clinical and technical challenges of creating an aesthetic and functional complete denture for a patient with facial asymmetries. Using a real patient case, it highlights the importance of individualised assessment, precise tooth arrangement, and contouring techniques to achieve a harmonious result that complements the patient’s unique anatomy. The discussion will focus on strategies to enhance visual symmetry while preserving comfort, phonetics, and function. Ultimately, this case demonstrates how balancing aesthetics with functionality can lead to improved patient satisfaction and clinical success.
Bio:
Prapitchaya Saimule graduated with a Bachelor of Dental Technology in 2024 from the Faculty of Dentistry, University of Otago and is currently studying Postgraduate Clinical Dental Technology. With a growing passion for both the technical and clinical aspects of the profession, she is excited to integrate and refine these skills to provide the highest standard of patient care in the evolving field of Clinical Dental Technology.
Maxillofacial prosthetics, an evolving scope.
Maxillofacial prosthetics is a very specialized and still, restricted scope of practice that very few DT’s and CDTs are involved with in NZ.
This presentation gives an overview of what’s involved with the day to day workload and also an understanding of what is required in terms of the science and knowledge that underpins it and will demonstrate where we are applying digital technologies in our daily workflow.
The Maxillofacial Dept at Waikato Hospital is a leader in this for NZ and we have very close working relationships with our surgical colleagues in the Maxillofacial, Plastic, ENT and Ophthalmic specialties as well as our dental colleagues and other allied health groups.
The provision of removable dental appliances through the dept will also be discussed as only head and neck cancer patients and cleft patients can access this service through the dept, and many of our patients are not straight forwards.
As a certain Mr Craig Metcalfe famously once said, us (CDT’s ) have become deFacto Prosthodotists for the provision of removable prosthetics, and at Waikato, this is definitely the case.
Mike is one of a team of 3 highly talented individuals (Mr Mustafa Al-Saffar and Miss Bessie Kay) who are fortunate to work in this scope of practice at Waikato hospital.
Bio:
Mike Williams, Senior Maxillofacial Technician, Dept of Maxillofacial & Oral Surgery, Waikato Hospital, Hamilton
Qualifications:
Regd CDT , Adv Cert CDT, (with Distinction), CIT, NZ, (2000)
DT : B/TEC ND Science/ Dental Technology (1986), Richmond College of FE, Sheffield, UK.
Maxillofacial Qualification: B/TEC HNC, Science/Dental Technology (with Distinction) (1996), Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester UK.
Awards: John Quayle Trophy for top student on 1 year HNC Programme.
We would like to sincerely thank the following businesses for their support. Without their assistance our conferences would not be what they are.
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