1440 × 960Monolithic zirconia full-arch bridge · Recommended upload size · px
Construction
Full Arch Dental Lab for All-on-X, Ti-Bar, and Monolithic Zirconia Prostheses
Full-arch cases are long-span, high-stakes work. Error accumulates across scan, model, framework, try-in, and final — if any one segment drifts, you find out at seat, and chairside patching won't recover it. That's the segment we own.
As a full arch dental lab, we handle what happens between your digital record and the delivery box: intake validation, CAD design, Ti-bar or monolithic structure, prototype try-in, verified passive seat, and the records we need from you. We produce the hardware your plan for full arch restoration calls for; placement, grafting, and the surgical half of full arch dental implants stay with you.
Products We Build
We produce fixed, implant-supported full-arch restorations in four constructions. Each one has a different occlusal space envelope, failure mode, and repair path — pick based on opposing dentition, parafunction history, and how the case has to age.
1440 × 960Ti bar + zirconia or resin teeth · Recommended upload size · px
Construction
Ti bar + zirconia or resin teeth
1440 × 960Ti bar + PMMA (hybrid) · Recommended upload size · px
Construction
Ti bar + PMMA (hybrid)
1440 × 960PFM full arch · Recommended upload size · px
Construction
PFM full arch
Production Workflow and Turnaround
Production time depends on case complexity:
Regular cases (single crowns, standard crown-and-bridge, fixed restorations with complete records): 2–3 working days.
Complex cases (All-on-X, full-arch bridges, complex implant workflow, verification-jig cases): 5–7 working days.
The clock starts the day complete records arrive. It doesn't include design approval wait, missing-record follow-up, international shipping, or customs clearance. Chinese weekends and public holidays don't count as working days.
Verification Thresholds for a Passive Seat
The single biggest reason full-arch cases fail at seat is cumulative error across scan, model, framework, and bite. We work to specific tolerances at each stage, and we don't ship a final until the stage before it clears.
| Stage | What we check | Reference range |
|---|---|---|
| Intraoral scan intake | Scan body library match, mesh continuity, cross-arch stitching stability, soft-tissue drift | Full-arch intraoral scan trueness has been reported at about 0.005–0.023 mm in controlled studies — we use that as the acceptance envelope, not as a shipping claim. |
| Printed model (if we print) | Dimensional accuracy, shell thickness, build orientation | Published trueness for full-arch 3D-printed models sits in the 73.9–194 µm band, with model fabrication rarely being the limiting factor compared with scan and assembly steps. |
| Verification jig | Multi-implant position confirmed in-mouth before the final framework is committed | Standard for ≥4 implants with wide inter-implant distance, tilted implants, or distal cantilevers. |
| Ti bar / monolithic body | Passive seat on model with no finger pressure; screw access angle; emergence profile; cantilever length within case limits | Photo of the bar on the model is shared with you on request. |
| Prototype try-in (PMMA) | Occlusal relationship, VDO, midline, lip support, aesthetics, seat accuracy | Changes here are cheap; changes after this are not. |
| Final QC | Marginal integrity, screw-channel clearance, cross-arch stability, polish, shade against the approved try-in | QC team is separate from the technicians who built the case. |
If a full-arch case won't seat passively, the troubleshooting order is: scan and implant position records first, then model or verification jig, then framework. In practice the framework is usually the last place the problem lives — most non-passive seats trace back to scan data or multi-implant records collected at the surgery visit.
Records We Need from You
Full-arch cases need more intake data than a single crown. If any one of these is missing we'll ask before we start — we won't guess.
Intraoral scan with scan bodies seated, exported as STL / PLY / OBJ (or .3oxz for 3Shape, .dcm for the open workflow). PLY is preferred when soft-tissue color or shade information will be used downstream.
Opposing arch scan or model, plus a bite record that holds dimensional stability — PVS or polyether, not wax. Wax deforms in transit and kills otherwise clean cases.
CBCT data if you want us to cross-check implant positions against the scan.
Implant system labels: brand (Straumann, Nobel, MIS, Hiossen, Neodent, Zimmer, Osstem, Dentsply, and others), platform diameter, connection type, scan-body library name. The scan body brand matters — we need to match the library name, not just the brand.
Facebow transfer or facial photos for VDO, midline, and lip-support planning. For edentulous arches, the patient's old denture (or a wax rim) is useful as a starting point.
Shade and aesthetic references: Vita classical or 3D-Master shade tabs, patient photos in balanced lighting, and any smile design file.
Scanner compatibility: any intraoral scanner that exports an open format works. In practice we read 3Shape TRIOS (STL/PLY, or the full .3oxz case package), Medit (STL/PLY/OBJ, natively open), iTero (export through MyiTero to STL/PLY — we can't ingest encrypted iRecord files directly), CEREC/Sirona (STL/PLY; not the proprietary DXD/RST), Shining3D Aoralscan, and Planmeca.
For implant platforms we stock scan bodies, Ti bases, multi-unit abutments, temp cylinders, and tool sets across most mainstream systems. Original-manufacturer and verified compatible parts are both quotable; implant parts are a separate line item from the restoration.
Quality Control and Remake Policy
1440 × 960Full-arch final quality inspection · Recommended upload size · px
For a full arch dental lab, cross-arch stability and screw-channel accuracy are the two things that have to be caught before the box leaves. Our quality control is a separate department — about 25 inspectors whose only job is sign-off. They don't fabricate. The technician who built the case isn't the person who clears it to ship. First-pass QC acceptance (first-time terminal inspection pass, not counting rework retries) is tracked internally and photos of the inspection stage are available on request.
