Have you checked out your supply chain?

Very probably – but are you quite so confident about the supply chain behind your dental equipment? Due largely to the massive growth in sales over the internet, and not just in dental equipment, there has been a parallel explosion in the numbers of companies purporting to be reputable suppliers, but which in fact turn out to be individuals or small companies, who are unlikely to be able to help you if things go wrong, and can vanish without trace once they have sent you the goods you have ordered.

Dental equipment represents a significant investment for the practice, and it is essential to check out who is providing it, and therefore is responsible for servicing it and fulfilling the terms of the warranty. The goods may be genuine – purchased from the manufacturer and sold on by the dealer through the internet or other channels – but it’s when things go wrong that you may find that the warranty is worthless, or that the supplier has disappeared. If you’re lucky, you may be able to get some assistance from the manufacturer, providing the goods are genuine, but it is the organisation from whom you bought the goods, i.e. the dealer, who is responsible for looking after it – your route of redress is through the person who supplied it to you.