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R & D and clinical education as major drivers of growth at Osstem Implant

Aiming to become the global top dental implant company by 2026, Osstem Implant is exerting all-out efforts in research and development, clinical education and overseas sales. (Image: Osstem Implant)

Wed. 27. October 2021

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SEOUL, South Korea: Osstem Implant, the top dental implant company in global sales, is accelerating its business growth and success. This is being achieved by focusing on its major growth engines of vibrant research and development (R & D) and a robust clinical education programme for dentists.

Under the firm conviction of its founder, a dentist turned entrepreneur, and its president, who previously led an implant R & D centre, Osstem Implant strategically concentrates its resources on R & D activities. Currently, the company invests 11% of its revenue in R & D projects. The number of researchers at its central research institute, which was established last year in Magok in Seoul, now exceeds 500, the new research operation having continued to increase its research workforce since its launch.

The institute consists of 15 specialised research units over an area of 29,752.07 m2 and of 9,917.36 m2 of laboratory space, occupying a total floor space of 71,127.27 m2. These units develop everything a dental clinic needs, including implants, software, digital dentistry solutions and dental office interiors.

The company boasts world-class technologies in fixture design that enhance early fixation ability even in weak bone and in surface treatment that induces fast osseointegration. Osstem Implant’s SOI (Super OsseoIntegration) promotes the rapid formation of blood clots around the implant and is the world’s first dental implant whose surface is coated with a pH-buffering agent. By raising the rate of early-stage osseointegration, the proprietary surface technology of SOI can shorten the healing period by over 35% compared with other implant systems.

Owing to bold investments, persistent R & D and overwhelming technological prowess, the premium quality of South Korea-developed implants and bone grafting materials has been widely acclaimed, and these products have been awarded rigorous certification by the EU, top-grade recognition by the US Food and Drug Administration and certification by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

A recent survey conducted by the Clinical Translational Research Center for Dental Science at Seoul National University Dental Hospital and Osstem Implant showed that the company ranked top in global sales of implants for four consecutive years, from 2017 to 2020. During the past four years, Osstem Implant sold approximately 68 million implant products in the global market.

Driving business growth with clinical education

Clinical education, another growth engine of Osstem Implant, was launched in 2001 with the establishment of the Advanced Implant Research and Education Center as an implant clinical education organisation. Thanks to the company’s efforts to improve the clinical capabilities of South Korean dentists, South Korea now ranks top in the world both in implant placement rate and in the proportion of dentists who can perform implant procedures.

The clinical education offered by Osstem Implant places emphasis on theory and practice. Courses include theoretical education tailored to each clinical stage and on-the-job training programmes, such as hands-on presentations and live surgery, which are helpful for real-life clinical settings so that trainees, from beginners to skilled practitioners, can grow as clinical professionals.

The master course, in particular, is a premium clinical education programme designed to enhance the independent surgical procedure rate of dentists. Composed of entire courses, ranging from the basics of implant surgery to implant prostheses, the programme covers the principal implant-related topics. As at the end of August, more than 98,000 dentists worldwide had completed clinical education courses offered by Osstem Implant.

Besides implants, the company provides dental materials and digital equipment in more than 80 countries via overseas subsidiaries and dealer networks. It produces 16.5 million sets of components annually at its manufacturing facilities in South Korea, the US and China.

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