Remake rules we commit to in writing:
Most lab-side remakes are free. Covered reasons include non-passive seat traced to our fabrication, framework interference, marginal issues, shade miss against the approved try-in, visible cosmetic defects.
Shipping on returns and the cost of consumed implant parts (MUAs, screws, Ti bases, bars) are not included in free remakes.
Chargeable cases are specific and declared up front: client-requested changes to shade or material mid-case; cases built against our written note that records were insufficient; patient-side changes to the preparation after the initial scan.
If a case has gone through multiple remakes and still can't be made to work, we stop, discuss root cause, and provide a refund rather than keep chasing a problem we can't solve.
Remake lead time is typically 3–5 working days from receipt, with priority slotting.
About Istar Dental Lab
Fourteen years as a direct manufacturer. Istar opened in 2012 and has run the same two production sites (Shenzhen and Huizhou) since then. Direct manufacturing means when something fails at try-in, the person on the other end of your email works in the department that made the part — not a customer-service layer three steps removed from the technician.
One roof, every step inside it. Case intake → CAD design → 3D model printing → CAM milling → zirconia sintering → porcelain layering (where applicable) → polishing → terminal QC → packaging → international shipment. If it ships with our label, we fabricated it. No case leaves the floor for a subcontracted step and comes back a week later with a surprise turnaround extension.
Nine specialized departments, about 460 permanent staff. CAD design runs about 100 people, so a full-arch case doesn't wait three days for a designer. Milling operates with 70-plus dedicated technicians who run the equipment as their primary job. Implant prosthetics is an 80-person department where All-on-X, Ti-bar hybrids, and monolithic full arches are fabricated daily — not as occasional projects between crown work.
A 50-technician trained reserve bench. When peak season hits (and it hits every December), we rotate in backup staff so delivery dates hold. Your mid-December case still ships mid-December.
Regulatory registrations maintained for cross-border shipments. FDA facility registration and device listing (US). EU MDR custom-device notification under Annex XIII through our authorized representative (EEA). MHRA registration (UK). ISO 13485:2016 across the lab. ISO 10993 compliance documentation on materials. We maintain these because about half our case volume crosses into markets where one missing registration number stops the shipment at customs.
FAQ
How do you keep patient-identifying data off the lab floor?
Clinical prescriptions don't come onto the production floor. Our case coordinators extract only the production-relevant fields from your work order and assign each case an internal case ID. Everything the technicians, QC team, and shipping staff see is referenced by that ID. Standard NDA, quality, and supplier agreements are available, and the coordinator team signs the same NDA internally.
How do Chinese New Year and other public holidays affect my cases?
Chinese Spring Festival (typically a 7–10 day stretch in late January or February), National Day in early October, and other public holidays suspend production. We publish the specific holiday block each year and send cutoff reminders a few weeks ahead so cases either land in time or get queued for restart on the first working day after the break.
Original-manufacturer parts or verified compatible parts — how should I decide for a full-arch case?
Original is the safer default when the implant system is still in active production and the budget allows it, especially for long-span cases where multi-unit abutment seat tolerance stacks across every connection. Verified compatible parts are a reasonable path when the original line has been discontinued, when stock lead time is prohibitive, or when the case design can tolerate the compatible part's documented tolerance. We quote both and give you a straight answer on where each one holds and where it doesn't.
For a repeat order of the same prosthesis design in different cases, how is color and form consistency controlled across batches?
We lock the confirmed shade reference, patient photos, and the original CAD design file to the case family. Material lot and sintering parameters are fixed for the run; each batch keeps a reference sample for direct comparison. QC inspectors cross-check color, translucency, and form across batches under standardized lighting rather than relying on each technician's eye.
What do I put on the customs declaration when shipping impressions or models to you?
Product name: dental restoration or denture. Declared value: the actual processing fee for the case (don't under-declare). Purpose: dental patient restoration for individual medical use, not for commercial resale. We'll walk you through it the first time and share the standard commercial invoice template.
If a shipment is lost or damaged in transit, who files the claim?
The client files the claim with the courier; we provide the order documentation they need (packing list, declared value, photos of pre-shipment packaging). If the box arrives visibly damaged, open it on camera and keep the original packaging — insurance claims need that evidence inside 24 hours. For claims that are approved and documented, we prioritize a free remake over waiting for the full insurance settlement.
Can you integrate with a digital smile design or DSD workflow?
Yes. If you supply a DSD-generated virtual setup, facial reference photos, or a smile design file (from exocad, 3Shape Smile Design, or other platforms), we'll match the design targets for tooth length, width, midline, gingival zenith, incisal edge position, and lip-line guidance. The try-in prototype is where we verify the translation from virtual to physical before committing the final.
Start a Full Arch Case
If this is your first case with us, send one through on normal flow and judge the output:
Arch (upper, lower, or both), implant brand and count, construction preference
Scan file or the scanner you use
Target delivery window and whether this is a rush case
Any clinical nuance — opposing dentition, parafunction, aesthetic priority, patient's old prosthesis if relevant
We respond within one working day with a line-item quote covering design, model, parts, packaging, and outbound shipping, plus a delivery timeline you can take to the chair. Use the inquiry form below, or write to our case coordinator directly.
Want to get in touch directly? Reach out to our sales representative via WhatsApp at +8618925410015 for a quick response and a price quote!