Investment fuels further development of 3D printing technology as well as expanding service, training and education for customer community
BURLINGTON, Mass. - Nov. 2, 2021 - LightForce Orthodontics, makers of the world’s only fully customized 3D printed bracket system, today announced that the company raised a $50 million Series C round led by Kleiner Perkins, one of the most prestigious venture capitalist firms in the world. The investment follows on the heels of LightForce posting over a 500% revenue growth rate during the past year in which the company developed two new products and grew their team year over year by 300%. The new funds will further support existing LightForce customers with expanded service, training and education.
“LightForce was founded to provide fully customized, USA-made treatment options for orthodontists interested in offering modern, digital treatment to their patients,” said LightForce CEO and co-founder Dr. Alfred Griffin III, DMD, PhD, MMSc. “The investment allows us to continue creating mass-customized brackets that enable orthodontists to provide a personalized patient experience within an industry that has not evolved the use of brackets in the last 25 years. In fact, without LightForce, patients today would likely be wearing the same sort of brackets their parents did back when they were teenagers. With these new funds, LightForce will further champion the unmet needs of the modern teen market by complimenting aligner cases and allowing orthodontists to take their practices fully digital. A patient’s teeth are all unique as snowflakes, and now doctors have the technology to account for that individualism in their treatment plan, just as they have with their aligner cases. We are excited to continue implementing 3D printing technology in orthodontics in new and innovative ways to create a new standard of care for all braces patients.”
Since no set of teeth is the same and 70% of patients require braces instead ofaligners, LightForce’s 3D printing technology enables complete and infinite personalization for each patient. One of LightForce’s biggest differentiators is its ability to 3D print brackets that fit the unique tooth morphology of each patient, customization that would otherwise be unavailable to patients with traditional braces. LightForce’s dynamic and modern technology provides a patient-specific alternative to traditional braces, ensuring that today’s patients will not need to endure the dated “one-size-fits-all” approach to braces that often fails to meet the patient experience and efficient clinical outcomes. As a result, patients and doctors are able to see shorter treatment times, fewer appointments, better outcomes, and an overall more efficient and comfortable experience. In an industry where precision is key, 3D printing allows orthodontists to fine tune each tooth movement down to a micron, one-thousandth of a millimeter, resulting in a balanced bite and smile tailored to each unique patient.
“LightForce’s innovative approach to an industry that has lacked technological disruptiveness for the past 25 years is what initially attracted us to this investment opportunity,” said Wen Hsieh, partner, Kleiner Perkins. “Having previously-invested in the first digital revolution of orthodontics decades ago through Align Technology, Kleiner Perkins is excited to invest in the second-wave of orthodontics digitization through Lightforce. We’re excited to partner with Co-Founder-CEO Alfred Griffin and the Lightforce team to leverage the latest 3D printing technology to further enhance the doctor and patient experience with bracket-based orthodontics."
Digital customization with 3D printing offers several key advantages to doctors and patients that work with LightForce, including:
● Scalable and Efficient Treatments, allowing doctors to reach new levels of efficiency without sacrificing product quality or patient comfort.
● Patient-Specific Prescriptions means that treatment plans are designed with proprietary software, combined with advanced 3D printing technology, to create precise and fully custom treatments for every patient.
● Digitizing Fixed Appliances bring the planning simplicity, practice consistency and ease of use seen today in direct-to-consumer aligners into the world of fixed appliances.
In the last year, LightForce has developed additional orthodontic advancements such as the Light Bracket, which is their line of translucent brackets. The Light Bracket is a more aesthetic option that blends in with the color of a patient’s teeth, reducing the visibility of treatment.
For more information about LightForce Orthodontics, please visit www.lightforceortho.com/. Orthodontists interested in adding LightForce’s technology to their practice should reach out here. For photos and videos, click here.
About LightForce Orthodontics
LightForce Orthodontics is a digital platform providing orthodontists with fully customized, 3D printed tooth- moving tools. Founded in 2015 by Dr. Alfred Griffin, DMD, PhD, MMSc, along with Dr. Lou Shuman, DMD, CAGS, LightForce is revolutionizing the specialty through advanced manufacturing and technology. After five years of extensive research and development, LightForce launched their first product to the Orthodontic market- the world’s first and only fully customized 3D printed bracket system and digital treatment software. Learn more at www.lightforceortho.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment