1083 Ashford Orthodontics with Sean Thompson: Dentistry Uncensored with Howard Farran

Sean would refer to himself as a slow starter, but he eventually went on to gain his post graduate diploma in Maxillofacial Prosthetics & Technology at Manchester University whilst working in the Orthodontic & Maxillofacial laboratory at Sunderland Royal Hospital. In 2003 he achieved the only highest possible grade, pass with distinction to date in this speciality, earning him a coveted award from his national body in the process. Prior to this Sean had studied for four years to gain his Dental Technology qualification, and a further four years at Newcastle for his Advanced certificates in Orthodontic Technology and also Prosthodontic Technology. Sean has gained a reputation that is second to none in the field of Orthodontic Technology and he was appointed to the national council of the Orthodontic Technicians Association in 2012 in recognition of this. Sean established Ashford Orthodontics in 2001 due to specialist clinicians needing a laboratory specializing in Orthodontic technology rather than having to send their work to general laboratories which simply dabble in this speciality. Two new directors in Craig Stevens and Graeme Winyard joined in 2005 when Ashford became a limited company, and between them they have over 75 years’ worth of experience in this field. Ashford employs over 50 highly skilled members of staff and bases its success on the quality of the work they produce being directly linked to the quality & training of the staff they employ. Sean has been instrumental in steering the company though its recent successes, seeing Ashford invest heavily as an early implementer in Digital Technology, forming the retainerworld brand in the process, allowing Ashford to create and secure diverse income streams into the lab. This deliberate business model has resulted in rapid but sustainable growth in the last few years, and has firmly established Ashford as a leading light in this field. Ashford is now the Technical strength behind various other company’s, allowing it to expand into the field of 3D scanning and printing which in turn has allowed them to export to Scandanavia, Belgium, The Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand. The company continues to expand following it’s seventeen years of continuous growth since inception, and is currently in discussions to increase it’s income streams further with even more new and diverse partnerships.