The dental technician who loves old motorcycles

10 November 2017

Lutz Brinkmann loves solid craftsmanship. The dental technician and laboratory owner from Mutterstadt/Germany has focussed on top quality for decades. Together with his team, he works tirelessly on high quality restorations. Brinkmann opened his laboratory in 1994.

Nearly a dentist

His mother, a dentist, wanted Lutz Brinkmann to become a dentist too. “But I decided to start an apprenticeship as a dental technician. I quickly noticed that I enjoyed dental technology, so I stayed with it.”

A passion for quality and details

He was able to use his talent for crafts: “As a youngster I had creative skills and manual dexterity. Among other things, I used to make model aircrafts”, Brinkmann recalls. He goes about his work with a focus on quality and a passion for detail. This applies in the dental laboratory as well as in his spare time. Lutz Brinkmann has an extraordinary hobby: He collects and restores old motorcycles. In total, he has 6 bikes to his name. Sometimes he even shows them at exhibitions. His oldest model is a Zündapp DBK 250 from 1939. Tinkering away in his garage at the weekend or in the evening after work is a welcome change: “It helps me to switch off”.

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A balance between work and private life

Lutz Brinkmann’s hobby has been a welcome change to offset the strain of some stressful phases. For example, when Brinkmann was studying for his Master examination in the 1990’s. “That wasn’t easy. I had to study everything whilst running my business at the same time”, he recalls. Then there were the difficult years after the German health reform in 2005. “There was a sharp drop in turnover for German dental technicians”, Brinkmann looks back.

A vintage furnace in the lab

Even if dental restorations and motorcycles have nothing to do with each other at first sight: Both have something in common. For example, the attention to detail and high quality. Lutz Brinkmann is is very particular - when choosing his motorcycles and with his equipment and materials in the laboratory. There, he has always worked with Programat furnaces. Brinkmann appreciates their simple, clear operation and the quality of the firing results. To this day, he still has one of the first Programat furnaces of 1977. In the meantime, apart from this oldie, Brinkmann also has the latest top model, the Programat P710 SE, which he won in a competition from Ivoclar Vivadent. “The firing results from this furnace are fantastic”, Brinkmann praises.

Are you unsure about the correct way to calibrate your dental furnace? Then you are in good company. These are questions often asked by dental technicians: (Why) Do ceramic furnaces need to be calibrated? Which options are there? Which is the best method? In this checklist, we have put together the most important tips on calibration.