What changes in the first 30 days after a lab moves its practices onto one platform
Moving a dental lab’s practices onto one platform takes about a month of small steps. Here is a week-by-week plan, and what changes for each role.
By the Tusko team
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Moving a lab’s practices onto one platform is a month of small changes. Nobody’s bench work changes, and almost everyone’s routine does.
This guide is a plan for those 30 days. It covers what to prepare, what to do each week, and what changes for each person.
It describes a process and makes no promise about results. What a lab gains depends on the lab.
Thirty days, week by week
A timeline of the 30-day plan. Before day one, name an owner, list your practices, agree the stages and take a baseline. In week one, the lab’s own team puts every new case on the board. In week two, the first three to five practices are invited by phone. In week three, the next group is invited. In week four, the same numbers are counted again and three decisions are made.
Before day one
Prepare
Name an owner, list your practices by volume, agree what each stage means and take a baseline.
Week one
The lab’s own team
Every new case goes on the board, and at the end of the week the whiteboard comes down.
Week two
The first practices
Three to five are invited by phone, and each sends a case.
Week three
Widen the circle
The next group is invited, and other cases are still entered by the lab.
Week four
Review
The same numbers are counted again, and three decisions are made: keep, fix and next.
Before day one
A week of preparation makes the month easier. Five things are worth settling first.
- Name an owner. One person runs the rollout and answers questions about it.
- List your practices by volume. Mark the three to five you will invite first.
- Agree what each stage means. Everyone should move a case at the same moment in its life.
- Decide who updates a case. A good default is the person whose hands it just left.
- Take a baseline. Count a normal week before anything changes.
What to count
Pick a few numbers you can collect without new tools.
| Count | How to collect it |
|---|---|
| Status calls and texts in a day | A tally sheet by the phone |
| Cases that arrive with details missing | A mark on the intake list |
| Cases held while waiting for an answer | A count each morning |
| Cases delivered after their due date | From your delivery log |
A week of tallies is enough. Dental lab KPIs explains what each number tells you.
Without a baseline, the review in week four becomes a matter of opinion.
Tell the whole team the start date. Nobody should learn about the change on the morning it begins.
Week one: the lab’s own team
Start inside the lab. Practices come later.
Enter every new case, however it arrived. A case from email, a scanner inbox or a paper slip goes on the board the same day.
Run the old board beside the new one. Keep the whiteboard for this week only. It shows up anything the team forgot to enter.
Move cases at the bench. The technician who finishes a step moves the case. Updates saved for the end of the day get missed.
Start the day at the board. Ten minutes each morning on what is due, what is waiting and what is stuck.
Expect it to feel slower for a few days. Two systems are running, and people are learning one of them.
At the end of the week, take the whiteboard down. A team with two boards will trust the old one.
Running a dental lab production board covers stages and the morning routine in detail.
Week two: the first practices
Invite the three to five practices you marked. Choose ones that send steady work and that you know well.
Call before you send anything. A call from someone they know sets up the invitation that follows.
Tell them three things.
- What changes for them: where they send a case, and where they see its status
- What stays the same: your technicians, your driver and your phone number
- Who to ask: a name at the lab
Offer a short walkthrough for the front desk and the assistant. They are the ones who will send and check cases.
Follow the call with a short written summary. One page is enough, with the name of the person to ask.
Treat the first case from each practice with care. Reply to its messages quickly, and keep its status current.
If someone at the practice phones with a question, answer it. Then add a note to the case, so the answer is there next time.
Week three: widen the circle
Invite the next group. Use what the first group taught you.
Change your invitation if the same question came up twice. Add the answer before anyone has to ask.
Some practices will not move yet. That is their call, and they have their own busy month.
Keep taking their cases the way they send them. Enter those cases yourself, so the board stays complete.
A complete board matters more than a full list of practices online. The lab gains from the first even before the second.
Keep a short list of snags
| Snag | What to try |
|---|---|
| A practice sends through the platform, then emails as well | Thank them, and reply on the case |
| A technician forgets to move cases | Make it part of handing the pan on |
| The front desk at a practice has not logged in | Offer ten minutes by phone to walk through it |
| An Rx arrives with a detail missing | Ask on the case, the same day |
| Rush requests still come by phone | Take the call, then note it on the case |
None of these needs a meeting. Each needs one person to notice, and a habit to adjust.
Week four: review
Count the same numbers you counted before day one. Use the same method, for a full week.
Put the two weeks side by side. Some numbers will have moved, and some will not have.
Read them with care. One month is short, and a busy or quiet week can explain a change by itself.
Then ask people.
- Ask the bench what still gets written on paper
- Ask reception which calls still come in, and from whom
- Ask two practices what they would change
Decide three things: what to keep, what to fix, and who to invite next.
Share the review with the team. A routine lasts longer when people can see what it is for.
What changes for each role
| Role | Before | After the first month |
|---|---|---|
| Owner or manager | Walks the floor to see what is due | Opens the board |
| Reception | Finds the pan to answer a status call | Checks the board, and can point practices on the platform to the case |
| Technician | Updates a label or a whiteboard | Moves the case to its next stage |
| Driver | Works from a printed list | Works from the cases marked ready |
| Practice front desk | Phones to ask where a case is | Looks at the case |
| Dentist | Answers the lab’s questions between patients, by phone | Answers on the case, with the Rx in view |
The table describes routines. How much time each change saves is for your own counts to show.
What does not change
- The work at the bench
- Your prices, and how you invoice, unless you choose to change them
- The driver’s route
- The phone, which stays available for anything urgent
- Your relationships with your practices
Say this to your team and to your practices. People accept a new tool sooner when they know what it leaves alone.
The 30-day checklist
- An owner is named, and a baseline week is counted
- Stages and who updates them are agreed
- Week one: every new case is on the board, and the whiteboard comes down
- Week two: three to five practices are invited by phone, and each has sent a case
- Week three: the next group is invited, and other cases are still entered by the lab
- Week four: the same numbers are counted again
- Three decisions are made: keep, fix and next
For the practice’s side of a change like this, read how to roll out a new lab workflow without slowing the schedule.
Tusko is a shared case platform, and setup is hands-on. See how it works for labs, or try the lab calculator with your own numbers.
If you are still choosing software, start with best dental lab management software for Canadian labs.
How long does it take to move a dental lab onto new case software?
Plan for about a month. The lab’s own team comes first, a few practices follow in the second week, and the rest join over the weeks after. The pace depends on the size of the lab.
Should every practice be invited at once?
No. Start with three to five practices that send steady work and are open to trying it. Their questions will improve how you invite the rest.
What if a practice does not want to change?
Keep taking its cases the way it sends them, and enter them yourself. The practice stays a client, and your board stays complete. Ask again later.
What should a lab measure during the first month?
Count the same few things before and after, such as status calls a day, cases that arrive with details missing, and cases delivered late. Use your own numbers.
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