OSSTEM IMPLANT

What's your point? Dentsply, Sybron, 3M, Vivadent, KaVo, Kulzer, GC America, A-dec, Belmont, etc, etc, are not run by dentists and are the standards of quality and performance in the dental industry.
Bottom line: yes, hire docs (and engineers) to develop product, but hire people with business background to run them.

 

Re: NizDick's Out

This seems closer to the truth than anything posted before. The ID line is confused at best and presented using techniques typical of used car salesmen in the 50's. Furthermore, the heralded trilobe design Jerry cloned is a typical flat to flat interface that is fading into implant history. What is surprising is that Jerry doesn't seem to understand this. Starting with a clear sheet of paper and with his manufacturing background wouldn’t you have expected better? To think that all he could do was clone outdated designs is somewhat pathetic. The fact that he was able to get around pertinent patents only shows misguided intelligence.

 

Re: NizDick's Out

This seems closer to the truth than anything posted before. The ID line is confused at best and presented using techniques typical of used car salesmen from the 50's. Furthermore, the heralded trilobe design cloned is a typical flat to flat interface that is fast fading into implant history. It is surprising that Jerry doesn't seem or want to understand this. Starting with a clean sheet of paper and with his manufacturing background wouldn’t you have expected better? To think that he could do no more than clone outdated designs is somewhat pathetic - the fact that he was able to get around pertinent patents only demonstrates misguided intelligence.

But you do have to give him credit since he is selling at least 20M doing what he is doing based on yesterday's news..................

 

Re: NizDick's Out

Giving away 15 million in free product to trump up 20 mil in sales may look good on the outside, but the people that he is already trying to get to buy him out have seen right through this and moved on. The for sale sign is still in the front lawn....

Sales "numbers" do not always equate to sustained profitability, and it is a lot easier to bury that when you are privately held.

 

Wait a minute, you mean that an employee from one implant company qit to work for another? SHOCKING!!!!!!!

 

Re: NizDick's Out

You really have to question the authenticity and reliability of any accounting numbers when they are being presented by Niznick. He is obviously concerned with only himself, not the patients, not other companies, not his employees. He has no conscience, or morality at all. Therefore, I would wonder how the heck any company would be able to accurately evaluate his books if he were to sell his current smoke and mirror operation. I love the analogy of the website and promo pieces looking like a used car ad from the 1950's, so accurate. To think he is selling a product that is implanted into the human body is inconceivable. The website looks like he should be selling a fat dissolving lotion or a set of knives. Truly in bad taste, and shows that Niznick thinks that he is an expert at everything, including marketing, and website design. I shutter to think that an outside company put that disaster together. Has the Niznick cheesy ball quality written all over it. I love the fact that he believes that his pictures splattered all over everything with the thumbs up really will get peoples attention. He calls it branding. Everyone I know calls it horrendous. He doesn't understand what he is selling is not a screw. It is something that will make life better, something that will improve the quality of one's life. Something that will bring back function. Allow someone to to eat once again. He is selling a concept. But the fact that he is stuck in the 1950's product style marketing, really illustrates his out of touch, one track mind. And no Niznick I don't work for Nobel, you paranoid geezer.

 

What does everyone think of OSSTEM? Did you know they changed there name to HIOSSEN in the US?

 

Hiossen sounds like a Chinese Sauce you would put on chicken lo mein. And even has the look of the word Hussein, neither parallel has any relation to osseo implants, bone integration, or dentistry. Osstem, in and of itself was a terrible name, sounded like the word esteem, as in low esteem.
You'd think that the people at this company would have hired a reputable, American branding company to replace their name. Sounds like they failed with that effort. But you have to remember the CEO of this company is named Kyoo-Ok Choi, a name most American's can't even pronounce. A comedy of errors overall. Good luck to all who work for Osstem/Housen Sauce.

 

Whats an american sounding name to you?

 

Even though I didn't know Korean, I worked for them
last year and loved it~Only reason I left is because I moved.

 

yankee blue jean cheeseburger implants!

 

The Korean Implant Companies are quite humorous. The CEO is usually a dentist/surgeon who is a self appointed implant design expert/micromanager/egomaniac. The Korean market began with Osstem then followed by Dentium. They successfully captured South Korea based upon nationalism and price. Shortly thereafter, numerous implant companies rose from the bowels of the original two companies. Then the Monte Hall syndrome hit and it became how many can you swap and how low can you go. Nobody makes any money in Korea at this time so they move to the land of milk and honey, America. Attempt to open up manufacturing centers with little to no regard for regulatory,i.e. FDA. Usually get in trouble with FDA once they catch up with them. Fight tooth and nail for the Korean American docs and end up slashing and burning pricing. Attend a KADA meeting in Little Korea (Los Angeles) it is absolutely hilarious. You could be talking to a Dr. and a Korean speaking competitve rep will interupt you and literally grab the Dr. away from the booth. It is easily verified that you can buy as low as $65.00 for a fixture. They make Niznick look high priced. That's only after they give you freebies on a swap. They attempt to go into Universities and get clinical studies done that is until they are told they cost money, and alot of it.. Their are some professors who will speak at their Seminars and take the honorarium even though they would never use their product. They honestly believe they will use it in the future! Unfortunately these genius CEO's never looked at the LG and Samsung business models for the US. If they did they may have had a chance. So the change to any even more obscure name is just par for the course.

