3M Rising Stars: Golden Ticket to Willy Wonka's
If you follow my Instagram, you may have seen my trip to Germany with 3M a few weeks ago....but what was I doing there?
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| The group invited to Seefelt |
3M (no longer 3M ESPE) kindly invited me to their research and development site in Seefelt along with several other inspiring dentists. A chance to sample the Bavarian culture as well as see the insides of where the dental products I use are made!
It felt well and truly like being able to see the inside of Willy Wonka's chocolate factory and I was humbled to be invited alongside some pretty well known names in dentistry. I also learnt that 3M not only make dental and orthodontic products but post-it notes, adhesive tape and even the glue that holds planes together.
After a rocky plane journey from London, we landed in Munich greeted by the the UKs 3M staff: John, Gavin and Amy. Although we only spent 2 days with each other, by the time it we had to journey back to the UK, I felt like I'd known the others for much longer and it was a fantastic way to get to know other dentists throughout the UK.
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| Proudly showing off my visitor's pass |
The first day we learnt about some of the post popular 3M dental products like Impregum, RelyX and Scotchbond and of course have a little play. One of my favourites was the new heavy VPS impression material Imprint which sets much quicker has it gives off heat during setting. All of us then of course had to take a blob in our hands and feel it get hot as it set.
In the afternoon we had a fantastic time designing our ideal resin cement and the packaging along with it! Everyone gave it 120% and I think some of the groups came up with cutting edge innovations (see our box below where our cement is a universal shade that adapts to it's environment.....hence the name) and some impressive shelf lives (5, 10, 15+!!).
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| My groups innovation new resin cement... and yes that is a chameleon not a fish. |
During the 2 days we also had the chance to have a guided tour around the labs which was very exciting. We weren't allowed to take any pictures of course but memorable bits including seeing the huge vats of impression materials being mixed (honestly the size of a smart car) and the conveyor belt of robots loading up the local anaesthetic cartridges. We also got to product test some of the new materials coming out soon from 3M and meet the inventors of some of their big-sellers (like Filtek Bulkfill).
Not only were there educational activities, but we had a delicious traditional Bavarian meal (with Bavarian beer of course) alongside the lake Stamberger See where we had the most beautiful view of the sunset that I spammed all over my Instagram.
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| The view of the lake while we were having dinner. |
I'd like to thank all of the 3M team for their hospitality and organising this fun and educational trip - it was great to meet everyone. I'd definitely recommend the trip if you get the chance!
Do you use any 3M products? Or been to Seefelt in person? Let me know in the comments below.
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