 

While I agree that Osstem Implant will probably not survive much longer in America, they have solid products. Bottom line, they are a low priced ,knock-off implant company and in the history of dental implants, the lowest priced company doesnt win the race.

 

For a low cost implant company they are a bit quirky regarding the cost of sale in the US. Sace in point, they spent a ton of money setting up shop in the Philly area at the old US Steel plant. To my knowledge they are still not manufacturing at that facility. In addition, their management in the States(Korean transplants) believe that you need physical offices in the areas you serve. Therefore they go into an area find an office building then hire reps. They believe that reps will not get the message if they first don't report in the morning. Korean managemet style or should I say micromanagement. So with this cost basis you would think they would sell at a higher price, quite the contrary. Their reps on the other hand have a very low base (around 30K) by American Implant Company standards. I won't even get into their philosophy on female reps and the hiring requirements, let's just say they would not fly in a labor legal hearing. But as one of the previous posters stated they are quite humorous to watch at Dental Shows. They love going to all the booths and take literature and ask questions. This is a major source of their sales training.

 

Korean companies are about 40 years behind the times. I remember the classic example of Daewoo cars when they attempted to break into the US market. They were going to recruit college students as sales reps, and those college students would tell other college students about Daewoo cars, and then they would buy and tell more students. All without traditional dealers. Needless to say they failed miserably. Sounds like this Osstem company is on a similar route. Another Korean dental company, Ewoo, a Cone Beam CT company is kind fo the same. No one speaks English, they have no clue as to marketing or customer service, but are trying to sell a $150K machine to dentists. Clueless. Lots of Koreans with more money than brains.

 

You reps have your heads in the sand... it's actually funny to watch. You're all nuts if you think that implants are different. Doctors have a preference (connection, referring doctors, whatever), but they all work today. I run the implant dept at a large lab - in 2008 we restored over a thousand units. We buy most of our abutments from Implant Direct or Attachements International. There are no legal, moral, ethical or warranty-related issues with this. If you cast a UCLA abutment from Nobel (GoldAdapt) or Implant Direct, there is nothing left that is original, except the screw. A black screw from Nobel isn't worth and extra $100 in total cost vs. getting a black screw from Niznick (even has the unigrip fitting). If you believe otherwise you're a fool... and yes, we bill the doctor for the list price from the original manufacturer. Your company knows this is happening and tries to use 'warranty' as a tactic, yet your marketing department publishes success rates of 95% plus! The two just don't match up...Warranty, really? Biohazard has a lifetime warranty including the restoration if you use their lab, and we didn't lose any of our users to Micro as a result... I'm sure it makes for a good sales meeting presentation though. Also, ask your company what their implant to abutment ratio is...
Oh, and the Nobel and Straumann reps are in the lab A LOT, bringing us food, etc (which is very nice and we appreciate it). They think we advocate for their systems - which in some respect we do, because we will restore most systems, and only decline to restore a few (Bicon, Ankylos, etc.). I like the Procera custom zirconia abutments, and we use them, but it's literally the ONLY thing we buy from them (until we start seeing more Nobel Active cases). Hey Niznick, do you have anything compatible for that?

 

I have to say first I have never met a lab person who could sell or understood marketing a product based on added value and service. Usually small time, mom and pop operations with non existent or antiqued marketing programs. The point is I would not expect the typical lab worker to have an understanding of modern marketing, pricing and brand perception. Ironically it will be labs like the poster works for that will shortly be a thing of the past. Why would a Dr use an American based local lab when he can send his work to a lab in either China or Mexico and get absolutely beautiful work done at a fraction of what the high paid American lab is charging? This is the current trend, and it is accelerating. Soon most doctors will realize that acceptable, mediocre lab work is all the same, whether it is done by a low paid Mexican artisan or a high paid, BMW driving American artisan. This poster does not understand the concept of added value, and in many respects is the same type of low priced whore as Niznick. He too one day may be a victim of a LOWER priced competitor company, When that day comes how do you defend your pricing, and service levels? It will be funny to see the day when this lab has to start laying off technicians because the doctors realize that they can get the same work done, albeit maybe lower quality, for a lot less. When all the lab work goes overseas, what is your plan? At least when a person is in sales, he can sell anything, dental implants, heart stents, ortho implants, all money makers. If all you know is how to cast teeth not too many options when looking for a job when the jobs have gone elsewhere. There is always the option of moving to Mexico or China to follow the work I suppose.

 

Nice try Niznik rep. Now get back to your telemarketing.

 

The lab guys perspective is based upon the fact that good solid labs can restore most implants. They are good! But the lab's frustration will become evident when they are required to purchase numerous prosthetic kits and inventory parts from new and obscure companies. This compounded with calling , lets say a Korean company, and the voice on the other end of the phone speaks little to some broken English. This will happen and the frustration will then hit the lab. One last statement, the labs are the unsung heroes in the implant process and the ones that get the least amount of credit with the most amount of grief. I am not one but have total respect for their expertise.

 

Hey Lab Rat,

Talk about having your head in the sand. What are you going to do when all the high paying lab tech jobs go to low paid Chinese and Equadorian workers? Its all the same stuff, undifferentiated lab service. Doctor sends out a UCLA abutment, a two peso an hour worker makes a beautiful PFM crown that fits beautifully on top of that Implant Direct implant. Doctor saves huge money by using low cost foreign lab. Former high paid US Lab guy sells hand tools at Home Depot or Lowes. No Mas trabajo.